John 8:39-59 - Fighting Against One Greater than Abraham (Rev. Erik Veerman)

John 8:39-59

Our sermon text this morning is John 8:39-59. In the provided pew Bibles, you can find that on page 1063.

This is a continuation of Jesus' dialog with the Pharisees. In our verses last week, Jesus told them that true disciples would know the truth and the truth would set them free. Remember, he was speaking about knowing him and being set free from slavery to sin.

Well, the Pharisees did not think they were enslaved to anything. Because they were physical descendants of Abraham, they believed they were in right standing before God.

In response, Jesus made it absolutely clear that they were not true sons but rather slaves. Jesus alluded to the fact that they had a different father.

As I read, be listening for who their father truly was.

Reading of John 8:39-59

Prayer

I'm not proud of this, but when I was in elementary school, I often did not want to listen to my sister. And so, I would plug my ears and sometimes I would also say over and over "I can't hear you. I can't hear you." By the way, that had the side effect of irritating her. Honestly, it was very immature. I'm thankful for the Lord's work in my heart over time.

But it is true that sometimes we just don’t want to listen. We don't literally plug our ears, but we sometimes walk away or just dismiss everything that someone else says.

We see that on display in public. Sometimes, people walk out of speeches on purpose like at college graduations. Other times, people heckle to distract the speaker and prevent other people from hearing. Honestly, those tactics say more about the people protesting than the one speaking.

Well, in our verses today, it's as if the Pharisees had their ears plugged. They did not want to listen to anything that Jesus said. Jesus even pointed that out to them. Look at verse 43. He said, "you cannot bear to hear my words." And at the end of verse 47, Jesus said, "The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God."

That's pretty intense. Really, this whole dialog, as you heard, is very intense.

In fact, in the narrative arc of John's Gospel, chapter 8 is the climax of the verbal conflict between Jesus and the Jews. It began back in chapter 5 when Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath. It continued in chapter 6 when Jesus claimed to be the manna from heaven because he is the Son of God. It escalated in chapter 7 when Jesus declared that he was living water bringing eternal life. And now in chapter 8, Jesus and the Pharisees have come to this heated confrontation.

To be sure, I'm not saying that these verses are the climax of the conflict. No, that will happen in the immediate lead-up to the cross. Rather, these verses are the climax of their interaction. And in the back and forth, we learn who is truly driving the Pharisees' anger and hate, and that is the devil himself.

So, let's consider this text. We'll do that in three points this morning.

1. The Fight Over Fatherhood - you know, who is the Pharisees' real father and why?

2. The One Greater than Abraham - Jesus declares that he himself is God

3. The Triumph of Abraham's True Descendants - who are the true descendants of Abraham, and what benefit do they receive?

That's where we are headed.

1. The Fight Over Fatherhood (8:39-50, 52)

Again, #1, the Fight Over Fatherhood

As you heard, Abraham is a central figure in the conflict. According to the Pharisees, because they were Abraham's physical offspring, they considered themselves God's people, with God as their ultimate father.

But, as you heard, Jesus made very clear that they were not acting as true sons of Abraham. Jesus essentially gave them two reasons.

·      First, they were not doing the works that Abraham did. He said that right there in verse 39. Jesus then pointed to the Pharisees' desire to kill him. Their murderous desires betrayed Abraham. Abraham was a man of deep faith and he demonstrated that many times. He lived out his faith. Abraham responded to God's commands. Abraham's true spiritual children would not be acting like the Pharisees.

·      Second, not only were they not doing the works that Abraham did, but they were also not honoring God. The Pharisees were not listening to his word, as I mentioned earlier. They would not even consider that perhaps Jesus was the Messiah. Later in our text, Jesus made it absolutely clear that they were dishonoring God the Father by dishonoring him. That was very different from Abraham. Multiple times in Abraham's life, God spoke to him. Abraham humbled himself and listened to God and his word. Abraham lived out his faith by hearing God and believing. Now, just to be sure, Abraham was a sinner, but he sought the Lord by faith. The Pharisees, on the other hand, had no faith and no desire to seek the Lord.

And for those reasons, Jesus declared that their true father was the devil. The Pharisees demonstrated through their lies and deceit and murderous hearts that they were not of Abraham, they were not of God, but rather, they were of the devil.

In response, the Pharisees lashed out at Jesus. They questioned Jesus' origin. They told Jesus that he was a Samaritan, whom the Pharisees hated, and they accused Jesus of having a demon.

Do you see how the conflict has reached new heights?

A couple of times in the past, we've talked about how the Gospel of John is written like a play. Each chapter is like a new scene. You know, the curtain opens; the audience sees a new setting; we then witness Jesus speaking to different people. In each scene, Jesus reveals who he is in different ways.

Well, for the apostle John's Jewish audience, every new scene challenged their understanding of God and Jesus and the purpose of their Jewish practices and beliefs.

I want you to imagine that you are a Jew in the late first century. Imagine that you are hearing this for the first time. And imagine how shocking this interaction would have been.

I mean, the tension had been escalating, but then Jesus drops the bomb in verse 44: "You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him."

