The Incomparable Christ: ‘The Uniqueness of Jesus.'
SERMON OUTLINE:
• Claim #1: "I am equal with God" (vs 19-20).
• Claim #2: "I am the giver of life" (vs 21 & 26).
• Claim #3: "I am the final judge" (vs 22-23).
• Claim #4: "I determine man's destiny" (vs 24).
• Claim #5: "I will raise the dead" (vs 25-29).
• Claim #6: "I am always doing the will of God" (vs 30)
SERMON BODY
Reading: John chapter 5 verses 16-30
Ill:
• In the news this week was a story about man's best friend,
• His name is Benny, and he is a rescue Labrador.
• Why is he in the news, well, not because he has rescued someone,
• But because at the age of nine he learnt to ice skate.
• Benny's owner, Cheryl Delsangro,
• Saw how much her dog enjoyed running around on the ice,
• Chasing after an ice hockey puck,
• And decided to see if an old dog could learn a new trick.
• And yes, Benny actually has his own custom skates designed by his owner Cheryl.
• Benny is fast becoming an internet star.
• You can view him on YouTube (https://youtu.be/JQC396oKmmI)
• TRANSITION: When I read his story, I thought he must be unique, incomparable,
• But a quick search soon showed that there are other ice-skating dogs out there!
• Yet, when it comes to Jesus Christ,
• One word you can associate with him is incomparable,
• There is no-one, and I mean no-one who can compare to him.
• And our series of studies up to and including Easter will show you why.
This morning:
• We are going to look at a fascinating dialogue found in John chapter 5 verses 16-30.
• Between Jesus and the religious leaders.
• They are opposed to Jesus over a number of issues,
• You could summarise their objection as Jesus refused to play by their rules.
• And the big rule for these religious leaders was the Sabbath.
• One day in seven must be kept for rest and worship and nothing else.
• They took that commandment from God.
• And they twisted it, they distorted it, they misused it.
• And Jesus comes along and he deliberately, in their face,
• Breaks and ignores their interpretation of the commandments.
• And will show and teach its real meaning.
Note:
• On first reading of this passage,
• You may give you the impression it is about the Sabbath.
• But if you slow down and read it again and again,
• There is a different item on the agenda of Jesus.
Ill:
• A few years ago, we were invited to a wedding and afterwards the reception.
• The bride and groom went from the Church to somewhere else for some extra photos.
• When they arrived at the venue,
• They came down a long driveway to the front of the hotel,
• There was a crowd of guests, including us who were ready to greet them.
• The car they came in was a vintage white Rolls Royce,
• And as the couple stood next to the car while yet more photos were taken,
• All the ladies gathered were saying; “Wow! Doesn’t the bride look fantastic?”
• While all the men were saying, “Wow! Doesn’t the car look fantastic?”
• TRANSITION: Somebody had missed the point!
• And in this passage some people will miss the point about what is going on.
• Like the religious leaders they will be focussed on the Sabbath,
• Yet, notice that Jesus doesn’t directly refer to the Sabbath,
• His focus and the point he is emphasising is on the relationship to his Father.
• i.e., Verse 17: ““My Father is always working”
• i.e. Verse 18b: “he was even calling God his own Father”
• i.e. Verse 19b; “ the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing,”
• i.e. Verse 19c: “because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”
• i.e., Verse 20: “For the Father loves the Son”
• i.e., Verse 21a: “For just as the Father raises the dead”
• i.e., Verse 22a, “Moreover, the Father judges no one”
• i.e., Verse 23a: “That all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. “
• i.e. Verse 23b: “Whoever does not honour the Son does not honour the Father, who sent him.”
• i.e. Verse 26a: “For as the Father has life in himself,”
• So, the religious leaders may be focussed on the Sabbath,
• But not Jesus, his focus is on his relationship to his Father.
• And that relationship makes him incomparable and quite unique.
• Incomparable is a great word, meaning,
• without an equal in quality or extent; matchless.
• This series of studies will show to us that,
• Jesus is beyond comparison and so he is incomparable.
Note:
• Many people in the UK will agree that Jesus was an historical figure.
• Well, that is not rocket science, no series historian will doubt that fact!
• The problem comes when Christians say he was more than a man,
• He was and is God.
• But that seems for many hard to swallow and even harder to understand.
• It seems illogical that Jesus Christ could be both God and man.
• To many that assertion is incompatible.
Ill:
• Many opponents of Christianity go to the philosopher Baruch (de) Spinoza,
• He was a Dutch philosopher of Portuguese-Jewish origin.
• He was around in the 16th century.
• He first came up with the idea of a square circle.
• Spinoza said to speak of Jesus as both human and divine,
• Is as illogical as speaking of a square circle.
