Tag Archives: blasphemy

JOHN’S GOSPEL…THE ENCOUNTER – 25a

Bible Study, ,

I have written at length about all the aspects of Jesus’ arrest and trial before the Sanhedrin except His encounter with Pilate. 

“So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?” “If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.” Pilate said, “Take him yourselves and judge him by your own law.” “But we have no right to execute anyone,” they objected…Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?” “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?” Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.” “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.”

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭29‬-‭31‬, ‭33‬-‭38‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Surely, Pilate is to be pitied rather than judged, or is he? He was the Roman governor of Judea, raised a pagan, taught to believe in the evil, capricious panel of gods who ruled over Rome. What did he know of a religion that believed in one true, holy God who ruled over Isreal from heaven, requiring obedience to a substantial set of rules administered by His priesthood? 

Pilate was caught up in a saga he didn’t know how to handle. A Jewish rabbi claiming to be the Son of this holy God, was on trial for blasphemy. Pilate had no interest in the religious squabbles of his subjects but, when it came to the issue of treason against Rome, he pricked up his ears. It was his responsibility to keep these rabble-rousing Jews under control. 

The Jewish authorities had charged Jesus with blasphemy under very flimsy false pretences, but they had no authority to execute Him. They had to bring a charge against Him that rattled the Roman authorities. What better charge than treason since Jesus spoke often of representing another kingdom, albeit an unseen realm over which their God ruled.  

Pilate was rudely awoken to face this dilemma. The sun had hardly risen before an unruly mob, led by members of the Jewish Sanhedrin, half pushing, half dragging a bedraggled, dishevelled man along with them. “Crucify Him!” they demanded. “For what reason?” Pilate retorted. “Of what is He guilty?” 

Notice how the Jewish rulers side-stepped the question. 

“If he were not a criminal,” they replied, “we would not have handed him over to you.””

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭30‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Already prejudged and condemned, the Jewish rulers expected Pilate to rubber-stamp their verdict. “Not so fast!” declared Pilate. “What has He done?” Blasphemy would not stick with him but treason was a different matter. Without pressing the Jews for an answer, he questioned Jesus about the verdict. Why had they found him guilty? He, Pilate, was not aware of any uprisings in Jerusalem. 

“Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?””

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭33‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus’ reply was equally baffling for a pagan Roman. 

“Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.”

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭36‬ ‭NIV‬‬

How was he, the Roman governor who had the power to kill or acquit Jesus, supposed to sentence a man to death who was no threat to Rome? Where was the evidence of His incitement to an uprising? Where was this “other place” kingdom of which Jesus spoke? 

To get a plain answer, Pilate made a statement he wanted Jesus to corroborate, to which Jesus replied with even more puzzling words…

“You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.””

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭37‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Surely, how was Pilate, this secular man who, seemingly, had no understanding of or interest in spiritual matters, supposed to order the execution of a man who spoke about truth! What was truth? What did he know about truth? Truth, to him, was irrelevant. He lived by his own beliefs and carried out the orders of Rome without question, whether they were good or bad. 

With a gesture of contempt, Pilate turned on his heels muttering, “What is truth?”, to wash his hands of this matter by giving in to the mob. 

On what grounds was Pilate judged when he stood before this same Jesus in the very realm of which He spoke and over which He now rules? Where once Pilate was the judge and Jesus the condemned, the moment Pilate passed from this life, the tables were turned. What did Jesus say to him? On what grounds was he sent to the place he had chosen in this life? Was it that he had given in to the crucifixion of an innocent man? Was he condemned because he ordered the execution of the Son of God? Was there a place of torment far worse for him than any other person for having had Jesus, the Son of God, killed? 

Strangely enough, no! The verdict was, for Pilate, the same as for every other person who is sentenced to live in eternal darkness, “Guilty, as charged.” The charge?

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.”

‭‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“However,” you might say, ”what chance did Pilate have of believing the truth?” The answer is…he had the same chance as every other person on earth who rejects the truth and goes into eternal darkness…

“The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

It’s that simple! He was guilty beyond reasonable doubt. 

It’s not that people don’t know the truth. It’s that it’s inconvenient to know. They don’t want to know because they love the darkness of sin and unbelief rather than the light of truth. All sin, even Pilate’s outrageous injustice, is the fruit of unbelief. So, it’s not the sin that God condemns but the unbelief in the one He sent to tell the truth that will ultimately send them to hell.  

But wait…there’s more!

