Then the Jews answered and 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. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges. Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.” Then the Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.’ Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?” (John 8:48-53)
Ever heard the phrases "common sense" vs. "book sense"? Well, the Pharisees, scribes and many of the Jewish leaders had all the "book sense", or scripture knowledge of anyone at that time, but they had no "common sense" or spiritual understanding of the Word of God. Jesus had said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill. For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot [dot of i] or one tittle [cross of t] will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. ... For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:17-20)
These same well educated people are asking Jesus, Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?” Those "dead" prophets had more understanding of the promises of God than they did, even as they were witnessing the fulfillment of those same promises. This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward. They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen. (I Peter 1:10-12 NLT)
Jesus answered, “If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall 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.” Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. (John 8:54-59)
We must understand that to the Jews, this was a blasphemous statement, I AM! Remember when Moses spoke to God at the burning bush, Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’ (Exodus 3:13-15)
For Christ to say this meant He was making Himself equal with God, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,... (Philippians 2:6) The Levitical law states And whoever blasphemes the name of the Lord shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall certainly stone him, the stranger as well as him who is born in the land. When he blasphemes the name of the Lord, he shall be put to death. (Leviticus 24:16) Interestingly, eventhough they didn't understand the spiritual meaning of the Word of God, they were still trying to obey the "letter of the law", when they took up stones to throw at Him; But now we have been released from the law, for we died to it and are no longer captive to its power. Now we can serve God, not in the old way of obeying the letter of the law, but in the new way of living in the Spirit. (Romans 7:6 NLT)
Jesus was not a Samaritan, nor did He have a demon, but was is and always will be I AM! “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,” says the Lord, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:8) He is The Christ, the promised Messiah! When we hear the Word of God, let's not be like the Pharisees and scribes, so limited in our thinking that we can't allow ourselves to believe something we can't fully understand. Let's be like the regular ordinary people of Samaria, who when they heard for themselves The Word speak, Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Savior of the world.” (John 4:42)
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