Last week, we read just two verses from John 8, spending the rest of our time in Leviticus 23 and Exodus 13. I scratched my itch to get back to the OT, and I'm ready to take another shot at this.
I say that, but this is probably the most depressing chapter (I hope!) in the entire gospel of John. What we are going to see, throughout the chapter, is Jesus trying to tell the Judeans who he is, and what he came to do. And we are going to see the Judeans respond by misunderstanding him, and twisting his words, and rejecting him, and trying to kill him.
I could try to break it down, and bring out all of the misunderstandings. I started to do that. But it's horrifying. It's a miserable, thankless job. It's depressing. And I think it's designed to feel that way. You are supposed to read this chapter, and bang your head against a wall. So what I'm going to do, is try to honor that. I'm just going to read John 8:12-30, talk about one thing, and then keep reading through the end of the chapter. As I read, try to pay attention to two things: (1) how the Judeans misunderstand and reject Jesus, and (2) what Jesus offers to the world. My hope, is that you'll find yourself understanding the flow, and feel, of this chapter as we go:
(12) Then, again to them he spoke-- Jesus--, saying,
"I am the light of the world.
The one following me will absolutely not walk in the darkness,
but will have the light of life."
(13) Then, they said to him-- the Pharisees--
"You about yourself are testifying.
Your witness isn't true."
(14) Jesus answered,
and he said to them,
"Even if I testify about myself, true, my testimony is,
because I know from where I came,
and where I am going.
Now, you don't know from where I am coming
or where I am going away (to).
(15) You, according to the flesh , you judge.
I don't judge anyone.
Now, even if I judge, my judgment, true, it is,
because alone, I am not,
but I and The-One-Sending-Me-Father.
(17) Now, even in your law it is written
that the witness of two men/people, true it is.
(18) I am the one testifying about myself,
and he testifies about me--The-Sending-Me-Father.
(19) Then, they were saying to him,
"Where is your father?"
He answered-- Jesus--
"Neither me you know, nor my Father.
If me you had known, also my Father you would have known.
(20) These words he spoke by the treasury,
teaching in the temple,
and no one seized him,
because not yet it had come-- his hour.
(21) Then, he spoke again to them,
"I am going away,
and you will seek me,
and in your sin, you will die.
Where I am going (away to), you aren't able to come."
(22) Then, they were saying-- the Judeans--
"Surely he won't kill himself, right?,
because he says,
"Where I am going, you aren't able to come."
(23) and he was saying to them,
"You, from below, you are.
I, from above, I am.
You, from this world, you are.
I am not from this world.
(24) Then, I said to you,
that you will die in your sins.
For if you don't believe that I AM, you will die in your sins."
(25) Then, they were saying to him,
You, who are you?"
He said to them-- Jesus--
"From the beginning, what I am telling you.
(26) Many things I have about you to say and to judge,
but The One Sending me, true, He is,
and I, the things I heard from him, these things I say to the world."
(27) They didn't know
that [about] the Father to them, he was speaking.
(28) Then, he said-- Jesus--
"Whenever you lift up the son of man, then you will know that I AM,
and from myself I do nothing,
but just as He taught me-- the Father-- these things, I speak,
and The One Sending me, with me, He is.
He didn't leave me alone,
because I, the things pleasing to him, I do always.
(30) While he was speaking these things, many gave allegiance to him.
Throughout chapter 8, so far, the Judeans have been hopelessly lost. Their problem, ultimately, is that they haven't been born "from above." They are working, and living, from a lower, earthly, human perspective. And Jesus very obviously isn't. Jesus is "from above," and speaks of things "from above." So there is this enormous gap between them. And because they aren't willing to come to Jesus, and follow him, this gap cannot be bridged.
I say all of that, but let's reread verse 30:
(30) While he was speaking these things, many gave allegiance to him.
This, as far as I know, is the most surprising verse in the entire gospel. Somehow in the midst of all of this confusion, and hardheartedness, and blindness, "many" Judeans "give their allegiance" to Jesus.
Really? Now let me read it to in the NIV:
30 Even as he spoke, many believed in him.
Lots of Judeans here, do the one thing that many evangelical churches tell you is necessary to be saved. They "believe in" Jesus.
Should we praise God? Should we thank God that they now have eternal life? Should we find ourselves thinking, maybe they aren't all hopeless?
My hope, at this point, is that you understand this badly misreads the gospel of John. We should know, at this point, that "believing in Jesus"-- "giving allegiance to Jesus"-- is a tricky phrase in John. Let's reread John 2:23-25, as a reminder to ourselves:
(23) Now, while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover during the feast, many gave allegiance to his name,
seeing his signs that he was doing.
