John 10:31-42

March 23, 2014 Jesus heals the blind man but the Jews dont believe He is the Messiah. Theyve done everything they can to prove Him wrong but they havent had any luck. In our last study they demanded Him to plainly say whether He is the Christ or not. Rather than saying yes or no He says, Ive already told you and you dont believe. The reason is because you arent my sheep. My sheep hear me and follow and I give them eternal life and no one can ever take them away. He says, My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Fathers hand. I and my Father are one. That pretty much does it for the Jews:
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Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? 33The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. See, theyre fine with Him doing miracles (as long as He doesnt do them on Sabbath), and they might be ok if He claims His power comes from God. But Hes saying He is one with the Father. Hes saying Hes the same as God, and they just cant stand it so they pick up rocks to kill Him.
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Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? 35If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; 36Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? Why does Jesus quote this verse? How does it justify calling Himself the Son of God? Well, its a quote from Psalm 82 and we should go back to read it: God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods. 2How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah. 3Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. 4Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked. 5They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course. 6I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High. 7But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes. 8Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations (Ps. 82:1-8). There are men called gods and the children of the Most High. Theyre supposed to defend the poor and fatherless, do justice to the afflicted and needy,

deliver them, and get rid of the wicked. In other words, these are the protectors and defenders of Israel; but theyre not doing their job. The people have hope, though, because these wicked men are going to die and give way to God who is the true Judge of all the earth: Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit the nations. This can be tied together with another Psalm: Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. 6Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. 7I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. 8Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession (Ps. 2:5-8). These verses are both prophecies of the Messiah. The gods are merely men, but theyre sent by God to do justice. Of course, they dont actually do it because theyre crooked, but theyll give way to the true Son of God, and He will actually be faithful. When He arises He will rule all the nations of the world, and if all nations, then He will also rule Israel. Now, here in this story, Jesus comes saying He is the Son of God. How can He be charged with blasphemy when Scripture (which cannot be broken) calls the men God has sent gods and children of God? If He has been sent then He has every right to take these names for Himself and theres one way to find out if Hes telling the truth:
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If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 38But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him. Its pretty simple, isnt it? If Jesus does the works of God then He must be telling the truth. Even if they have a hard time with His words shouldnt they be able to see what Hes done and be convinced? He healed the blind man and the lame man, he turned water into wine, He gives glory to the Father, and He supports His words with Scripture. Will that be evidence enough for them? For some it is. Theyve said, Can a devil open the eyes of the blind? (v. 21) But the ones who think Hes crazy and possessed wont turn no matter what He does:
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Therefore they sought again to take him:

The more He proves His deity to them the worse it will be because they dont want the Light to shine on them or their deeds. They want Him to go away and theyll kill Him to make that happen.

but he escaped out of their hand, Eventually theyll get their chance but today is not the day. Somehow He esca pes:
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And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode. 41And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true. 42And many believed on him there. He got away from Jerusalem and the Pharisees and went across the Jordan River. A lot of people came to Him there and they said, John was a great and trustworthy man, but he didnt do any miracles. But he told us about this Jesus, and Jesus does do miracles. Everything John said was true. And they believed on Jesus there. They had the same evidence as the Jewish leaders, but they were apparently Gods sheep. They heard His voice and followed. Now what does this passage teach us? #1- It shows us the willful blindness of unbelievers. #2- It shows that the Old Testament points to Christ. #3- It shows us that Christ will rule the nations in justice when the time is ready. #4- It shows the leaders impotence to change the plan of God. #5- It confirms the Deity of Christ. newgracebaptistchurch.wordpress.com