Daily Devotions
John
A summary of this discourse with the Jews
Text: John 5:16-47
A SUMMARY OF THIS DISCOURSE WITH THE JEWS
It is important that we take time to review by summarization what Jesus sought to do in this long discourse with The Jews.
1. The Context of this Discourse
Jesus had healed a man who had been paralyzed for some thirty-eight years. The healing took place on a Sabbath and Jesus told the man that he could take up his bed and walk – for the first time after nearly four decades!
The Jews took offence at what Jesus said and did! Instead of rejoicing with the man that he was healed at all, they seized the opportunity to condemn Jesus. They persecuted Him and sought to kill Him.
Jesus spoke to The Jews, hoping to help them understand Him better. If they would only listen, they could even have found eternal life through the Gospel Jesus presented!
2. The Discourse on the Divine Sonship of Jesus
Jesus pointed out that He had every right to speak of Himself as The Divine-Eternal Son of God. He referred to God most intimately as “Father”. He maintained that His Father loved Him and was with Him. He worked through Him and would display even greater works through His Son.
3. The Discourse on The Son as the Ultimate Judge of Man
Jesus was no ordinary human being. He was both Son of Man and Son of God! He was also given the prerogative by God to become the Person who will preside at God’s hall of justice on Judgment Day!
One day, all will stand before God. The Person who will give judgment on that fateful day would be none other than Jesus Himself!
4. The Discourse on the Witnesses of Jesus
The claims of Jesus must have appeared to be very bold in the ears of The Jews. However, Jesus appealed to faithful and outstanding witnesses whose word should have a powerful cumulative impact on the hearers. Just one witness should have been sufficient, but Jesus produced more than sufficient witnesses!
A LOVING EFFORT WASTED
The purpose of this extended discussion was clear. He wanted The Jews to be convinced that He was their Messiah. He produced proof after proof that He was The Anointed One of God. If only they had opened their hearts and their minds, they would have understood Jesus and received eternal life through faith in Him. To no other group of people had Jesus tried so hard to explain His Gospel, yet for all that He did, His words fell on deaf ears.
THE UNDERLYING DEEP-SEATED PROBLEM OF THE JEWS
Jesus exposed the heart of The Jews. They stumbled themselves. They had formed their own religious system where they ended up being impervious to the hearing of the Word of God. Sadly, Jesus concluded His discourse with The Jews on this note.
“Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father;
there is one who accuses you – Moses, in whom you trust.
For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me;
for he wrote about Me.
But if you do not believe his writings,
how will you believe My words?”
John 5:45-47
What was the real problem? Was the problem with Jesus and what He said? Did The Jews see Jesus as an Accuser? Jesus would not need to be the One who would stand up to accuse them on Judgment Day. Moses himself would take the witness stand and point an accusing finger against The Jews.
Jesus pointed out the real problem. This was an underlying, and deep-seated problem the Jews had. They may have read the Scriptures. They may even be called “scholars” of the Scriptures, but they lacked one important thing. They did not believe in the Scriptures they read and studied! What an anomaly!
If the Jews did not even believe in the Scriptures they read, how would they believe what Jesus said? We are reminded of a passage in the Book of Hebrews.
“Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest,
let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.
For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them;
but the word which they heard did not profit them,
not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.”
Hebrews 4:1-2
The Jews had seen the mighty miracles of Jesus. Instead of being moved by the power and compassion of Jesus evidenced in the healing of the paralyzed man, they found fault with Him.
The Jews also heard a long discourse of Jesus where He explained most clearly who He was. However His words did not touch or impact their hearts in any way. They heard the Gospel from the lips of Jesus Himself, but they did not have any faith in their hearts at all. Thus the Word did not “profit them” at all.
ARE WE READING THE WORD OF GOD WITH FAITH IN OUR HEARTS?
How important it is that we examine our own hearts as we read the Scriptures! How we read and respond to the Scriptures will make all the difference in the way the Scriptures will impact us!
The Jews did not possess faith and thus for all the time they spent perusing the Scriptures, their hearts remained cold, and their eyes remained blind. Let us check our faith as we read the Lord’s Word. Few things are so important as having real faith!