• Alister McGrath is a Northern Irish theologian, Anglican priest,
• Intellectual historian, scientist, Christian apologist, and public intellectual.
• (Now that my friends are a great job description).
• Now in responding to Spinoza’s idea of a square circle is an absurdity.
• |The reason being that a square and a circle are examples of shapes.
• And a single shape cannot be both a square and a circle at the same time.
• Because a square and a circle are the same things (both inanimate shapes).
• But Godhood and manhood are not the same thing.
• They are two different things; God is creator and man is creature.
• So why is it not logical for both divinity and humanity to co-exist.
Ill:
• My father had dual nationality. He was both American and English.
• He was a citizen of the USA (where he was born),
• But he was also a citizen of the UK (where he chose to live).
• Now did being American exclude him being British – answer is no!
• And did being British exclude him being American – answer is no!
• So, what appear to be contradictory, is in fact no contradiction at all.
• He was able to be both fully American and fully British at the same time.
• TRANSITION:
• Likewise Jesus was both fully divine and fully human at the same time.
• This is what he claimed, and this is what the Bible teaches.
• And this is what we celebrate every Christmas – his incarnation.
• And that gives me the perfect excuse to quote from my favourite Christmas Carol,
• Hark the herald angels sing (vs 2).
“Christ, by highest Heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.”
• Now in this chapter Jesus is about to make some incredible claims:
• Claims that would divide his audience into two distinct groups,
• Those who were for him and those who were against him.
• If these claims are false, then as C.S. Lewis once said,
• He must be a “lunatic — on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg.”
• If you know the full quote, then you have three options.
• Jesus was mad (mentally ill, crazy), he was bad (he deceived people),
• Or he was God (in these verses that is who he claimed to be).
Note:
The Jewish leaders had to decide for themselves who Jesus was.
They come to a number of wrong conclusions about him.
• e.g., John in chapter 7 verse 20 & chapter 8 verse 48.
• They say he is possessed by a demon.
• His claims are sacrilege, blasphemous that he must be evil.
• e.g., John in chapter 8 verse 48.
• They call him a Samaritan.
• A derogatory term Samaritans were half-breeds born outside the Jewish race.
• Calling a Jew “Samaritan” was a racist insult.
• e.g., John chapter 10, verse 20, they say he's insane, raving mad, bonkers.
• We would say the same about any person claiming to be God incarnate.
• e.g., John chapter 8 verse 41 they say he is a bastard child, he's illegitimate.
• They knew his mother Mary was pregnant before she was married,
• And in Jesus day and culture that brought shame and reproach.
• e.g., In Matthew chapter 12 verse 24 tells us that the Jewish leaders,
• Finally declared that what He did, He did by the powers of hell...the power of Satan.
• He is a blasphemer and of the devil.
• Note: There was never any question in the minds of these Jewish leaders,
• They got it!
• They knew that Jesus Christ was claiming equality with God.
Pause for a moment:
• Before we look at the incredible claims of Jesus,
• A quick reminder of the background to these verses.
• The chapter starts with a miraculously healing.
• The man had been sick for thirty-eight years,
• (Joke): Of course, if you've been waiting on the National Health,
• For an operation you'll know exactly how he felt!
• But in verse 8 Jesus tells this man who was sick for thirty-eight years to:
• "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk".
• And to the astonishment of the man, and to the crowd around the pool.
• The man got up, picked up his mat and walked!
• It should have been a time for rejoicing, of celebration.
• After all, the life of this man had been transformed by Jesus,
• Now life could start all over again!
But as you read John 5; the reactions of the Jewish leaders were not one of joy,
• In fact, the opposite was true,
• They were scandalized by this merciful act,
• Verses 9 tells us why.
• Because “The day on which this took place was a Sabbath.”
• And so instead of rejoicing with this man:
• They interrogated him by asking him question upon question.
• They wanted to know the identity of this healer who broke the Law:
When the religious leaders found out that the 'Law breaking' healer was Jesus:
• They start to accuse and investigate him,
• And they also start to persecute him (vs 16).
Quote: Verses 16-18:
“So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him.
17 Jesus said to them, My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working.
18 For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God”.
• The original accusation of being a Sabbath-breaker paled to this charge.
• And for them, there was only one conclusion to be made.
• It was a time to kill. Jesus had to die.
• On a purely human level.
• You could say the fate of Jesus was sealed at this point.
• In human terms this conversation in John chapter 5 cost Jesus his life.
• The Jewish leaders refused to believe him, and they never forgave him!
ILL:
• There was an old man that witnessed a burglary and appeared in court.
• The defence lawyer asked him, "Did you see my client commit this burglary?"
• "Yes," the man said. "I saw him plainly take the goods."
• The lawyer anxious to disprove the witness said to him.
• "This happened at night. Are you sure you saw my client commit this crime?"