Think about how that would have come across. The Pharisees were the Jewish authorities. And yet, Jesus called them out as having the devil as their father.

You see, the Apostle John was pressing against his readers' presuppositions and beliefs. He wanted them to re-evaluate everything. He wanted them to see that the very one at the center of it all is truly the promised One, the Son of God. John wanted them to know that there is no place for neutrality.

Now, you may be sitting here, and you may be thinking, "Ok, but I don’t live in the first century and I'm not Jewish. Why does this matter?"

Let me try to answer that.

In John's Gospel, the unbelieving Pharisees are the main antagonists. Really, they are the antagonists in all the Gospels. But their unbelief is representative of any and all outright rejection of Christ… back then and today.

Not only do they not know God, they are hostile to him. They do not care to listen. Their hearts are full of murder and lies. Jesus is their enemy. They hate him and hate those that love him. On the outside, they are religious, but their religion is driven by the devil whose goal is to undermine the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Their opposition to Jesus is the same opposition to Jesus that we see in different ways today. We see that opposition in false religions. We see a similar rejection in the hearts of those opposed to God and opposed to truth and opposed to his standard of right and wrong. That includes those who present a perversion of who Jesus is or reject his divine or human nature.

And it is all driven by the devil. You see, we are engaged in a cosmic battle of light versus darkness. It's a battle of the truth of God versus the lies and murders of the great enemy of faith.

The hard thing for us is that we live in a time and place where the Christian ethic is still relatively strong. And so, we sometimes don't see the spiritual battle that is raging.

In our culture, the light and darkness can sometimes appear to blend together to produce shades of grey. When that happens, it is harder to see and distinguish the light from the darkness.

But what we learn in John 8 is that the dividing line is still there. Discerning right and wrong is still at the center of pursuing truth. Good and evil are no less real today than they were in the first century. The devil is still breathing his lies and spreading unbelief as he was in the hearts of these Pharisees.

There are plenty of people today who outright reject Jesus, who reject God the Father, and who live a life opposed to him. They are like the Pharisees, unknowingly driven by the father of lies. The devil is at work all throughout the world, some places more than others. As the Scriptures say, he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he can devour.

We need to be aware that there is both God the Father, the father of truth and light and life, who gave his Son; and there is also the father of lies and murder, the devil himself. He hates God and hates the truth and he seeks to undermine Jesus and the Gospel. Now, there is no comparison in who has true authority and who will conquer the other in the end. That is the one true Father, but for now he has given the devil room to lie and deceive the world.

2. The One Greater than Abraham (8:53-59)

Ok. That brings us to point #2 - The One Greater than Abraham. In these verses, Jesus makes absolutely clear who he truly is. It's unmistakable.

Remember, the Pharisees were the ones who originally brought up Abraham. But then Jesus turned the tables on them. Because the Pharisees rejected him, Jesus made it very clear, as we considered, that they were not true descendants of Abraham.

And part of Jesus' argument included his claim that he was the Son of God and that his Father was God the Father.

And so, the Pharisees asked him in verse 53, "Are you greater than our father Abraham?"

Jesus answered them and he said two things. And speaking of shocking statements, these two statements were scandalous.

First, Jesus said to them that "Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He saw it and was glad." That's verse 56. And then second, Jesus said, "before Abraham was, I AM."

Let's consider those two statements in order.

First, Abraham rejoiced to see Jesus' day. The question is, what was the apostle John referring to? What was that day? Well, that question has been asked for centuries.

The general consensus, which I agree with, is the day refers to the day that Isaac was born. You see, as we read earlier in Genesis 15, God promised to give Abraham a son. It seemed impossible, though, especially as Sarah aged, but yet God fulfilled his promise to Abraham. Do you remember what happened when Isaac was born? Abraham and Sarah laughed. It wasn't like the laughter before, when they were questioning God. Rather it was a joyful laughter of amazement. In fact, the name Isaac means "to laugh." The semantic range for the word "laugh" in Hebrew includes a joyous laughter.

That's why I think that particular day is the one referred to in verse 56. Abraham saw God fulfill his promise in an amazing way. Abraham then rejoiced when Isaac was born.

And he knew, as God had promised, that through Isaac, his offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He knew, as God also promised, that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through him.

You see, the promise that God made to Abraham was the promise of a Messiah. Just like God gave Abraham and Sarah a son according to God's promise, so one of Abraham's descendants would be the promised Messiah.

In that sense, Abraham saw Jesus' day and rejoiced.

But when Jesus said that, it only further enraged the Pharisees. They said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?”

Which brings us to the second and even more shocking statement. Verse 58. Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”

"I AM." We've come across that statement multiple times now. Earlier in chapter 8, Jesus twice said, "I am he." In the Greek it is simply "I am" - "Ego Eimi." In the Hebrew it is Yahweh. Jesus was saying that as God the Son, he is the eternal God and he has always existed.

Before Abraham was, I AM. It was yet another claim of divinity. Jesus was indeed greater than Abraham.

Let's take a step back for a moment.

You know, every Sunday, I try to connect our sermon text to some of John's overall themes. Really, it's helpful to see how each passage fits within the book as a whole. Well, one thing that God has been revealing in John is all the ways that Jesus has been fulfilling God's promises of old.