To be continued…

SOME TANDOM THOUGHTS…AUTHORITY – 7a

Christian life, ,

Why is Jesus’ authority so important for us? What does His authority mean to us as His disciples in our daily lives? For a few days, we’ll be digging into this fascinating topic. 

The ongoing conflict between Jesus and His earthly opponents was the issue of authority. His words and works baffled them because, despite what they saw and heard, they refused to accept His claim that He was the Son of God and that His authority came from His Father. To them, this was blasphemy and blasphemy was punishable by death. 

Authority was everything in the Jewish religious system. The religious leaders claimed their authority from Moses except that the laws they tried to enforced came, not from Moses but from their esteemed ancient rabbis who had added protective prohibitions to the Mosaic law contained in the Mishna, a written collection of the Oral Tradition, called the Oral Torah. 

For example…

Jesus and the Pharisees clashed in their interpretation of Sabbath. To the Pharisees, Sabbath was about work, to Jesus…mercy! He claimed authority over the Sabbath, which did not sit well with them.   

“For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.””

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭12‬:‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭6‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In Paleo-Hebrew, the ancient pictographic written language of the Hebrews, the  basic meaning of the name of God, “el” or “Elohim” (plural), was depicted in two pictures, an ox and a staff, signifying “strength and authority”. To the Hebrews, strength and authority summed up who God is and what He does. 

When Jesus claimed authority, by sound what H did, He was claiming to be God. 

In this first section, let’s examine Jesus’ claims. In what way did Jesus’ actions confirm His claim to be the Son of God?

  1. Jesus had authority over nature

He calmed a storm…

“He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭4‬:‭39‬-‭41‬ ‭NIV‬‬

He walked on water…

“Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭14‬:‭25‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  1. Jesus taught with authority

“They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law.”

‭‭Mark‬ ‭1‬:‭21‬-‭22‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  1. Jesus had authority over the demonic realm

“Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek. The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.””

‭‭Mark‬ ‭1‬:‭23‬-‭27‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  1. Jesus had authority over sickness, disease, and disability

“When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭8‬:‭16‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus healed a man born blind. 

“As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth…After saying this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man’s eyes. “Go,” he told him, “wash in the Pool of Siloam” (this word means “Sent”). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing.”

‭‭John‬ ‭9‬:‭1‬, ‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Jesus also delegated His authority to heal to His disciples. 

“Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭10‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  1. Jesus had authority over death

“After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”…When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face. Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.””

‭‭John‬ ‭11‬:‭11‬, ‭43‬-‭44‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  1. Jesus had authority to forgive sin

“Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!” Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” Then the man got up and went home.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭9‬:‭2‬-‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

  1. The Father has given all authority to Jesus

“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.””

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭28‬:‭18‬-‭20‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The gospel records show us that Jesus had complete authority over the earth during His earthly life and has been given, because of His obedience to the Father in His life and death, supreme authority over everything in heaven and on earth,  in His exaltation. 

“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

In our next section, we shall examine the implications of Jesus’ authority over His followers. 

To be continued…

MARK’S GOSPEL…THE TRIAL – 39

Bible Study, ,

Mark‬ ‭14‬:‭53‬, ‭55‬-‭59‬, ‭61‬-‭62‬, ‭64‬ ‭NIV‬‬

“They took Jesus to the high priest, and all the chief priests, the elders and the teachers of the law came together…The chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin were looking for evidence against Jesus so that they could put him to death, but they did not find any. Many testified falsely against him, but their statements did not agree. Then some stood up and gave this false testimony against him: “We heard him say, ‘I will destroy this temple made with human hands and in three days will build another, not made with hands.’ ” Yet even then their testimony did not agree. But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer…Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” ….“You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” They all condemned him as worthy of death.”

‭‭

In a court of law, “A person is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.” This is the way justice is supposed to work. A justice system is responsible to examine the evidence objectively and make its judgment by determining the guilt or innocence of the accused based on the reliability of the evidence and the truthfulness of the witnesses. 

However, in Jesus’ trial, every rule of law and justice was overturned in favour of a predetermined verdict of “guilty as charged.” The judge and jury were determined to kill Him, so their “evidence” was contrived to confirm their verdict!

The legal team was made up of, supposedly, the most respected, most trusted, most honest men of integrity in the land of Israel, the representatives of divine justice which they were tasked to represent by dispensing the law of God truthfully and accurately.

So, they found Jesus guilty of all charges and condemned Him to death! First, the charges…blasphemy against God according to their law… , second, treason against Rome according to Roman law. 

