The Father's Son

February 26 The Father’s Son John 5:16-30

“Therefore let us keep our eyes on Christ as He was sent into the world to be our Redeemer. The Jews saw nothing higher than human nature in Him. And so He insists that that it was not His humanity which healed the sick man but His divine power… they fixed on the sight of His flesh and despised Christ; and so He commands them to rise higher and look at God.” John Calvin “Commentary on John” Vol. 4:125

Christianity is not, ultimately, a set of moral teachings or a philosophy of life; it is not a means of interpreting our world or a code of religious principles. Christianity is all about Jesus Christ. We are Christians because we believe that Jesus is who He says He is: the Christ, the Son of God. It’s all about Jesus.

The man who had been healed reported to the authorities, having met with Jesus for a second time. There seems to have been scarcely an ounce of gratitude in him; perhaps he was simply afraid. Whatever the reason, he was anxious to tell the Pharisees who had made him break the Sabbath. He looked to shift the blame. Interestingly, the authorities were more concerned with the mat than with the act of healing. They had lost sight of God’s priorities. They thought their rules were more important than that an invalid had been restored.

Jesus defended Himself by pointing out that He was doing the Lord’s work. God’s Son would not rest, even on the Sabbath, as long as there were deeds of mercy waiting to be done. In effect, Jesus claimed that He had not really broken the Sabbath; He had fulfilled its greatest purpose, which was to bring glory and honor to God the Father. His words must have astonished His hearers. The rabbi from Nazareth was getting ideas above His station. In fact, His words were blasphemous. He was claiming for Himself functions and privileges that could only belong to God.

If Jesus had not been in trouble before, from this time on He was a marked man. By healing on the Sabbath He had broken the fourth commandment, that the seventh day should be set aside for the Lord as holy. By speaking as He did, Jesus also broke the first commandment. His claims put Him on a level with God.

Jesus claimed to be the Judge. In doing so He made a clear case for His divinity since, according to Scripture, judgment belongs to the Lord. He also claimed to be the giver of life. If anyone was to hear His words and believe in the One who had sent Him, that person had passed over from death, they would not be condemned, they had received eternal life. This was a clear claim to divinity. Those who make Jesus out to be only a good teacher or an important prophet have the greatest difficulty with these words. And, we must face them, too. The Man who speaks must either be mad, or the greatest charlatan the world has ever known, or – He must be who He claims to be. Which is it?

We must not make do with a lesser Jesus. We must not confine Him to our human categories and then conclude that we have captured His essence. He is either: a lunatic, a liar, or Lord. There are no other alternatives available. It is too easy to be like the ungrateful man whom Jesus healed by the Pool of Siloam – willing to accept the benefits, but not the cost.

For further reading: Psalm 49