Sermon nuggets Tues March 25, 2008
Theme Easter benefits
Verses –John 5:17-23 Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working."
18 For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
19 Jesus gave them this answer: "I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these. For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it.
22 Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him. (NIV)
Knowing God
The Jews were upset because Jesus healed the lame man and happened to pick the wrong day of the week. When God created the world He said He rested on the seventh day. When He gave the commandments to Moses He told them to honor the Sabbath. It was a day for the Lord and no one was to do work on that day.
Now when the people began to define work the lists got very very long and one of the things on the list of no-nos was to help someone get better. You could prevent them from getting worse, but not to get better. Jesus healed the man but instead of being excited about this man who for 38 years could not walk, the Jews were upset that Jesus did it on the Sabbath so they concluded he couldn’t possibly be from God.
Jesus claimed to be doing the work of God. He also called God “my Father”, indicating an intimacy not expressed by Jews to God before.
How do we explain the concept of the trinity or divinity and humanity of Jesus, the duel natures that seem to be a contradiction? We must remember that language is accommodating to our limited comprehension and God can only tell us things that we have some knowledge in order to get a fuzzy, but incomplete understanding. We have one God. The Bible explains Him in three persons.
This unique relationship tells us the Son will judge all people. The Jews believed only the Father could judge, so in placing himself in that role is making Himself equal with God. The Jews caught on to it. That is why they tried all the harder to kill him. He not only broke Sabbath laws, but he was calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. Acts 17:31 tells us the Father appointed the Son to judge the world. Jesus is qualified to be the judge because of the unique relationship of being God-Man. He knows exactly all that is in the heart and mind of the person as well as the actions. He knows the holiness of God and the purity of the Father. He has participated in the life on earth and understands the working of mankind. He knows temptations and He knows power. He is divine and he is human. He has sympathy for our weakness, and knows our considerations, but there is no other who can better judge us in righteousness and in truth.
What would your reaction be to a man who would tell you he was equal to God? That He would sit in judgment upon the entire world? That the whole world would honor Him and that honoring Him would be the same as to honor the Father?
The alternatives are either complete rejection or complete acceptance. The Easter blessing is to now know the truth. In knowing that truth we can have a relationship with God almighty based on what He did for us on the cross. Based on that relationship, it gives us a new direction and purpose in living temporarily on this earth. We can know and serve our God!
Pastor Dale
