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Prepare

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:17:00 UTC +0100

‘Character is who you are when no one else is looking’ (Bill Hybels). Ask God for honesty as you reflect on this.

Bible reading: John 8:21–30

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:16:00 UTC +0100

²¹Once more Jesus said to them, "I am going away, and you will look for me, and you will die in your sin. Where I go, you cannot come."

²²This made the Jews ask, "Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, 'Where I go, you cannot come'?"

²³But he continued, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. ²⁴I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to be, you will indeed die in your sins."

²⁵"Who are you?" they asked.

"Just what I have been claiming all along," Jesus replied. ²⁶"I have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is reliable, and what I have heard from him I tell the world."

²⁷They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father. ²⁸So Jesus said, "When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am the one I claim to be and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. ²⁹The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him." ³⁰Even as he spoke, many put their faith in him.

Explore the Bible

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:15:00 UTC +0100

Blind spots

We all have blind spots. That’s a fact. Apparently, all vertebrates have a blind spot at the back of their optic disc where there are no cells to detect light. If you’re a driver you’ll know about blind spots; there’s a certain part of the road that you can’t see – and it’s different for men and women. We can also have blind spots in our perception of ourselves.

In Growing Leaders (CPAS, 2004), James Lawrence uses the ‘Johari window’ (a square diagram with four panels) to talk about this. There’s the ‘arena’ – the part of ourselves that we and others see; the ‘facade’ – behind which are the parts we see but don’t want others to see; the ‘blind spot’ – the part that others see but we don’t see; and the ‘unknown’ – the part of us that is so subconscious that neither we nor others see it.

Completely transparent

The Pharisees have blind spots. They are confounded by Jesus, even though he is completely upfront with them. His description of himself (v 28) emphasises this. It echoes the name that God used with Moses (Exodus 3:14), which in Hebrew can be rendered in different ways, including, ‘I am what I really am’ and ‘I am what I am telling you that I am’. The Light of the World has no facade – he is completely transparent.

Respond

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:14:00 UTC +0100

Draw a ‘Johari window’ to help you think about what people see and don’t see in your character.

Deeper Bible study

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:13:00 UTC +0100

The discussion between the Pharisees and Jesus continues as to Jesus’ identity and origins – but it is not a polite discussion and the tension is mounting.

The passage begins with Jesus repeating the thought of 7:33,34, but he is no more understood than earlier. The Jews wonder if he is contemplating suicide, but his response shreds their misguided speculation (v 23). The trouble, as Jesus states, is that they come from opposing worlds, such that they refuse to believe in him, with the inevitable consequence (v 24). Jesus’ absolute statement ‘I am he’ reflects the divine name revealed to Moses (Isaiah 43:10; Exodus 3:13,14), but the potential ambiguity of that statement aligned with the Jews’ refusal to believe in Jesus prompts them to ask for clarification (v 25).

Jesus refuses to answer directly, but he does tell them when they will know the answer to that question (v 28). When they see Jesus ‘lifted up’ they will know not only Jesus’ true identity, but also his true origins. One of the functions of the cross is to bring a full revelation of who Jesus is. The immediate effect of Jesus’ words in verses 28 and 29 is that his audience divided, as ‘many put their faith in him’ (v 30).

We all know that the cross is pivotal and the preaching of the cross continues to do what it did when Jesus spoke these words. A division occurs between those who recognise who Jesus is and those who refuse to believe. For those who believe there is the promise of eternal life (John 3:14–16). The tragedy is that for those who refuse, Jesus’ words sound a clear warning, ‘you will indeed die in your sins’ (v 24). Surely, that should drive us to prayer!

Background: Jesus, Son of Man?

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:12:00 UTC +0100

The phrase itself

The phrase ‘a son of’ in Hebrew can have the special idiomatic sense of a close relationship. So, for example, a person deserving to die is ‘a son of death’ in 1 Samuel 10:31.

A ruler

In Daniel 7:13,14, one ‘like a son of man’ is ‘given authority, glory and sovereign power’; he is worshipped by all nations, and inherits an eternal kingdom.

When Jesus is challenged by the high priest he quotes this passage to indicate his understanding of the significance of his messiahship (Mark 14:62). Throughout the Gospels it is his favourite way of self-reference.

As a somewhat enigmatic phrase Jesus had some freedom to give it the meaning he wished to define his role. In the Gospels he uses it in contexts speaking of his present ministry, his suffering and death, and his future coming.

A man like us

The phrase ‘son of man’ was also used in the Hebrew Scriptures as a synonym for ‘man’ (see Psalm 8:4, NIV). It is possible that Jesus also saw in the phrase a reinforcement of his true and genuine humanity in which he delighted.

A prophet

God addressed the prophet Ezekiel 90 times as ‘Son of Man’ (eg Ezekiel 2:1), in Hebrew ben adam. This emphasised his humanity over against the greatness and power of the Sovereign God revealed in chapter 1.

But it also have may have marked him out against his contemporaries as one who, like the first Adam (Genesis 2:7), received the breath of life from God (2:2) and would in due time prophesy its coming to renew the exiles of Israel (37:4–6). Similarly, Jesus was anointed with the Spirit, and would baptise in the Spirit. (Breath and Spirit are the same word in both Hebrew and Greek.)

A king

In Psalm 80:17 the ‘son of man’ God has raised up for himself is the king ‘at your right hand’. There are obvious parallels here with the exalted Jesus.

Andrew Clark

Bible in a year

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:11:00 UTC +0100

Read the Bible in a year. Today's readings are:

2 Chronicles 3–5

Galatians 5

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Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:10:00 UTC +0100

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Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:09:00 UTC +0100

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