For example, Jesus has been entering into the major Jewish institutions and he has been revealing that he is their ultimate fulfillment.

·      In chapter 2, Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding, revealing that he is the bridegroom who will cleanse his bride the church.

·      In the same chapter during the Passover, Jesus declared that he was the fulfillment of the temple. Do you remember that?

·      Chapter 5's setting was the Sabbath, another institution. Jesus demonstrated he was Lord of the Sabbath.

·      Chapter 7 and earlier in this chapter, Jesus revealed how he has fulfilled the Feast of Tabernacles as the living water and light of the world.

Since most of us don’t have a Jewish background, we don't naturally see those connections. But for John's original audience, each example has been expanding their understanding of who Jesus is and making the case that he is the true Messiah.

Well, besides institutions, Jesus is also greater than the patriarchs and prophets of old. Back in chapter 6, Jesus revealed that he is the prophet that Moses promised. He revealed that he is greater than Moses. He is the true manna from heaven. Moses was held in great regard, but Jesus, as God the Son, is greater.

And when we get to these verses on Abraham, it's similar. Abraham was the preeminent father of the Jewish people. Abraham was the one through whom God promised a people would come, as we already considered. And so, when Jesus said that before Abraham was, I am, it was a remarkable declaration of his preeminence as the God of all creation and over his people.

Do you see how all these fulfillments are working together? They all reveal that Jesus is indeed the One in whom life and light is found. It's all an amazing revelation for us to grasp and believe.

But, for the Pharisees, again, it was scandalous. Jesus had just declared that the devil, not Abraham, was their father, and now, he claimed that he is greater than Abraham.

Look at verse 59. "So they picked up stones to throw at him." Of course, they did. They were enraged and furthermore, in their minds, Jesus had blasphemed God. Their response only confirmed that indeed the devil was their father.

They could not stand for truth. They could only do what was in their nature as sons of the devil. They all the more rejected Jesus and sought to kill him.

As they went to get stones, Jesus then slipped away into the crowd. As he has said before, it was not yet his time.

But Jesus' time would come. You see, Chapter 8 accelerates the path to the cross. The day would soon come when Jesus would bring his fulfillment to completion.

And in God's sovereignty, he would use the Pharisees (and others) to accomplish his plan.

3. The Triumph of Abraham's True Descendants (John 8:47, 51)

Which brings us to #3. Point 3: The Triumph of Abraham's True Descendants. God's true sons and daughters will "not see death," but live.

You know, in the order of the narrative, this point should really be point number 2.

The reason that I put it last is because I wanted to end with encouragement. I did not want to end with the devil or the stones that they picked up. Rather, I wanted to end with the blessing of being a true descendant of Abraham.

Now, I know that a couple of you here have Jewish roots, but the vast majority of us are Gentiles. We are the nations that have been grafted into Christ.

It doesn’t matter where you or your family is from, what nationality or ethnicity. It doesn’t matter if you have some Jewish heritage or not. No, the only thing that matters is whether you are a true spiritual descendant of Abraham by faith.

Look at verse 47. "Whoever is of God hears the words of God." Remember, the question is who their father is. And we learn that those who hear the words of God have God as their father. Those are the ones who are true descendants of Abraham - spiritual descendants by faith.

What matters is believing in the Gospel - it is believing in who Jesus is and what he has accomplished. And when you do, then you are a true descendant of Abraham, a spiritual descendant by faith. In Romans 9, it says "It is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring." Galatians 3 uses similar language. It says, "In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. ...And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise."

If that is you, then you can say that Abraham is indeed your spiritual father, through faith… the promise to him of salvation is the promise for you.

Let me say one more thing. You know, as we've gone through John's Gospel, we've come across several "truly, truly" statements. Each of those statements emphasizes an important truth. When Jesus uses the phrase "truly, truly", he is saying, "most assuredly I tell you this important truth" and he goes on.

Well, in our verses today there are two "truly, truly" statements. One of them we've already considered. "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." The other one is in verse 51. Look at it. Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death."

Those who truly hear Jesus, and truly believe in him, and demonstrate their faith by abiding in his word, "will never see death." No, the true descendants of Abraham will triumph with Jesus forever. As we've read over and over in John's Gospel, we will receive eternal life in him.

You see, in the middle of this chapter of conflict, there is hope. At the very heart of these verses - where the Pharisees are called out as sons of the devil, and by the way, who are also destined to spend eternity apart from God - at the heart of these verses, there is a promise.

And the promise is this: Those who believe in Jesus' word will overcome death. They will be with God forever. It is a hope and promise reserved for those truly of God, who are spiritual descendants of Abraham.

It's for those who believe in Jesus as the I AM of God, the eternal God of the universe, the Son of God, who is greater than Abraham.

So, may we not plug our ears like the Pharisees, but instead hear Jesus' words, for they are words of life. May we also see the reality of the devil… and know that he is the father of lies who sows darkness and opposes the truth of God. BUT, may we know that as true descendants of Abraham, we will be with Jesus forever.