Questions I would ask God
Prove you exist!
John 10.22-39
In 2007 Richard Dawkins produced a best seller ‘The God Delusion’ in which he sought to prove that God did not exist and that those who believed in God were some how deluded. You know, I suspect, as many Christians bought his book as non-Christians. Many very scholarly Christians set out to disprove his book and yet Dawkins book became a best seller. One of the very best is a little book by Dr Alistair McGrath called ‘The Dawkins Delusion.’ Over the last number of years we have seen more and more books being published which seek to disprove the existence of God. Philip Pulmann, of The Golden Compass fame, has made no secret of the fact that his books are intended to promote atheism. In his latest book he has a little girl kill God. Whilst at one level the film is harmless entertainment at a much deeper level it is the introduction to a series of books whose very purpose is to kill any belief in the existence of God.
A school teacher told the class that they could paint anything they wanted. As she walked round the class she came to this little boy and asked what he was painting? “God,” came the instant reply. “No one has ever seen God,” she said. “They have now,” came the reply from the little boy. How many people, even in here this morning, would paint different pictures of God?
Rightly, or wrongly, I assume that most of you believe in the existence of God, though I have met people in church who do not. So I want you to imagine that tomorrow morning at coffee break one of your colleagues challenges the existence of God – how would you go about answering such a question? You may well believe in God but are you ready to give a reasonable answer to someone who does not?
The Bible itself just assumes God’s existence. Genesis begins: ‘In the beginning God…’ The Bible never sets out to prove God’s existence. In fact you cannot prove God exists. You can produce evidence for His existence but you cannot prove He exists. You can learn all about the Cosmological, the Teleological, the Ontological and Anthropological arguments for the existence of God. Of which Immanuel Kant said: “If you cannot disprove these arguments you must accept them and if you accept them you cannot disprove the existence of God and therefore you must accept Him.” If you are interested in these arguments you will find a sheet with the basics on the table in the hall – there are around 100 sheets, but we can photocopy more if you need them and you can also find them on our website.
I don’t propose to go through all those arguments this morning, so you can rest easy on that score. Just as in the same way that you cannot prove love or courage or cowardice so you cannot prove God exists. You can produce evidence for the same but you cannot prove it. So as we go through this sermon this morning I want you to think more of a courtroom than a laboratory when examining the evidence.
A number of years ago Joan Osborne sang “What if God became one of us?” Well that is exactly what Christianity claims – that God became one of us. We could start at Genesis 1 this morning and work our way through the whole of Scripture to prove the existence of God but I thought it best to come to the heart of the Christian message that in Christ Jesus God became flesh and dwelt among us. Turn with me to John 10.22-39.
Verses 22-23 The context of the passage is that Christ is at the Temple at the annual Feast of Dedication, a sort of renewal and rededication festival at which the grace of God was remembered and the end of the tyranny of one Antiochus. This feast was not given by God in Scripture but instituted by the Jews themselves to remember the driving out of the Syrian Antiochus. It is the forerunner of the modern day Hanukkah. John tells us that Christ was walking and preaching in Solomon’s Porch, which was an annexe of the Temple. He points out that it was winter – which may explain the walking whilst He preached but also uses the description of the weather to paint a background as to the frosty reception that His teaching had and was now about to receive.
Verse 24 some people gather around Christ to listen to his teaching but the context would suggest that they had crowded round Him to hem Him in so that they might confront Him. Amongst them are a group of Jews whose intention is to entrap him. So they ask why He is keeping them in the dark about his true identity. They feign genuine interest in order to illicit a response that might lead either to Christ being stoned to death for blasphemy or at least arrested by the Romans for creating a disturbance. They accuse Jesus of being unclear and deliberately obscure in his teaching and they demand clarification – is He God? Remember it is not clarification so that they might worship Him but an unambiguous statement that they might attack Him that they seek from Him. You know in all of Scripture not once in a public discourse did Jesus explicitly answer such questions, in private discourses with His disciples and with others, the Samaritan woman for example, He did. He did not answer the public questions directly because He knew men’s hearts and the reasons for the questions in the first place.
