³⁰ “I and the Father are one.”³¹ Again his Jewish opponents picked up stones to stone him, ³² but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?”
³³ “We are not stoning you for any good work,” they replied, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.”
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’? ³⁷ Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. ³⁸ 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.” ³⁹ Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp.
⁴⁰ Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. There he stayed, ⁴¹ and many people came to him. They said, “Though John never performed a sign, all that John said about this man was true.” ⁴² And in that place many believed in Jesus.
The more we have to protect, the harder it becomes to receive Jesus as he truly is.
Thoughts
- Blasphemy! Stone Him! (31-33) Whoever blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him. (Lev 24:16) The leaders are right: execution for blasphemy is righteous, unless (30) is actually true. People often say they would believe if they had more evidence. Here Jesus’ enemies had seen so many good works, but they still couldn't see Jesus. The problem was never a lack of proof: it was an unwillingness to surrender to who he actually is. The religious leaders cannot accept that God would come so close, in such a human and humble form. ➤ Their violent response shows how threatening the incarnation is to any religion that wants to keep God at a safe distance, to keep him under control.
- **You Are Gods. Huh? (34-36) Jesus does not argue like a modern apologist would. Rather, he assumes the authority of Scripture to show that if God could call human judges gods (Ps 82:6) in a limited sense, how much more appropriate is it for him, the unique Son whom the Father set apart and sent, to call himself the Son of God. He is not claiming to be one of them; he is making a “how much more” argument, while quietly affirming that Scripture cannot be set aside. Yet beneath the careful reasoning lies something deeper: Jesus is not merely defending his claim—he is revealing the kind of God who refuses to stay at a safe distance. We often do the same, quietly editing the Bible so that Jesus cannot say what he actually says about himself. ➤Our real problem is rarely the lack of evidence. It is usually an unwillingness to surrender control.**
- But What About What You Have Seen? (37-38) Jesus makes one final, gracious appeal: Do not believe me unless I do the works of my Father. Even as they reach for stones, he keeps appealing to what they have seen, giving them one more opportunity to recognize who he really is. He is not demanding blind faith. Instead, he points them to the plain evidence of his works—the miracles and good works they have already seen—as a solid basis for belief. Even if they will not accept his words, the works themselves should lead them to recognize the deeper reality: the Father and the Son are in perfect, mutual union with one another. ➤ The works function as a window into the very relationship between the Father and the Son.
- Rejected in Jerusalem, but Faith Beyond (39-42) Again the leaders try to seize him, but Jesus escapes and withdraws across the Jordan. Away from Jerusalem’s centers of power, many people come to him. Reflecting on John the Baptist’s testimony, they conclude it was true, and many believe. The contrast is striking: in Jerusalem the religious elite, with status and systems to protect, grow resistant, while ordinary people with little to lose prove far more open. Jesus had already pointed to this pattern in the Beatitudes (Matt 5:3): the spiritually poor are often the most ready to receive the kingdom, while those rich in their own eyes find his claims too costly. ➤ Even as the official “shepherds” reject him, the Good Shepherd who laid down his life for the sheep continues gathering his own in quieter places.
Reflection
- Those who had the most to lose (status, reputation, and theological power) were the least interested in Jesus. What might you need to lose in order to receive him more fully?
GoJ 11-13:17
