John 5:19-47

Father, Son, and Scriptures

No one ever spoke the way that Jesus spoke. This passage is among one of the more remarkable monologues Jesus gives. All I know to do is simply pull a few high points and comment briefly.

“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.” In the prologue of chapter one we read, “No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known.” Toward the end of His time on earth Jesus told Philip that anyone who had seen Him had seen the Father. The words of Jesus in this passage ties these together.

“You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” I suggest that they were searching the Scriptures to gain knowledge. That isn’t a bad reason but it is an unworthy end in itself. We should search the Scriptures to find Him in whom are hidden all the treasures of knowledge and wisdom.

One more. “How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” Jesus said that He did not accept praise from men. Praise from men is a dangerous thing. C. S. Lewis was once asked what he thought about being called the greatest Christian writer of his generation. He replied, “I try not to think about it at all.”

There is so much here but hopefully these are a few things to think about today. Blessings.