• "Yes, I saw him do it," the man said.
• The lawyer then said,
• "You are 80 years old, and your eyesight probably is not as good as it used to be.
• Just how far can you see at night?"
• The old man said,
• "Well, I can see the moon. How far is that?"
• TRANSITION: When we are looking to prove something:
• The quality of the person who is the witness is obviously most important!
• In this passage the witness is Jesus Christ.
• He has allowed his actions to testify concerning himself.
• By healing the man at the pool.
• Now in these verses he will allow his words.
• To confirm exactly who he is and why he has come into the world.
Claim #1: "I am equal with God" (vs 19-20).
“Jesus gave them this answer: I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.
20 For the father loves the son and shows him all he does. Yes, to your amazement he will show him even greater things than these.”
• Notice in these verses and also throughout the Gospel of John:
• The way Jesus talks about God.
• He never refers to God generally as "Our Father".
• But always specifically as "My Father" or "The Father".
• This is very important, because in referring to God this way.
• He is claiming a unique relationship with God:
• And the Jewish leaders of his day instantly understood the claim Jesus was making.
• And throughout his three years of public ministry,
• He would go on to make the same claim again & again & again!
I like the phrase in verse 19, where Jesus says.
• "What God does, I see".
• "What God does, I do".
Quote: George McDonald:
"Jesus did instantly what the Father is always doing slowly.
For example, in nature.
The Father is slowly turning water into wine,
But Jesus did it instantly.
Through the power in nature, the Father is healing broken bodies,
But Jesus healed them immediately.
Nature is repeatedly multiplying bread, from sowing to harvest.
But Jesus multiplied it instantly in his own hands".
So, in verse 19, Jesus is saying.
• "What God does, I see".
• "What God does, I do".
In other words, Jesus is saying,
"I have the same power God the Father has":
"And the reason I am on this earth",
"Is to carry out God's plan".
"I am doing his work and I do it with equal power".
ill:
• Like a shadow which is neither identical to, nor independent from,
• The substance from which it is cast,
• So, the Son and the Father are distinct from,
• Yet dependent upon, each other.
God cast his shadow on the earth for 33 years:
• In the person of Jesus Christ.
• "The image of the invisible God".
• And in verses 19 & 20 Jesus declares an incredible statement.
• "I am equal with God".
Claim #2: "I am the giver of life" (vs 21 & 26).
Verse 21:
"For just as the father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it".
Verse 26:
"For as the father has life in himself, so he has granted the son to have life in himself".
• In order to give life,
• You must be the source of life,
• e.g., You cannot light an old-fashioned Olympic style torch, if your torch is not lit.
• e.g., I cannot give you money if I am skint.
• In order to give life, you must be the source of life,
These Jewish leaders would have known.
• That declaration of being the source of life is claimed only by God:
• It is one of his attributes, his characteristics!
e.g., Deuteronomy chapter 32 verse 39.
“See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand.”
e.g., 1 Samuel chapter 2 verse 6.
“The Lord brings death and makes alive.
he brings down to the grave and raises up.”
• Any Jew knew, especially a Jewish leader.
• That God alone is the "Giver of life".
ill:
• Think for a moment about death, about funerals.
• As someone who takes funerals for both believers and unbelievers,
• The contrast between the two is immense, it is gigantic!
• Because one dies without hope, and one dies in hope!
Quote:
"Man can give medicine when sickness comes,
Food when hunger comes,
Help when weakness comes,
Love when loneliness comes,
But when death comes, man can give.
Only sympathy,
Only compassion,
Never the gift of life.
Only God can do that!"
Many have claimed too or actually been able to heal people:
• Yet, none but God can raise the dead,
• Especially by a simple command of their voice.
Yet Jesus Christ did it:
• Physically, e.g., The widow’s son of Nain (Luke 7:11-17), Jairus’ daughter (Luke 8:40-56), and Lazarus (John 11:1-44).
• Spiritually: e.g., John 1 verse 4: "In Jesus was life, and that life was the light of men".
Claim #3: "I am the final judge" (vs 22-23).
“Moreover, the father judges no-one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son,
23 that all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father, who sent him.”
In this verse (#22), Jesus delivers his most striking claim thus far:
• By doing so he really gets his accusers hot under the collar with this one.
• It is an incredible claim.
ill:
• Suppose at the start of the service I had given you a test:
• I handed out some pens & paper, & asked you one question,
• "Who is the final judge of mankind?"
• Most of you, if not all of you, would probably have given the same answer:
• "God is" - Meaning, "God the Father".
• But according to verse 22: You would be wrong!
• All judgement will be done by God the Son.
And verse 23 tells us why it is the Son who will do the judging:
• "That all may honour the Son just as they honour the Father".
• There is yet another reference to equality with God:
• He (the Son) deserves equal honour with God!
