John 10:35-42 (WEL) “If he called them ‘gods’ to whom the Word of God came, and the Scripture cannot be broken, 36 “How can you say about him whom the Father has set apart for himself and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme’ when I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’ 37 “If I don’t do the works of my Father, don’t believe me, 38 “But if I do, even if you don’t believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and believe that the Father is in me and I in him.” 39 Then, they tried again to seize him, but he escaped from their hands. 40 Then, he went again across the Jordan to the place where John first baptized and stayed there. 41 Many came to him and said, “Even John didn’t do a miracle, but everything that John said about this man is true.” 42 Many believed in him there.
V35 “If he called them ‘gods’ to whom the Word of God came, and the Scripture cannot be broken,
Scripture calls them “gods” not because they are “god” but because they are decision makers sometimes deciding life or death to an individual. They are kings, judges, prophets, and other leaders. True God ordained prophets speak the word of God (1 Samuel 9:27 and 1 Kings 12:22). They are not spirits; they are human “gods.” Compare: Exodus 4:16, Exodus 7:1, and Exodus 22:28 (the word judges (gods in KJV) is the Hebrew word אֱלֹהִים ‘ĕlôhı̂ym). See this link (https://www.freebiblecommentary.org/special_topics/names_deity.html) for greater explanation.
They are in power because God has authorized it, but they must obey God’s commands and standards. If they do, all is well and God is pleased. If they do not, all is not well and God will judge them.
Principle: Be careful about making decisions for others that are not according to God’s standards. They would include parents of young children, church leaders, educators, law enforcement, medical, and government individuals.
The definition of God would include His essence which is the stuff God is, a spirit (John 4:24), and the incommunicable and communicable character traits of God.
Incommunicable traits are those attributes characterizing only God as creator, life itself, eternal, omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent, omnisapient, etc. Communicable traits are those characteristics of God, angels, and humans as love, anger, kindness, peace, compassion, etc.
V36 “How can you say about him whom the Father has set apart for Himself and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme’ when I said, ‘I am the Son of God?’
Set apart for Himself carries the idea of sanctification. The Hebrew word for sanctification is H6942 קָדַשׁ qâdash, kaw-dash’, which means to separate. In the Scriptures, it is to separate good from bad, clean from unclean, holy from unholy, and special service for God. The Greek word is G38 ἁγιασμός hagiasmó, which means essentially the same as the Hebrew. The root carries the idea of clean, that is, separated from unclean.
Jesus is good, aligning perfectly with God’s standards (Luke 18:19). Jesus is clean from all sin in thoughts, desires, words, and deeds. Compare 2 Kings 5:10-14. Naaman went from unclean, sick, and leprous, to being clean, not sick, and no leprosy. Jesus is clean from any taint of sin. Jesus is holy as devoted, pure, and set apart for God’s use. Jesus’s special service is He is Messiah, Savior, King, God the Son, etc.
Jesus tells the truth and has proven it by fulfilling the prophets, doing miracles, teaching truth, showing superiority over the devil, demons, storms, sickness, death, and was raised bodily from the tomb.
V37 “If I don’t do the works of my Father, don’t believe me.
Jesus has the essence of God the Father in everything. Jesus can create life (He raised the dead). He is superior to any spirit (told the devil to leave, cast out demons). What God the Father can do, Jesus can do.
V38 “But if I do, even if you don’t believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and believe that the Father is in me and I in him.”
Jesus tells them that if they do not believe His words, then look at my miracles fulfilling the words of the prophets.
Jesus does all this, but they still refuse to believe. Why do people refuse? Some theologies teach that God decreed them to refuse in order to receive great glory and send people to hell without any opportunity. Those who interpret the Bible in its plain, normal sense know otherwise.
The main reasons for rejection are:
Pride (“I’m a good person.”)—Psalm 10:4, Hosea 7:10, Isaiah 66:4, Leviticus 26:18-19, and Habakkuk 2:4.
Love of sin (“I will not stop doing ____.”)—Hebrews 11:25, John 3:19, 2 Timothy 3:4, and 2 Thessalonians 2:12.
Believe lies (false gospels, false teachers, etc.)—John 8:45, Ezekiel 13:19, and Jeremiah 2:35.
The works, everything from thoughts, desires, words, and deeds done in private and public.
The purpose is to convict people of their sins, humble them, so that they would believe He is Messiah and be saved from God’s wrath.
V39 Then, they tried again to seize him, but he escaped from their hands.
One would think the response would be to repent and believe in Jesus alone for salvation, but they refuse and try to seize him, take him to the Jewish leaders, who want to kill Jesus.
Jesus slipped out of their hands. One would think that this is rather strange and they would consider that Jesus is Messiah.
V40 Then, he went again across the Jordan to the place where John first baptized and stayed there.
The Jewish religious leaders were abundant in Jerusalem and didn’t have much of any other goal than to kill Jesus. John first baptized in the Jordan River near Jericho.
V41 Many came to him and said, “Even John didn’t do a miracle, but everything that John said about this man is true.”
These people acknowledged that all the John the Baptist had proclaimed about Messiah is seen in Jesus.
Others didn’t want to arrest him. They had seen and heard John the Baptist but knew and believed the message of John the Baptist (Isaiah 40:3 and Matthew 3:3).
V42 Many believed in him there.
These believed. Now, nearly 2,000 years later, these believers are in heaven rejoicing.
Such is the same today. They cannot kill Jesus because He is not here on earth, but they can deny He existed, deny He is God, deny the message of the Bible, falsely (they are unable) prove He is only a man, falsely prove He did not rise from the dead, etc.
We learn:
- Why many reject Jesus.
- Why many wanted to kill Jesus.
- Why the others did not want to kill Jesus.
Questions:
- What do you believe about Jesus?
- How do you handle people who will not believe Jesus and His Gospel?