(24) Now, Jesus himself didn't give allegiance to them,
because he knew all people,
and because need, he didn't have,
that anyone should testify about man.
For he knew what was in man.
Lots of people give their allegiance to Jesus in the gospel of John. They do the one verb that many churches say you need to do to be confident you have eternal life. But there is something off, about the way many people do this. There's something inadequate, and untrustworthy, about what they've done.
What makes "faith" adequate, or inadequate?
Adequate faith is marked by two other things:
(1) A full understanding of who Jesus really is. You have to "believe that" certain things are true about Jesus-- that he's the son of God, lamb of God, savior of the world, the light, and that he is God. Your theology-- what you think about the Father, and the Son-- matters.
(2) The total package of discipleship verbs. We can't grab just one verb in the gospel of John, and build our understanding of what Jesus wants around that. There are a cluster of verbs, and we need to hold them all together. We have to "come to" Jesus, and "follow" him, and "give our allegiance to" him, and "abide" with him. When we think about what Jesus really wants, we should picture ourselves picking up this cluster of verbs, and holding them all in our hands. This is what Jesus wants. This is what makes you his disciple, and gives you access to everything Jesus offers.
And a major part of how I can prove all of this to you, is by how our story continues. Let's pick it up again, reading from John 8:30 to the end of the chapter:
(30) While saying these things, many gave allegiance to him.
(31) Then, Jesus was saying to the ones giving allegiance to him-- Judeans--
"If you abide in the word-- mine--
truly my disciples you are,
(32) and you will know the truth,
and the truth will free you.
(33) They answered him,
"The seed of Abram we are,
and none of us have been enslaved ever.
How do you say that,
"Free, you will be"?
(34) He answered them-- Jesus--
"Truly, truly, I say to you that everyone doing sin, a slave he is of sin.
(35) Now, the slave doesn't abide in the house forever.
The son abides forever.
(36) Then, if the son you he frees, truly free you are.
(37) I know that the seed of Abram you are,
but you seek me, to kill,
because the word-- mine-- has no space /makes no progress in you.
(38) What I have seen with the Father, I speak,
and you, then, what you heard from the father you do.
(39) They answered,
and they said to him,
"Our father, Abram, he is."
He says to them-- Jesus--
"If child of Abram you are, the works of Abram you would do.
Now, now you seek me to kill-- a man who the truth to you I have spoken, which I heard from God.
(41) You do the works of your father."
They said to him,
"We, from sexual immorality, have not been born.
One father we have-- God."
(42) He said to them-- Jesus--
"If God, your Father, he was, you would love me.
For I from God came out,
and I am present/have come.
For not from myself I have come,
but that one, me, he sent.
Because of my way of speaking, do you not understand/know?
because you aren't able to hear my word.
(44) You, from your father the devil, you are,
and the desires of your father you want to do.
That one, a murderer, he was from the beginning,
and in the truth he didn't stand firm
because there isn't truth in him.
Whenever he speaks the lie, from his own things he speaks,
because a liar, he is, and the father of it (=lies).
Now, I, because the truth I speak, you don't believe/give allegiance to me.
(46) Who, from you, exposes/convicts me concerning sin?
If the truth I speak, why do you not believe/give allegiance to me?
(47) The one being from God, the words of God he hears.
For this reason you don't hear: because from God you are not.
(48) The Judeans answered,
and they said to him,
"Is it not rightly that we say
that a Samaritan, you are,
and a demon, you have?",
(49) Jesus replied,
"I, a demon, I don't have,
but "I honor my Father,
and you (plural) dishonor me.
Now, I do not seek my glory.
There is one seeking and judging.
(51) Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone my word keeps, death he will absolutely never see forever."
(52) They said to him-- the Judeans--
"Now we know that a demon, you have.
Abram died,
and the prophets,
and you say,
"If anyone my word keeps, he will absolutely not taste death forever."
(53) You aren't greater than our father Abram, who died,
and the prophets died, right?
Who, yourself, do you make [to be]?"
(54) He answered-- Jesus,
"If I glorify myself, my glory, nothing it is.
My Father is The One Glorifying me,
whom you say,
that our God, He is,"
and you don't know him.
Now, I know him,
and if I said that I don't know him, I would be like you-- a liar,
but I know him,
and his word, I keep.
Abram your father rejoiced,
that he saw my day,
and he saw,
and he rejoiced.
(57) Then, they said-- the Judeans-- to him,
"50 years not yet you have,
and Abram, you have seen?"