Was Jesus guilty of blasphemy? No! Was He the Son of God? Yes! Why then, was He found guilty? The verdict depended on the perspective of the court. Jesus backed up His claim to be the Son of God by His words and works. His miracles were, primarily, evidence that He was who He said He was.

For example…

To His disciples, He said…

“Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the works themselves.”

‭‭John‬ ‭14‬:‭10‬-‭11‬ ‭NIV‬‬

His authority to forgive was backed up by a miracle. 

“Some men brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”

“Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?”

‭”But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” Then the man got up and went home.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭9‬:‭2‬-‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬

However, the religious leaders refused to believe the evidence.

Was Jesus guilty of treason? This charge was for Pilate’a benefit and for Pilate to decide as the representative of the Roman government. Did Jesus claim to be a king in rebellion against Rome?

“Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?” “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?” Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.” “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.”

‭‭John‬ ‭18‬:‭33‬-‭38 NIV‬‬

Pilate was both mystified and convinced, by Jesus’ answer, that He was no threat to Rome. He released Him to be crucified only on the insistence of the Jews that He was guilty of blasphemy by the standards of their law. 

So, by the grossest miscarriage of justice in history, in the face of all the overwhelming evidence that Jesus was the Son of God, they condemned Him to death and crucified Him. 

Who was right? The Jews or Jesus?

Although Jesus was forced into this situation by the Jewish authorities, He went willingly because it was according to His Father’s will. He submitted, not to His accusers but to His Father because this was the only way to redeem His people from sin. 

Peter said…

“This man was handed over to you by God’s deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross. But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.”

‭‭Acts‬ ‭2‬:‭23‬-‭24‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Paul said…

“…and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭4‬ ‭NIV‬‬

The war between darkness and light raged in the courtroom that day, and darkness won…or did it?

JESUS SAID – 10

Bible Study, ,

John 10:34-36 NIV
[34] “Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are “gods” ’? [35] If he called them ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be set aside— [36] what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’?”

Jesus was in the centre of yet another wrangle with the religious leaders. His insistence that He was the Son of God and one with the Father enraged them. They wanted to stone Him to death for blasphemy but Jesus defended His claim from Scripture…

Psalms 82:1, 6-7 NIV
[1] God presides in the great assembly; he renders judgment among the “gods”:…
[6] “I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’ [7] But you will die like mere mortals; you will fall like every other ruler.”

The term, ” lgods” or “sons of God” occurs in various parts of Scripture – for example, Genesis 6:4, Job 1:6 and Job 38:7.

Genesis 6:4 NLT
[4] “In those days, and for some time after, giant Nephilites lived on the earth, for whenever the sons of God had intercourse with women, they gave birth to children who became the heroes and famous warriors of ancient times.”

These Nephalites were part human, part spirit beings born of the rebellion of the sons of God by having intercourse with human women, causing trouble on the earth.

These spirit brings were present at creation. God challenged Job…

Job 38:3-4, 7 NIV
[3] “Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. [4] “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation? Tell me, if you understand…
[7] …while the morning stars (meaning shining… star… figuratively, prince,) sang together and all the angels (“elohim barne”, i.e., sons of God), shouted for joy?”

Who were these “sons of God?”

“The setting of Job 38:7 is an entire chapter on the Creation by YHWH, and the reference to the morning stars as sons of God harks back to Job 1:6, in which they are part of the heavenly host of YHWH in his formal Heavenly Council/ Royal Court.” (Article from Google)

The many references to the sons of God suggest that they were spirit beings created to be God’s divine council or heavenly court and given the responsibility to rule over the nations. God divided the nations according to the number of the heavenly beings, and assigned them to the members of His “heavenly court” (also called “elohim” – gods).

Deuteronomy 32:8 NLT
[8] “When the Most High assigned lands to the nations, when he divided up the human race, he established the boundaries of the peoples according to the number in his heavenly court.”

Each heavenly being was given the responsibility of governing a nation under God. They were “gods” with power and authority to rule on God’s behalf.

Only one nation did not have a “god” to rule over them. God chose Israel alone to belong to Him.

Deuteronomy 7:6 NLT
[6] “For you are a holy people, who belong to the Lord your God. Of all the people on earth, the Lord your God has chosen you to be his own special treasure.”

Deuteronomy 7:7-8 NLT
[7] “The Lord did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations! [8] Rather, it was simply that the Lord loves you, and he was keeping the oath he had sworn to your ancestors. That is why the Lord rescued you with such a strong hand from your slavery and from the oppressive hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt.”