Verse 25 having demanded a plain answer from Christ they are taken aback at His reply – “I did tell you…” if you look at verses 1-18 the claims to be the Good Shepherd, prefixed with ‘I AM…’ the name of God was an explicit claim that had provoked these questions in the first place. In John 8.56-58 Jesus had applied the name of God (I AM) to Himself and on a further five occasions in John He prefixes ‘I AM’ to titles that He gives Himself. For example – I AM…the bread of life, …the light of the world, …the true vine, …the resurrection and the life and …the way, the truth and the life. These are not just stunning words but stunningly dangerous words for Jesus to have applied to Himself. Even when on trial He applied the ‘I AM’ to Himself – Mark 14.61-62.
He further points out in the passage before us, that even His works, the miracles, point to Him being God incarnate. His teaching, His way of life and the miracles taken together show them who He is – God made flesh. Healings, resurrection of the dead – what more did they want or need in order to believe?
Verses 26-29 – having in verses 1-18 spoken of His sheep who hear, know and obey His voice He contrasts the men standing before Him. His sheep are known by Him – which is the key as the men standing before Him He does not know in that sense. Their habitual attitude is one of unbelief. They are not His sheep and they do not hear or obey His voice. This does not excuse them but rather indicts them for their unbelief. To those who are His sheep He gives eternal life and keeps them secure in His hands – all according the will of the Father.
Verse 30 Jesus once again declares His oneness with the Father. What He does the Father does and what the Father does He does. There is oneness in action. Essential unity is asserted in the words of Christ. He and the Father are one, these two belong together. Once again His words identify Him with God rather than as a man. Hence the Jews consider these words blasphemy. They had asked Jesus for a plain assertion as to His Messiahship and they had gotten more than they had bargained for.
Verses 31-39 such statements raised the anger of the orthodox Jews amongst those listening and they now pick up stones to stone Christ to death for blasphemy. Christ does not run away when the stones are gathered to throw at Him. Instead He continues the discussion – “Which of the good works has so riled you that you want to stone me?” Christ stays their hands with an argument from Ps.82 verse 6 – in that if the term ‘gods’ can be applied to men than much more may Jesus assert His unity with His Father. In this argument in verses 34-36 Jesus is placing Himself above other men (who according to the Law could be called ‘gods’) by stating that He was set aside by the Father and therefore was the Son of God in compete unity (oneness) with the Father. They are left in no doubt that He is claiming a special relationship with the Father, one which they themselves do not have. He was not making Himself God – He was what He was, sent by the Father into the world to do His perfect will. When Christ claimed that He and the Father are one He was not claiming to be ‘in tune’ with the Father, they would never have gathered stones to put Him to death for such a claim. His hearers fully understood that He was claiming to be God. He concludes in verses 37-38 by asking them to open their eyes and see if the works (miracles) themselves do not testify to the truth of what He has spoken. This brings the argument to an end and now instead of stoning Him they seek to arrest Him, to no avail as He escapes their grasp, once more.
John in this passage, and throughout his gospel, seeks to bring before us evidence that Christ is God incarnate. At the end of the gospel He writes these words – Read 20.31. Did you note the last few words “have life in His name?” The implication is that there is no life outside of His name. There is existence but not life.
Yet is it not startling that despite all the evidence, these men (in John 10) still choose not to believe that Christ is who He says He is. No matter what Christ says, no matter about the miracles, not even the resurrection itself will convince them that He is God, the Messiah, and the Saviour of the world. Without the Spirit opening their eyes to the truth these men, and others, will remain in darkness. Some, like these men, will not believe even when the evidence is before their very eyes. They will always want one more piece of proof – come down off the cross and we will believe you. Just give us one more sign. How many here are still asking for more proof that God exists? How many here are still asking for one more piece of evidence that God loves you? How many here are still seeking some more proof that they need a Saviour?
You cannot prove God exists but there is enough evidence to believe He does.
Amen.
