St. John 8:46–59
[Jesus said:] “Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.”
The Jews answered Him, “Are we not right in saying 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. Yet I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks it, and He is the judge. Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word, he will never see death.”
The Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste death.’ Are You greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do You make Yourself out to be?”
Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing. It is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ But you have not known Him. I know Him. If I were to say that I do not know Him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know Him and I keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see My day. He saw it and was glad.”
So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?”
Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.” So they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. (ESV)
Prayer: We thank You Heavenly Father, that by Your grace, you have given us true faith in Your Word. Your holy, sinless Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, was made to be sin for us, and has freed us from sin and the great darkness of unbelief. Grant us humility and a sincere faith and love for Your Word. Amen.
Why Jesus’ Words Matter
In Christ Jesus, the Great I Am, dear fellow redeemed,
Each Sunday we have a list of readings for the given day in the Church Year from the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Testament was written before Christ, between 1500-500 BC and the New Testament was written after Christ’s life, from about AD 50–90. It was written over the span of 1600 years by different authors from Moses to King David to Isaiah to St. Paul to the Apostle John. Yet, despite having many different writers, it is one unified book because all the holy writers were inspired by the Holy Spirit. As Paul writes, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (II Timothy 3:16).
And what is the purpose of the Bible? To point us to Christ. There are many events in the Bible I wish I could have seen and heard with my own eyes and ears. One of them was after Jesus rose from the dead when he came to two disciples on the road to Emmaus. They didn’t realize that it was Jesus with them. They were sad because they told him Jesus didn’t turn out to be who they thought he was. They didn’t realize that Jesus’ had risen from the dead. But then Jesus rebukes them and Luke writes, “And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself” (Luke 24:27).
What a master class that would have been! How amazing it would be to hear Jesus as he shows how all the Old Testament—all the Scriptures—were about him! From the beginning to the end! It all pointed to Jesus and what he would do for us and for our salvation. Now we weren’t there to hear Jesus expound the Scriptures, but we can study the Scriptures and see what they tell us about him.
Today, we have three important readings from the Bible. In our Old Testament lesson from Genesis, we hear God’s promise to Abram. Not only would God bless Abram, but he would bless all the families of the earth through him. How could the whole world be blessed by Abram? Because Jesus would be born from Abraham’s line and he is the Savior of the world. Then in our Epistle lesson from Hebrews, we are told that Christ served as our high priest by offering up his life to pay for our sins, to shed his own blood to redeem us from the sins we’ve committed against God’s law, so that we could receive the promised eternal inheritance. From this section—it is clear that the only way for us to get to heaven, the holy of holies—is through Christ’s blood. In our Gospel lesson, Jesus reveals why his sacrifice could save us. It’s because he is no ordinary man. He is God. Jesus said, “Before Abraham was, I Am.” He is the one who appeared to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3). He is the almighty Word through whom the heavens were made that became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1). This is why Jesus can say, “If anyone keeps My word, he will never see death.”
I. His Word is True.
But this raises a question—if the Pharisees were so steeped in Scripture, why did they fail to recognize Jesus as the Messiah? Why wouldn’t they want the salvation that Jesus offered? Why would they reject Jesus’ words?
The Pharisees prided themselves on being descendants of Abraham and heirs of God’s kingdom. They were religious leaders, well thought of, and prominent members of the Jewish community. They claimed to be children of God the Father. But if Jesus was God like he claimed, that also meant his words were true. The Pharisees despised this very thought, because that would mean that they would be stripped of their honor, good works, and family lineages as sons of Abraham. None of that mattered according to Christ—because it could not save them. The Pharisees were prideful and self-righteous. They wanted to be acknowledged by God for their sacrifices. If Jesus’ word was true, they would have to admit their inability to enter the kingdom of God through their keeping of the law.
When we hear about the Pharisees it’s easy for us to become judgmental of them, “I would never do that! I would have followed and listened to Jesus!” But these events are not recorded to boost our pride. Instead, these accounts are meant to humble us before God.
The Pharisees were descendants of Abraham, pious believers, and good neighbors. The Jews looked up to them with respect. Naturally, they were proud of themselves. What about us? Are you proud of your pious life? Do you think you should be more acknowledged for the sacrifices and kindnesses you do for the church or community? Do you like when Scripture condemns the sins of society, but ignore it or gloss over it when it pricks your conscience? Do we treat the sins of drunkenness, hatred, gossip, or lust as no big deal when we do it, but condemn it when done by others? Isn’t that what the Pharisees were doing?