Israel was to represent God to all the nations.

“In the Bible, God chose Israel to be a light to the nations so that they would reflect God’s character and show the world what obedience to God brings. Israel was also chosen to be a nation of priests, prophets, and missionaries.” (Google)

God is the Most High God among the gods, supreme in power and authority over them. However…

Satan seems to have been a prominent member of God’s counsel, the sons of God, but became leader of the rebellion which led all the “gods” astray.

Job 1:6 NIV
[6] “One day the angels (Hebrew, “ha elohim bane” – meaning
“the sons of God”), came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them.”

Satan led a mass rebellion that turned the heavenly beings against God. They lost the war with God’s heavenly army and were, consequently, thrown out of heaven.

Revelation 12:7-9 NLT
[7]”Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. [8] And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. [9] This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.”

So, God judged His rebel council and condemned them to death like all humanity.

[6] “I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’ [7] But you will die like mere mortals; you will fall like every other ruler.”

Now let’s go back to Jesus’ defense. If God’s Word states that God called these heavenly beings “gods” and, by inference, “sons of God”, why would Jesus’ claim to God’s Son be blasphemous since God Himself called them “sons of God”?

Once again, Jesus removed all grounds for debate since the Scripture from which the religious leaders loved to quote, exonerated Him from their accusation.

BY THEIR WORKS

Bible Study, ,

BY THEIR WORKS

“‘If He called them “gods”, to whom the Word of God came — and Scripture cannot be set aside — what about the one whom the Father set apart as His very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son?’ Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father.’

“‘But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I in the Father.’ Again, they tried to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp.” John 10:35-39 NIV.

There is only one way to recognise the nature of a tree — by its fruit. There is no doubt that an apple tree is an apple tree when it bears apples or an orange tree is an orange tree when it bears oranges, though it may look like a lemon tree or some other citrus tree. 

The Pharisees refused to accept Jesus’ claim to be the Son of God because they insisted that the works He did, although He did the things that reflected the nature of His Father, were evil because He did them on the Sabbath, as though it were the day, not the nature of the deed that made His miracles evil!

Unfortunately for them, their very accusation revealed the nature of their “tree”. Their fruit was so rotten that they called evil good and good evil. Jesus warned, “‘Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognise them.'” Matthew 7:15, 16a NIV.

If the fruit of Jesus’ life matched the nature of His Father, then He must surely be His Son, since a son contains the genes and perpetuates his father’s nature into the next generation. In Psalm 82:6, God called the Israelites ‘gods’ because they were to reveal the nature of their God to the world as His sons, His gracious, compassionate, slow-to-anger and abounding-in-love-and-faithfulness nature, yet the Pharisees were anything but like the God they claimed as their Father.

Jesus set great store on works because works reveal the nature of the person just as fruit reveals the nature of a tree. In his letter, James picks up on this theme, showing his readers that a true believer is identified by his works as Abraham was by his. To the Hebrew mind, there was no such thing as believing without acting on that belief. Believing in Jesus was meaningless unless it issued in obedience to Him.

The Apostle Paul, in his letters to the Romans and Galatians, contended for faith apart from works as a way of salvation. The Judaisers — a Jewish sect of believers in Jesus — insisted that Gentiles be circumcised first before they could become believers. To Paul, that meant that the death of Jesus was insufficient to reconcile a wayward son to the Father and, for him, that was unthinkable. Yes, the death of Jesus is sufficient to deal with our sin and to restore us to fellowship with the Father. There is nothing we can do to add to the sufficiency of His work on the cross.

James, on the other hand, recognised that good works — tsidaqah, which isfulfilling our duty to God by sharing our resources with people less fortunate than we are, caring for the alien, the widow and the orphan and helping the weak and oppressed — are a fruit of our confession of faith in Jesus. We reveal our oneness with Him when we do what He did just as He revealed His oneness with the Father by doing what the Father wanted Him to do.

For all their big talk, the Pharisees and religious leaders made it glaringly obvious that they were of their father, the devil, because they were doing his works, not the works of the Father. “‘You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.'”  John 8:44 NIV.

That is quite an indictment!

How important it is to show our connection with Jesus by doing what He did and living like He lived, just as He lived out His connection with the Father by the way He treated people. It is not only what we say that reveals our connection to Jesus but also the way we live. Let’s make sure that our fruit is the fruit of the Spirit and not the deeds of the flesh.

We are known by our works more than by our words!

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide