Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm19990908.htm

JOHN: TRIUMPHING IN LIFE'S MOST CRITICAL ISSUE
Part III: Presentation Of The Messenger Of Salvation
C. Christ's Credentials Revealed In Confrontations With Men
2. Christ's Ardent Claims To Deity With The Father Before Opponents
(John 5:10-47)
  1. Introduction
    1. We Christians are taught by John and Paul that our confession that Jesus is God come in the flesh is experiential evidence that we are truly saved, 1 John 4: 1-3 with 1 Corinthians 12:3.
    2. Yet, some doubt, saying: "Is there any evidence that Jesus Himself felt that strongly about His deity?"
    3. John, an orthodox Jew himself who was reared to be a Monotheist would have had to be thoroughly persuaded that Jesus was God along with the Father before accepting the idea as truth. He records for us in John 5 an event with Jesus' discourse that worked to impress him that Jesus surely felt He was God:
  2. Christ's Ardent Claims To Deity With The Father Before Opponents, John 5:10-47:
    1. Jesus went of His way to create a confrontation with the religious leaders:
      1. He healed a man in a public Jerusalem area who had been in his condition for 38 years on the Sabbath, and that by telling him to do what the Pharisees condemned in carrying his pallet that day, Jn. 5:1-9!
      2. As was to be expected, the religious authorities went after healed man who was carrying his pallet to complain about his violating the Jewish rules about working on the Sabbath, John 5:10.
      3. When the man responded he only followed orders to carry his pallet by the one who healed him, and he failed to identify Jesus as the Healer, Jesus reappeared to him so the man could identify Jesus, 5:11-15.
    2. When the rulers then went after Jesus for telling the man to disobey their Sabbath rule, Jesus claimed that He was merely working as God His Father had always been working up to that Sabbath day, 5:16-17!
    3. Since Jesus hereby claimed God was His Father, and that in Jewish circles meant He was equal with God as a post-bar-mitzvahed son, they sought to kill Jesus, John 5:18!
    4. At this point, Jesus gave an extended address, backing up His claim with clear evidences, John 5:19-47:
      1. Contrary to their thinking, Jesus claimed to work under the authority of God the Father, John 5:19-20.
      2. Just as the Father gives life, so Jesus said He miraculously gave life and raised the dead, John 5:21.
      3. Similarly, Jesus claimed to bear the future role of being mankind's Judge in accord with the Father's will so that man might honor Jesus as they did the Father as the Father wanted men to honor Him, 5:22-23.
      4. Jesus said the way to escape condemnation in the final judgment was for men to believe the Father had sent Him, thereby trusting in Him for eternal life, John 5:24-27, 28-29.
      5. Jesus reaffirmed that He did not work on His own initiative, but under the Father's authority, Jn. 5:30.
      6. Christ claimed the Father bore witness that Jesus was His Son through His miracles (5:31-32, 36-37) as well as had the prophet, John, Jn. 5:33. He said John's witness was that of a mere man, but it had helped people begin to see Jesus as the Light that men might believe Him and be saved, John 5:34-35.
      7. Jesus claimed the Scriptures testified He was God's Son, but that His hearers in Jerusalem's religious leaders would not believe what the Scriptures wrote about Him, John 5:38-39.
      8. Christ claimed the problem lay in their preoccupation with the honor of men rather than the things of God: this kept them from believing in Jesus or accepting the witness about Him, Jn. 5:40-44.
      9. Jesus said the touted witness of Moses testified of Him, but the religious leaders failed to believe Moses' Deuteronomy 18:15-22 testimony about Christ and how to authenticate Him as Messiah, 5:45-47:
        1. Moses predicted Messiah would come as a Prophet, Deuteronomy 18:15-19.
        2. Then, Moses showed the test to authenticate His identity in having His words come true, 18:20-22!
        3. Thus, Jesus accurately noted the religious leaders were without excuse in not accepting His claims!
Lesson: Jesus labored to get the attention of the religious leaders by irritating them in how He helped and then followed up with the healing of the lame man on the Sabbath. Then, having gotten their attention, He stunned them by declaring and bac king up His claim to be God, citing His miracles, John's testimony and fulfilled Scriptures as evidence. JESUS was convinced HE was GOD!

Application: Jesus would want us to BELIEVE HE felt He was God and BELIEVE He IS God, too!