To hear God’s word means to believe that Jesus’ words are true. You and I are sinners in need of help. We don’t need just a slight nudge in our journey to God. We don’t just need advice on how to live a God-pleasing life, we need someone to make us pleasing to God. Because of our sin, we need a new heart and the righteousness that only God can give! And Jesus is saying, “I AM that Savior. I AM the One who can deliver you from death, forgive your sins, and take you to heaven with me. So, believe my word—repent of your sins, cast away your pride, and put your trust in me alone.” Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word, he will never see death.”
But our sinful pride has a hard time believing this. It’s easy to downplay our sins. They’re not damning sins, just little accidents. When a person gets hurt, they might not know how dangerous their situation is. But when they see the tools, the medical team is using to help them, they might begin to realize how serious their condition is. In a similar way, when we realize what it took to pay for our sins—to save us, we should realize how dire our condition was. The hymn writer puts it well when he writes,
3. Ye who think of sin but lightly
Nor suppose the evil great
Here may view its nature rightly,
Here its guilt may estimate.
Mark the Sacrifice appointed,
See who bears the awful load;
’Tis the Word, the Lord’s anointed,
Son of Man and Son of God.
What did it take to pay for your sins? The blood of God’s own Son. We could not make amends for our sin. Only Christ could pay our debt. On the cross, we see the penalty that our sins truly deserve. But at the same moment, God also reveals the greatness of his love.
II. His Word Promises Life
You see, God did not want us to die in our sins which leads to hell. Yet, the only way he could save us was giving his own Son—the sacrifice needed to redeem the world. But “God so loved the world…” He so loved you and me, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him, should not perish, but receive everlasting life. He became man so that we could become children of God through faith in Christ. If Jesus was only a mere man, he would not have been able to save the world from sin and death. Yet, as both God and man in one person, his life laid down for us on the cross had eternal value. This was God’s plan before the foundation of the world, that he would redeem us “with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (I Peter 1:19).
That’s why the cross is our greatest comfort! It’s why we sing about it, put it up in our churches, and are unashamed to preach Christ crucified. While it shows us the greatness of our sins, it also shows us the love of God for us. That he would pay this tremendous price to save us.
The Fifth Sunday in Lent is known as Judica Sunday, which means judgement. When we stand before God’s judgement seat, there are only two possible verdicts. If we want to rely on our own righteousness—our own works, abilities, and intentions—we will be condemned. The great warning of our lesson is against persistent rejection of God’s word and relying on our own works. If we refuse to repent and hear God’s word, then there is no forgiveness, no hope, and no salvation. This is why pride is so dangerous. But if we rely on Christ alone for our salvation, the spotless Lamb of God, the one who became our Brother, we will be declared innocent—and shall not see death.
Yet, every one of us can still have some doubts or concerns about our death and judgement day. We can’t help but remember our sins and the times where we failed to act and live the way we should have. People say to me, “Pastor, I know God forgives me, but I sometimes wonder… it’s hard for me to forget about all the foolish things I have done in my past.”
Maybe there are certain sins that have been troubling you. Then consider what Jesus says, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance” (Mark 2:17). Jesus came for sinners and that includes you!
Not only did Jesus come for you, but he says, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” This is the greatest comfort in the world! Your Savior is the Son of God! One theologian wrote, “That is our comfort, to know that in our redemption the suffering and death of the eternal God is lying in the balance. It is the eternal God that delivered us from eternal damnation. The eternal God suffered on the cross and has taken away the power of hell and damnation.” With Jesus in the balance of our salvation, we have HOPE!
None of us deserve heaven. The reason why some are saved and others condemned is not because one is better than the other—the difference is Jesus! Every single one of us is a sinner who has fallen for the devil’s temptations. But for those who repent of their sins and put their trust in Christ’s forgiveness which he earned on the cross—he promises eternal life.
Death for the believer is not a scary thing. We know where we are going because of Jesus’ word. Consider what comforting ways our Lord speaks about death, “The girl is not dead, but sleeping!” When our final hour shall come, we can confess with Simeon, “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles and the glory of Your people Israel” (Luke 2:29–32).
Jesus’ word matters because it is true. Those who ignore his word lose all certainty of life that Jesus gives. The devil, the world, and our own sinful pride will always try to ignore and disregard God’s word. “Did God really say that?” But may we, by the grace of God, continue to stand fast in the faith to which we have been called and hear God’s word. For then, death will be but a doorway to eternal life in heaven. Amen.