• He deserves the same honour that is given to God the Father.
Question: So, what does it mean to honour God?
Answer:
• Honour originates in a person’s heart and mind.
• It refers to the value that you personally place on something or someone.
• e.g., Collectors hold certain items in higher esteem than non-collectors do.
• What a stamp collector considers to be special, a must-have, valuable.
• We might look at the same stamp and dismiss it as a small piece of printed paper.
• e.g., We honour certain people above other people.
• In the UK we have the New Year Day honours list.
• This list recognises people who have made achievements in public life,
• Who have committed themselves to serving and helping others.
• TRANSITION: When we honour God,
• We are demonstrating the high regard we have for Him.
• We are reflecting his glory back as praise and worship.
• And it is never enough just to merely honour God outwardly.
• God desires honour that comes from our hearts.
• Quote: Isaiah chapter 29 verse 13 (Matthew chapter 15 verse 8).
“The Lord says, ‘These people come near to me with their mouth and honour me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me’”.
• To honour God means to give him the regard, respect, reverence,
• The essence of what it means to honour God.
• Is revealed to us in what Jesus called the first and greatest commandment:
• (Matthew chapter 22 verse 38).
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
• Verse 23 is clearing teaching us:
• That Jesus Christ deserves that sort of honour & respect.
• That you would give to "God the Father".
• Men & women have the opportunity now to do that willingly.
• Or one day they will have to do it anyway.
• It is never of case of will they or won’t they.
• It is a case of when!
• We can bow the knee willingly now and own him now as saviour,
• Or we will bow the knee later after death & face him as judge.
Claim #4: "I determine man's destiny" (vs 24).
“‘Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.”
This verse is such an important announcement:
• "I tell you the truth" says Jesus.
• "Make sure you understand this!!!"
• “Not only am I the judge in the court room of eternity:
• But I am also the ticket to freedom, for anyone who stands guilty!”
• Our ultimate destiny is not in our own hands – it is in his!
• True for both believer and non-believer.
But to benefit from this good news, two things are required:
• And notice you don't read a word about....
• Good works or Church attendance.
• Now words about doing good or about keeping the law.
• Nothing about trying your best or being moral upright & paying your bills.
• They might reflect the Christian faith,
• But they don't qualify you for it, they don't save you!!!
Jesus said in verse 24, two things are required.
• A hearing ear: "Hears my word".
• And a believing heart: "Believes him who sent me".
Quote: Martin Luther the great reformer who said:
“God our Father has made all things depend on faith so that whoever has faith will have everything, and whoever does not have faith will have nothing”.
Claim #5: "I will raise the dead" (vs 25-29).
“I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.
25 I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.
26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself.
27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.
28 Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice
29 and come out— those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.”
In another statement declaring, that what he says is the truth:
• Jesus makes another incredible statement,
• This time regarding resurrection from the dead.
• As you scan over verses 25-29,
• According to Jesus three crystal-clear truths surface regarding the final judgement:
Ill:
• Truth #1: There will definitely be life after death.
• Truth #2: Every person will be affected by it.
• Truth #3: Mankind will fall into two and only two categories.
• i.e., The saved and the lost, depending on our response to Jesus Christ.
Personal: Let me get personal and let me state the obvious:
• These verses refer to you and me,
• As much as to the people of Jesus' day.
• Which group will you be in?
• Are you sure?
Claim #6: "I am always doing the will of God" (vs 30)
“By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me”.
• Jesus is clearly implying in this verse:
• That he consistently is seeking and doing the will of God.
• Jesus will go on to enlarge this idea later on in John's gospel,
• (John chapter 8 verse 28).
ill:
• Just as a shadow does not move on its own initiative:
• So, with Jesus, he moves only in rhythm with the Father's footsteps.
In closing a Question:
• Can you name me another person in history.
• Who can claim just ONE of these six statements?
• Have a think while I run through them again:
• (1). "I am equal with God" (verse 19-20).
• (2). "I am the giver of life" (verse 21 & 26).
• (3). "I am the final judge" (verse 22-23).
• (4). "I determine man's destiny" (verse 24).
• (5). "I will raise the dead" (verse 25-29).
• (6). "I am always doing the will of God" (verse 30).
Answer:
• There is not a single one, not a single person.
• Only Jesus Christ is able to fulfil these claims!
• That is why he is the incomparable Christ – unique and unravelled!
Quote: C.S. Lewis:
"You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon,
or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God,
but let us not come up with any patronizing nonsense about him being a great human teacher,
he has not left that open to us; he did not intend to".
SERMON AUDIO:
https://surf.pxwave.com/wl/?id=6GmdUyZCoAhDKY1eNTV99OdvNNMLyqLw
SERMON VIDEO:
https://youtu.be/5nfqwww3lWs
