Mahatma Gandhi once said, "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." He also wrote, "You Christians look after a document [Bible] containing enough dynamite to blow all civilization to pieces, turn the world upside down and bring peace to a battle-torn planet. But you treat it as if it is nothing more than a piece of literature."For this reason we also thank God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe. --1 Thessalonians 2:13
The Bible is powerful when applied correctly, but powerless when ignored or misapplied. When we see that the entire Bible points to Christ and His supremacy, then God can affect a change in our hearts, and we can affect change in our world. Rejecting Christ means rejecting the word of God. Rejecting the word of God makes you an enemy of God, like those Jews who confronted Jesus in John chapter 8.
We have seen in the first half of this passage the Jewish leaders confronting Jesus and questioning His authority. Jesus made some bold claims, and some believed. Those who did not believe turned a spirited debate into a life-and-death struggle with the Savior.
Let's take up our reading in verse 28:
Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift us the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him." As He spoke these words, many believed in Him. --John 8:28-30
If you looked at an inter-linear Bible, you will see that Jesus did not say, "I am He." Bible translators and editors changed it so that it would make more sense grammatically. What Jesus actually said was, "I am."
Now any self-respecting Jew would know that I AM refers to Exodus 3:14, where God told Moses, "I AM that I AM; tell [the people of Israel] that I AM has sent you." If they were having a light theological discussion up to now, at this point it became serious. Jesus was actually identifying Himself with God, not as a mere follower or disciple of God, but as the Son of God.
When Jesus self-identified as "Son of Man", He was referencing the prophet Ezekiel. Jewish leaders knew that the book of Ezekiel explores such profound themes as the glory of God, judgment and restoration, divine sovereignty, and the consequences of disobedience. "Son of Man" is a name that God Himself gave to the prophet Ezekiel, and it was a name that Jesus gave to Himself.
When Jesus referred to God as His Father, He was claiming not only a relationship with God, but that He was equal to God, having the same authority as God and exhibiting the same power as God. This is why we will see later in our passage that the Jews questioned His lineage, calling Him an illegitimate son and a Samaritan.
So the crowd was divided. On the one hand were people who believed in Him: believed that He was the Son of God, the Messiah. On the other hand were people who believed that He was a liar and a blasphemer. Jesus addresses each group in turn.
Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." --John 8:31-32
Jesus wants to encourage believers to seek the truth. In John 14:6 Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me." Jesus wanted His true disciples to listen to His words and put them into practice. In short, He wanted them to live as He lived.
His detractors in the crowd challenged Him in a crazy way. "They answered Him, 'We are Abraham's descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, "You will be made free'?" (John 8:33). You can tell that the Jewish leaders are getting desperate now, because their argument does not hold water. Weren't the Jews slaves in Egypt? Weren't they carried off into exile in Babylon? Weren't they even now forced subjects of the Roman Empire? How can they say, "we've never been in bondage to anyone"?
Jesus overlooks their historical inaccuracy and makes a different point.
Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. I know that you are Abraham's descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father." They said to Him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham. But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this. You do the deeds of your father." --John 8:34-41
Jesus calls them slaves to sin, and sons of the devil. Over their objection that they are not subject to any master, Jesus rightly points out that their master is sin. NT Wright in his commentary John For Everyone, writes, "When people rebel against God in whatever way, new fields of force are called into being, a cumulative effect builds up, and individuals and societies alike become enslaved just as surely as if every single one of them wore chains and was hounded to work every day by a strong man with a whip."
They claimed to be children of Abraham, who was a faithful follower of God. Jesus was sent by God, and they did not listen to Him. Therefore their Abrahamic lineage counted for nothing if they did not do the work of God. Jesus was doing the works of His Father, and He was faithful. The Jews could not impeach His character, so they resorted to calling Him names.
Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father--God." Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are from your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand for truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me. Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God. --John 8:41-47
It has been said that when logic fails, an argument turns into name-calling. They knew that Jesus claimed to be born of a virgin, and that Joseph was not His father, so the Jews reverted to name-calling. "We were not born of fornication," they said, implying that Jesus's mother had been unfaithful. Then they claimed that they were the true children of God. Jesus overlooks the personal dig and exposes their lying. Satan is the father of lies, so their lying reveals their ancestry. Satan is a murderer, so their plotting to murder Him is further evidence of their lineage and allegiance.
Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?" Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death." --John 8:48-51
Continuing their name-calling, they threw a racial epithet at Jesus. Jews hated Samaritans because they descended from unfaithful Jews who had inter-married with Gentiles during the Assyrian occupation in 721 BC. Calling Jesus a Samaritan was another dig at His paternity, as there was a rumor that His mother Mary had been impregnated by a Roman soldier. Jesus again ignores this dig and goes to the other accusation, that He was demon possessed.
As proof that He was not possessed by a demon, Jesus points out that His whole life had been spent honoring God. Demons do not honor God; they engage in self-promotion. Jesus says He does not seek His own glory, as demons would. Then He makes a bold claim: anyone who keeps His words will not face death. Note that He is not saying that His followers will never die. Of course we know that all mortal men die. It is the spirit that lives on beyond death. Followers of Jesus will not face the second death called Hell. Further, we will not fear death, as it is not our final destination.
Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.' Are you greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?" Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad." --John 8:52-56
Jesus made a bold claim of immortality, something that most orthodox Jews believed in. However, the Jews twisted His words. Did you see it? Jesus said His followers would not "see" death--they would not face it with dread. The original Greek word has a meaning of pondering it or mulling it over. The Jews thought He had said they would never "taste" death--never experience it. The Greek word used here literally means partake of or enjoy.
They again invoke the name of Abraham, stating that he was dead. Jesus had claimed to be a prophet, and all the prophets were dead. Just who did Jesus think He was?
Jesus doubles down. This Abraham you keep talking about? He knows Me. He foresaw My coming and rejoiced in it. The Jews were taken aback by this statement.
Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by." --John 8:57-59
Abraham lived about 2000 years before Jesus. Jesus was just over 30 years old. The Jews stated the obvious--You are young, so You could not have seen Abraham alive. Jesus answered that He Himself was alive before Abraham was even born. In fact, before Abraham existed, Jesus co-existed with God. The New Cambridge Bible Commentary says,
The key to 8:58 is our recognition of two forms of existence. All mortals come into existence and die; they are created in the past and perish in the future. But God, the Immortal One, has no beginning or ending; God is uncreated and imperishable. God eternally "is." And this, too, the author [John] claims for Jesus.... Here, the claim is made that Jesus's "life in Himself" extends into the past, such that, unlike Abraham, Jesus did not "come into being" but always "was" or, more accurately, always "is."
The Jews correctly ascertained that Jesus was making a claim to be God. This was heresy, a blasphemy deserving of death. They picked up stones to execute Him, but He walked out through the midst of them. It was not yet His time, but He had thrown down the gauntlet. The Jews had picked it up, choosing to believe in their traditions and not in Jesus.
They had considered the evidence and were ready to act, based on their idea of "justice." When you consider the evidence, are you moved to act? You can't be impartial. Either Jesus is the Christ or He is not. If He is not, then you want to silence Him once and for all. If He is, then you must side with believers, who placed their trust in Him. If you believe He existed before time, that he has the power to lay down His life and take it up again, that He has the power to save--if you believe all of that, then you must be changed, transformed into a child of God, ready to lay down your own life for Him who laid down His life for you.
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