(58) He said to them-- Jesus--
"Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abram was, I am."
(59) Then, they picked up stones,
in order to throw at him.
Now, Jesus was hidden,
and he went out from the temple.
-----------------------------------------
So that's chapter 8. Let me reread two verses, to start:
John 8:30:
While saying these things, many gave allegiance to him.
John 8:45, last line, through 46:
Now, I, because the truth I speak, you don't believe/give allegiance to me.
(46) Who, from you, exposes/convicts me concerning sin?
If the truth I speak, why do you not believe/give allegiance to me?
The same Judeans who are said to give their allegiance to Jesus, end the chapter, not giving allegiance to him. And they not only reject Jesus, but actively try to kill him. They truly are like their father, the devil, who was a murderer from the beginning.
How did we come to this?
What is it about their allegiance that's so inadequate, and untrustworthy?
Their problems start, with a refusal to accept that Jesus is who he says. Jesus is "I am." Jesus is greater than Abram, greater than Moses, greater than the prophets. Jesus is the preexistent one-- Abram saw Jesus (John 8:51; Genesis 15:1; cf. Michael Heiser, The Unseen Realm), and rejoiced. The Judeans, at every point, find all of this too much. They don't think Jesus is greater than anyone.
Their problems then deepen, because they refuse to keep his word. John 8:51 introduces us to a new discipleship verb. Let's reread it:
(51) Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone my word keeps, death he will absolutely never see forever."
When we see Jesus saying "truly, truly," this always marks a new revelation on his part (H/T I think Moloney?). When people obeyed Moses' words, they still died. And the same was true for the prophets. But if you keep Jesus' word, you will live forever. And that, is part of what it means to be Jesus' disciple. So we are supposed to add this word, to our cluster of discipleship verbs (John 14:15, 21, 23, 24; 15:10, 20; 17:6). Jesus keeps his Father's word (John 8:55), and we keep Jesus' words (and John 17:6 pulls them together). Continued obedience to Jesus, is one of the marks of discipleship. And people who are unwilling to do that, don't know Jesus, and don't know the Father (cf. 1 John 2:1-6).
The other thing I want to talk about, is whether or not all of this has to be hopeless. Let's reread John 8:34-37:
(34) He answered them-- Jesus--
"Truly, truly, I say to you that everyone doing sin, a slave he is of sin.
(35) Now, the slave doesn't abide in the house forever.
The son abides forever.
(36) Then, if the son you he frees, truly free you are.
(37) I know that the seed of Abram you are,
but you seek me, to kill,
because the word-- mine-- has no space /makes no progress in you.
If you are using my translation, you'll notice there are two ways to translate this last verb. Jesus either says that his word has "no space" in them, or that it "makes no progress" in them. Or, maybe, it means both, and we have another example of ambiguity in John.
But the idea of Jesus' word making no progress in them, works brilliantly in the gospel of John as a whole. No one who comes to Jesus understands everything all at once, immediately. Everyone comes to Jesus with a partial understanding of who he is. They see some of the light, but not all. And this is completely okay. What Jesus wants to see, is progress. As you learn more and more, you should find yourself coming closer and closer to Jesus. You should find yourself walking in his light, understanding who he really is. We evangelicals tend to place so much emphasis on the importance of making a "decision" for Jesus. And sometimes it works that way.
But other times, coming toward Jesus is more of a process. And when I look at the people in my life, who I am trying to lead toward Jesus, this is exactly how it looks. A few of them, I want to just stand behind them, and give them a final, unexpected shove. I can see their progress, and I'm excited about it. I can see that the Father is drawing them, and they are coming closer. And for me, for now, today, that's maybe enough. As long as there's progress, there's hope.
But that's the basic problem for the Judeans. As they learn more and more, and face Jesus' word about who he is, and what he offers, it's too much. They got just close enough to Jesus, to reject him. To try to kill him. But this idea of progress, is really important for the book. I'd say more, but I'm totally coming back to this next week.
If I could leave you with just one thing today, it would be this: please, don't make so much of a single verb. It's not enough to "believe in" Jesus. It's not even enough to "give your allegiance" to him. To be Jesus' disciple, and stay Jesus' disciple, you need to grab this whole cluster of verbs. "Come to" Jesus. "Follow" Jesus. "Give your allegiance" to Jesus. "Abide with" Jesus. And, now we learn, "keep" his word. Pick up this cluster, hold them in your hands, and do them. This is what Jesus wants.
Do this, and you will be truly free from sin and darkness. You will walk in the light. You will never see death. You will know Jesus, and the Father.
