Introduction to John 8:48-59

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/27/2016 10:21 AM

My Worship Time                                                                 Focus:  Introduction To John 8:48-59

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  John 8:48-59

            Message of the verses:  Last night I was listening to a sermon by John MacArthur on these verses that I downloaded a few years back.  He gave this sermon in the 1970’s, however they have taken it off of their website and I think that is because he is in the process of going through the gospel of John at this time.  I have the sermon, but cannot get the copy of it since it is not on the website so what I want to do for this SD is to quote from the introduction from a similar sermon that he gave a few years ago and then we will begin in our next SD to look at these verses in more detail. 

            “Turn to John chapter 8, John chapter 8.  We’re wrapping up this 8th chapter, and it has been a chapter of assaults on Jesus.  Ten times in this chapter—which actually begins in verse 12—ten times in this chapter Jesus has been attacked and assaulted by the leaders of Judaism.  Ten times.  It’s just one barrage after another.

“And it’s not just this chapter.  The same thing was going on in the previous chapter.  In the previous chapter, they were making the same blasphemous accusations, the same threats, having the same desire to kill him.  This goes all the way back to the second chapter of the Gospel of John when Jesus came into Jerusalem and launched his ministry by assaulting the corrupt temple operations, and it’s been nothing but conflict for the two and a half years since then with the religious leaders of Judaism.

“This, however, is one of the most antagonistic events in that conflict, and that’s why I titled it “Jesus Antagonizes the Enemies.”  And I might tell you that he purposely antagonizes his enemies because it’s necessary.  It’s what the truth does to error and it’s required.

“Just to maybe set the context a little bit bigger outside the Book of John, have you noticed that it is only evangelical biblical Christianity that is persecuted in the world and in our society?  People aren’t persecuting Hindus.  They’re not persecuting Buddhists.  They’re not persecuting Muslims.  They don’t even persecute Roman Catholics.  They don’t persecute people of other religions because all false religion is a part of the same kingdom of darkness, and a house divided against itself can’t stand, right? 

“So Satan can’t be divided against Satan, and since he owns all false religion, he tends to contribute to its survival and its elevation.  The attacks always come from the kingdom of darkness on the one category of truth, and that’s the Bible.  And those who rightly represent the Bible, biblical religion, biblical Christianity.  So we aren’t surprised that it’s Christianity that is being marginalized, Christianity that’s being taken out of the public discussion, Christians that are being persecuted, Bibles that are being set aside, references to Jesus Christ that are being eliminated. 

“All the attacks come on the truth because they all come from the kingdom of darkness.  And it is also true to say that the greatest enemies of the truth have always been religious because man is invariably religious, inveterately religious, always has been religious, is still religious, and consequently, his false religion assaults the truth constantly.  So it doesn’t surprise me.  It is a sign that we’re doing something right to have the kingdom of darkness coming after us.  That’s how it is.

“The harshest human attacks on Jesus didn’t even come from the people.  He got indifference from the people, for sure, but the really harsh, aggressive assaults on him came from the religious establishment and the people who were most devoted to that establishment: self-righteous Jewish leaders who were part of an apostate form of Judaism that basically belonged to Satan like all other religion.  All other religion is part of the kingdom of darkness.  And since they were part of a false religion that belonged to Satan, they were enemies of the truth, and therefore they were enemies of Christ, who is the truth.

“All religion claims to represent God, but it represents the devil.  It represents Satan.  And that is what Jesus said in verse 44.  This is the high point.  This is the escalation of the conflict to its highest level.  He says to these religious leaders who continually said they represented God and spoke for God, “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father.”  “You lie and you desire to kill me because I speak the truth and you are a part of the kingdom of darkness, the kingdom of lies, and the kingdom of darkness and the kingdom of lies wants to stamp out the truth.”

“So here is Jesus saying something that is the most volatile thing he could possibly say to Jewish leaders who prided themselves on being children of Abraham, children of God, those who rightly represented God, those who were God’s agents in the world.  He says, “You are of your father the devil.”  That is Judaism in its most devout form is Satanic.

“Our Lord’s condemnation of these corrupt leaders reaches a real pinnacle in the final week of his life.  Matthew 23 records during the passion week that in the temple he gives that message that’s recorded in Matthew 23, in which he calls them, “whited sepulchers.”  He says they create “sons of hell,” and he denounces all of them.  And then he warns the people to stay away from them because of their damning influence. 

“Over these two and a half years of his ministry, this conflict has been escalating by necessity because he continues to confront their damning destructive error with the truth.  Somebody might say, “Well, back off.  We can’t do that.”  The truth damns.  The truth damns eternally.  It sends people to hell forever.  The consequences are incalculable and they don’t ever change.  Error must be confronted with the truth.  These children of Satan see Jesus, then, as an enemy.  They see him as a disturber.  They see him as a blasphemer, a law breaker.  They can’t contain themselves in dealing with him.  They’re so full of fury at him.  This kind of culminates, at least the eighth chapter version of it, episode of it, in the text before us.  Let’s pick it up in verse 48.

“Having just heard Jesus say, “You are of your father the devil,” and then explain that connection, because you desire what the devil desires, which is to lie and kill.  You want to kill even me.  They respond in verse 48, and “they said to him, ‘Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?’  Jesus answered, ‘I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My - ” message, My teaching, My “ - word he will never see death.’  The Jews said to Him, ‘Now we know that You have a demon.  Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, “If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.”  Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died?  The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?’

““Jesus answered, ‘If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, “He is our God”; and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His Word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.’  So the Jews said to Him, ‘You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?’  Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.’  Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.”

“The conflict has never been more dramatic than that.  Things have reached the point where they either repent and believe in Him or they can’t contain their fury, their rage, their hardness of heart.  Why does he do this?  Why does he exacerbate this conflict?  Why does he elevate this?  Why does he raise it to this level?  Why does he say things like “you’re of your father, the devil.  You’re liars and murderers, and you desire what the devil desires”?  Why does he say that?

“Well, the answer is because he loves them, because this is a mercy.  It is a mercy to shatter false securities.  It is a mercy to devastate false religion.  It is a mercy to strip people locked in some form of religious deception, strip them naked of that deception.  These are people with the emperor’s clothes.  They need to be exposed for what they are.  Their false religion needs to be dealt with in a very strong, stern confrontation.”

Now in our next SD we will begin to look at the first of four headings which is “The Dishonor,” and then “the doubting,” next “the defiance,” and finally “the disappearance.” 

Spiritual meaning for my life today: I have to go back to some of the thoughts that I have from a sermon that our Pastor gave last week on the Orlando shootings which seem to go well with this highlighted portion of MacArthur’s sermon, and that is that as believers we are to love our enemies, even though it is very difficult at times to do this.  When one sees all of the things that are going on around the world as many true believers are being killed for the cause of Christ it is hard for me to love those who are doing this and so as I look at why Jesus is confronting those who are living in the truth it seems to me that I am to have that kind of love by telling them the truth.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Have the proper attitude of loving my enemies.

Memory verses for the week:  (Romans 6:1)  “1. 1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase?”

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “The earth” (Matthew 5:5).

Today’s Bible question:  “Who said ‘Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?’”

Answer in our next SD.

6/27/2016 10:50 AM