An Answer For Any Skeptic

Thank you, Praise Team.

Fitting songs to talk about our Great Shepherd,

! the one who came and accomplished everything for us.

and in this chapter 10, we've been looking at the Good Shepherd

! and getting to see Him in a way that hopefully has been a great reminder of who He is

and the wonder of being identified as one of His sheep.

We're coming to the last message in chapter 10, and to be honest with you,

I kind of wanted to leave with the kids because this is one of those passages where

I don't even know how to describe it except to say,

if it were not for the fact that we believe in exposition, in moving verse at a time,

this would be the passage that we would avoid.

Okay, this would be the one where we would say, well, I like this, it's there,

but let's set this aside, let's move on to some things that are a little bit more clear.

But here we come to chapter 10, verses 33 to 42,

and we are forced to take a look at some bold statements that Jesus makes.

Bold statement that, I'll tell you what, runs the risk, runs the danger of being misunderstood.

And so this morning, we desperately need to go to the Lord and ask for help, empowerment to share,

and empowerment to hear as we approach this text.

So let's pray and ask God for His help today.

Oh God, we need Your help to understand these amazing words.

Words that come with force.

Words that can be so easily misunderstood and misapplied.

Words that the cults have sought to take and use for their own benefit,

to support their own misleading doctrines.

And so this morning, we come with fear and trepidation, asking for Your help.

Help to speak and help to listen this morning.

As we come to this, what could be a very complex and difficult passage before us today.

So give us Your Holy Spirit to help us through this process.

We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen.

Those of you who are familiar with the Gordian knot,

that's kind of what I am thinking about when I come to this passage.

A passage that really has some complexities,

and it's hard to unravel, it's hard to unscramble the difficulties of what is before us.

Those of you who are unfamiliar with the Gordian knot,

let me just share just the legend, as it were, of how this came to be.

Phrygia was an ancient kingdom in what is now central Turkey.

And according to legend, once upon a time, Phrygia was out without a king.

And so there was a prophet who spoke before the people and said,

the next person to drive his ox cart into the city will be the king.

So a farmer named Gordius came with his ox cart into the city

and was then declared king of the city.

Gordius' son, whose name was Midas,

and we're familiar with Midas because he later became king

and was known for the Midas touch,

decided to honor his newly exalted father by dedicating this ox cart

to the pagan god of the city.

And he did this by tying that ox cart to a post that was there.

And he used such a complex knot that no one could unscramble this knot.

It was known as the Gordian knot.

As legend continues, centuries went by,

and that ox cart still remained securely tied to the pole.

Then Alexander the Great came,

was told about this prophecy,

and in a fit of wisdom and power,

struck that Gordian knot with his sword,

broke it apart, and fulfilled that prophecy,

and that is apparently why he was able to conquer Asia.

So the Gordian knot has become a symbol

of the stubborn, complex problems of the day,

and Alexander's sword has been a symbol

for decisive and out-of-the-box leadership solutions.

Well, this morning we come to what some would call a Gordian knot,

or that problem passage that is so typical of parts of the Scripture.

It would just be easy to pass over,

and to overlook, and to move to the next part of the chapter.

But here we are this morning.

We need to take a look at this important passage,

and seek to unravel some of the complexities who are here,

and ask for God's help in understanding,

in appreciating the words of Jesus this morning before us.

There is a danger, of course, of communicating ineffectively.

So I want to apologize ahead of time if there's any confusion,

and I trust that if there is confusion,

that you'll have the grace to come

and ask for my answers,

and the ability to, or the opportunity at least,

to try to answer the questions that come.

But in order to come to this passage,

we need to catch ourselves up to where we are.

And this morning what we'll find is that Jesus' answer to these Jews,

these collection of religious leaders who have gathered before Him,

His answer to them is an answer, really, for any skeptic.

This morning as we come to this passage,

and we look at these verses that are here,

we're going to hopefully walk away with the understanding

that what we walk away with is a solution,

an answer for any skeptic.

Are there any skeptics in your life?

Are there any of those people who would say,

show me the proof,

help me to understand that your belief system

is more than just faith,

but it rests in substance,

that there is something more significant

and more substantial to your claims?

And this morning,

as we look at our passage,

we're going to see that there is evidence,

there is an answer for any skeptic.

I want to buzz through some of our,

some of what we've already gone through.

This whole passage really begins in verse 22.

We find that it's the feast of the dedication.

We find that there is an accusation

that is given by this group,

this collective group of religious leaders

who are titled the Jews.

We find them here throughout this passage.

We see in verse 24,

the Jews gathered.

We find Jesus' response to them,

and here they are again later on.

It says that,

and the Jews answered Him in verse 33.

Who were this group of Jews?

Well,

John uses this 66 times throughout his gospel

to help draw attention to this group of individuals

who were the religious leaders of the day.

Those who should have been the enlightened ones.

Those who should have guarded the law.

Those who should have understood

and taught the people faithfully.

And they bring their accusation to Christ,

and they say here in verse 24,

they say,

how long will you keep us in suspense?

If you are the Christ,

tell us plainly.

Of course,

Jesus,

in this whole narrative,

has opened the eyes of the blind.

We saw that happening two months before

as Jesus is there

during the feast of tabernacles,

and He has opened the eyes of this blind man.

