We're about halfway through the Gospel of John!
22 At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter,
The Feast of Dedication... what we now call Hanukkah.
It is an 8 day feast in December, which is a remembrance of the re-Dedication of the Temple.
In the Intertestamental period, the Jews were permitted to return to the Holy Land by the King of Syria, Antiochus III. However, Antiochus' son -- Antiochus IV -- was a tyrant that persecuted the Jews and desecrated the Temple.
The Temple was robbed, used for prostitution, and there were sacrifices made to pagan gods during this time.
The Maccabees were a group of Jewish warriors that rebelled against the political power of the Seleucids. They retook the Temple. And rededicated it to YHWH.
The 8 days are the length of time the menorah candle lasted. They only had enough oil for one candle, so it was considered a miracle.
This all took place about 160 years before Jesus' birth.
23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. 24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.”
"colonnade of Solomon" -- A porch with many columns, that was on the east end of the Temple.
This is unlike other interactions with "the Jews". Jesus was taking a stroll in the Temple and they are overwhelming him.
They are trying to get him to say that he is the Anointed King, so that they can report him to the authorities and have him arrested.
25 Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. 27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
Jesus answers their question by basically saying, "How many times do I have to tell you?"
Granted, Jesus never called himself "Messiah" in front of them. They had manipulative, political, selfish ambitions of the Messiah.
He does make claims about himself, though. He calls himself the Son of Man, which was characteristic of the Messiah. He claims to be the door, the Shepherd, the judge, the Prophet Moses spoke about, etc.
He claims that Scripture attests to Him (something only the Messiah could say).
He has made himself clear. He knows what they are trying to make happen, and he will let it happen, but not according to their timing. Instead, he is waiting for the "go-ahead" from the Father.
It is interesting to note that Jesus claims to be the Messiah before the Samaritan woman (John 4).
It is not that the religious leaders had not heard his claims, or even understood what he was saying. They hear him, but they do not follow him because they were never truly part of the flock.
28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. 30 I and the Father are one.”
Not just life... "ζωὴν αἰώνιον" - agelong, eternal life.
Eternal life, sharing unendingness like only God has experienced.
It operates outside our perception of time. Really, our understanding of anything.
John 10:28-29 are a beautiful promise to cling to, especially in times like these, "...no one will snatch them out of my hand." You can have certainty and security in Jesus.
It is also a reminder that God is not in a wrestling match for ultimate power. He is victorious, always. Sin, death, and the devil were never even contenders. There was never a chance that He wouldn't win. It was all according to His plan.
Jesus' life, death, and resurrection are the ultimate demonstration of His saving power.
"I and the Father are one." Two = one? Or, rather, three = one?
How is this possible? Great question!
31 The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” 33 The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.”
Many people say that Jesus did not claim to be God. In my opinion, Jesus is explicitly saying that in this passage, and his audience clearly understands that.
Many people have argued that Jesus was simply talking about "one" as in they are unified in what they are setting out to accomplish, which is salvation for all people.
The Jewish response makes it clear that Jesus was making himself totally equal with God. He wasn't simply saying they were on the same page.
34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? 35 If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken— 36 do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’?
What does verse 34 mean?
Notes that he says, "in your Law". This is the Old Testament, of which they were experts. He is using the object of their "expertise" to refute their accusations.
The Old Testament uses the word "gods" in relation to the judges of that time. They carried out the will (albeit imperfectly) of the one, true God.
Jesus is saying, "If those guys can be called gods in your Law, how much more am I truly God."
"Scripture cannot be broken" - Scripture interprets Scripture. And all true Scripture is inspired... down to a single word.
He is from the Father, of the same DNA for lack of a better term. He is sent directly from the Father, and He does his Father's bidding.
37 If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; 38 but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” 39 Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.
The works alone testify that He is from God, of God, and one with God.
Jesus escapes -- in an unspecified way -- from being surrounded by people that wanted to kill him. Call it a miracle.
40 He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained. 41 And many came to him. And they said, “John did no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.” 42 And many believed in him there.
John's work was incredible. He prepared the world to receive the Messiah.
Yet, the Messiah's work is WAY greater than even the greatest prophet.
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