Afterward Jesus found him in the Temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.” The man went away, and disclosed to the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. And for this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.
John 5:14-18
Introduction
As a continuation of the errors the Pharisees were just making in their accusations against the man who had been healed at Bethesda, they turned their attention to Jesus who had performed this healing on the Sabbath. What incredible arrogance they displayed as they accuse the Son of Man of breaking the fourth commandment.
In alignment with their strict legalism, these Pharisees did not simply take it under assumption that the One who had been going around healing people was also the One who had healed this thirty-eight year paralytic, they sought his witness to that fact. And upon learning this fact, Jesus gave them a very startling response. Rather than pin them to the wall with their made up rules and regulations, Jesus simply pointed out that the Father also continued His work in redemptive history up to and through that very moment.
False accusations
Not only did they believe Jesus broke the Sabbath by performing a healing on this holy day, but they wanted to destroy Him for calling God His own Father. But didn’t Jesus teach His disciples even to call God their Father when He taught them to pray?
Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’
Matthew 6:9-13
Apparently, these Pharisees had forgotten the lessons taught in scripture by Moses and the prophets who also called God “Father.” Moses, for instance, taught the Israelites, “You are the sons of Yahweh your God.” (Deuteronomy 14:1) David taught the people, “As a father has compassion on his children, so Yahweh has compassion on those who fear Him.” (Psalm 103:13) And Isaiah said, “For You are our Father.” (Isaiah 63:16)
Even Paul, a “Pharisee of Pharisees” (Philippians 3:5) remembered Isaiah 64:8 when he challenged the Roman church to remember God is the potter and we are His clay, giving Him the right to do whatever He pleases. And of course, this passage in Isaiah reads, “But now, O Yahweh, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our potter; and all of us are the work of Your hand.”
How, then, could these Pharisees hold any worthwhile accusation against Jesus for doing the work of the Father on the Sabbath day? The Father who is named as such throughout scripture for both His creative and compassionate role in regards to His fragile creatures? They did it because their tradition was worth more to them than the very scriptures they claimed to follow.
The Son and the Father
Even amidst the falsehood of the Pharisees, there is a seed of truth. Even though their strict guidelines of Sabbath observance was amiss, Jesus was doing work. He even said so: the “Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” He was working on the Sabbath! And even though God is the Father of us all, Jesus was equating Himself with the Father! He was with the Father from the beginning (John 1:1). And in Him, all of creation is held together (Colossians 1:17). In fact, it is by Jesus, the Son, that all of creation was made (John 1:3; Colossians 1:16).
The gospel according to John begins to flesh out the doctrine of the Trinity in passages like this. He distinguishes the roles of each member while keeping them distinct. They are equal and yet they are unique. Jesus is the perfect image of God on earth (Colossians 1:15), and His expression to His own people. Obviously you can find Him doing this throughout the gospels and the New Testament. But you also see Him doing this in the Old Testament when the “Angel of the Lord” speaks to Moses from the burning bush (Exodus 3:2), leads the people out of Egypt (Exodus 23:21; Jude 5), and re-establishes His covenant with the people in the land of Canaan (Judges 2:1).
John calls Jesus the Word, because He expresses God to His people. When you read scripture, you are interacting with Jesus. If you have ever wished you could spend time one on one with the Lord, know that you can. You can do it any time you want simply by opening the scriptures and praying. Pray the Lord speaks to you through His perfect revelation and praise Him that He is not far from us. Instead, He is always near and present, compassionate and caring.
May the Lord bless you and conform you into the image of His Son.
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