John 5:19-47

Ever driven a manual transmission? Ever sat as a passenger in a race car? (Ever wanted to?) There are times, such as steep hills, banked turns, and more, that the driver shifts gears, and you know, you just know, things are serious. You feel the power of car.

“David Joseph Collum.” It was more than the use of my full name; it was a gear shift. Parents often have a way of saying a son or daughter's name that communicates much. The tone “shifts gears” and the conversation either speeds up or slows down.

The section of Scripture we read today is Jesus talking to the religious of his day. Consider, John is writing to you about Jesus. He believes Jesus is God come to earth, the Son of God. (By the way, so do I.)

Picture the scene. The Son of God is confronted by the religious of the day. Said another way, these are people who presume to speak for God. The team of people whose sole job is to communicate the love of God to the world.

Verse 19 begins, “So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly...” Those words? That sound you hear? Gears shifting.

A detail. The phrase “truly, truly”…. google it. You might translate it this way. “I know this is true. How? I was there.”

I am not sure if you found reading today’s passage easy or hard. For me, it is a bit hard. He is calling these folks out. He says he is from God. He calls God Father. He calls himself Son. He says that the Father loves him, gives him authority to judge, and that he, the Son, gives life. They reject Him.

Are you getting this?

We are no longer having a conversation with a woman at a well. This is not the “drive-by healing” we just read about. Jesus, from verse 19 through 47, is talking to folks who are on the inside.

I mentioned to you that you would “meet Jesus.” Jesus, as he introduces himself to the religious of the day, notes that JB testified to him. That Moses testified to him. That the Father, in all the Scriptures, testified to him.

On Day One of this blog I said you would see both Jesus’ compassionate deeds and his challenging words. The last two days have been an example.

For me it is personal. I am part of the church. I am one of the religious. Maybe you are.

If Jesus were to come today, what would he see in me? Am I so caught up in form, so invested in my ways, that I would not see him?

Worse, would he witness His people doing His Father’s work, or not? It is easy to be critical of those who have gone before us. It’s a lot harder to ask how this applies to us today, isn’t it?

Two questions:

If you know Jesus, you are part of His people, His Church. How would he find you?

If you do not know Jesus, what do you make of Him? He makes some pretty big claims here.

Either way, I hope you will keep reading.