This one who was blind

was made to see,

and He is the one

who actually has not only now physical sight,

but spiritual perception.

And He is the one

who at the end of chapter 9

is now informing

these Pharisees

in chapter 9,

verse 30 and 33

when He says,

why?

This is a marvelous thing

that you don't know

where He is from.

He has opened my eyes.

Now we know that God

does not hear any sinner,

but if anyone is a worshiper of God

and does His will,

He hears Him.

Since the world began,

it has been unheard

that anyone

opened the eyes

of one who was born blind.

If this man

were not from God,

he could do nothing.

You see,

this blind man understood.

This blind man got it.

He saw

that the answer

for every skeptic

was the evidence

of the working

of Jesus Christ

in the world.

He got it.

And Jesus,

and now flowing

from that discussion,

begins to talk about Himself

as the Good Shepherd.

That He is the Good Shepherd.

That He is the door.

He sets Himself

above these

Jewish religious leaders.

There is one leader.

There is one Messiah.

And that is me.

The Jews,

in hearing Jesus'

answer,

say,

okay,

we understand the implications

of what you're saying,

but tell us plainly.

Their accusation

was that He wasn't

being clear.

You're making bold claims,

but if you're truly

the Messiah,

come clean.

Help us know

straight up,

if you dare,

who are you really?

Tell us

in clear terms.

Jesus gives His answer

in verses 25 to 31.

We saw that last week,

and we saw that Jesus

is definitively saying

that I am

the Messiah.

I am the Christ.

I am God.

We saw 10 ways

that Jesus did that

last week.

He spoke God's words.

He did God's works.

He possesses

God's knowledge.

He exercises

His authority.

We saw that He gave

His life.

He wielded

God's power.

He was equal

with the Father

and one

in fellowship

with Him.

We saw that He

showed God's mercy,

and that He fulfilled

God's promises.

In 10 ways,

in just 12 verses,

Jesus states

emphatically,

I am the Messiah.

Jesus was that

intersection point

where fact and faith

came together.

Jesus was the embodiment

of truth.

He was spirit

and yet body,

divinity yet humanity,

invisible yet visible,

eternal yet tangible.

all of those things

culminated in the person

of Jesus Christ,

and there He was

standing in their midst.

That was His answer.

This morning,

I want to focus

our attention

on their antagonism.

The antagonism

that we see here

in verses 31

to 33.

They say,

the Jews

picked up stones

to stone Him.

And Jesus answered,

I have shown you

many good works

from the Father.

For which of them

are you going

to stone Me?

The Jews answered Him,

it is not for a good work

that we are going

to stone you,

but for blasphemy,

because you being a man

make yourself God.

Now,

I want to help you

to see,

just here at the

very beginning,

the Jews

in this verse,

verse 33,

are agreeing with Jesus

that His works

are good.

They're agreeing

with Jesus

that they saw

the evidence

of His life

being worked out

by the Father,

the divine working

of His miracles

in His life,

they're on center stage,

and it wasn't

for the good works

that they were

going to stone Him,

but for blasphemy.

So what will Jesus

do to address

this antagonism?

What will Jesus

do to help

remove the issue

of blasphemy

from them

so they can get

a full view

of His works?

So they can stand

at the window

of the glory

of God

and to see it,

to take it in,

and to be

shocked

and amazed

at the wonder

of who He is

through His works.

They have said

that His works

are good.

Do they mean

that,

or is that

just a front

for something

deeper in their life?

Their antagonism

is addressed now

in verses 34

to 38

when Jesus

answers them

by helping them

understand

that He

is authentic,

this authentication

of Christ

to them

in verses 34

to 38.

and now

that we're

kind of

caught up

to where

we are

in the flow

of this passage,

now I want us

to walk

through this

with fear

and trepidation,

with carefulness,

and my desire

this morning

is to make

this very practical.

So as we walk

through this

problem passage,

as we kind of

talk about

the implications

and complexities

of this,

I want to use

this as a model

for you.

This is what I

did this week

to try to arrive

at the truth,

and so I want

to share that

with you

so that you,

in coming to

problem passages,

will be able

to navigate

your way through

these passages

and arrive

at a conclusion

that is consistent

with the rest

of Scripture.

So,

we see that

Jesus authenticates

himself,

first of all,

through wisdom.

Let me read

our passage

for us

this morning

in verses

34 to 39.

You'll see

the difficulties

here,

and then we'll

jump in.

Jesus answers

this antagonism

in verse 34

and says,

Is it not

written in your

law,

I said you are

gods?

If he called

them gods

to whom the

word of God

came,

and Scripture

cannot be broken,

do you say

of him

whom the

Father

consecrated

and sent

into the

world,

you are

blaspheming

because I

said I'm

the Son

of God?

If I am

not going

or doing

the works

of my

Father,

then do

not believe

me.

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

am in

the

Father.

authentication

through

wisdom.

Jesus knew

the complexities

of the

issue,

and his

desire to

set aside

this

accusation

of blasphemy

so they

could get

a front

seat to

see the

works of

God and

make an

evaluation

for themselves,

this answer

for any

skeptic,

the work

of God

and the

Father

coming through

Christ.

Jesus

uses

this

startling

statement,

you are

gods,

to begin

this

process.

Where do

we go?

You are

gods.

What in

the world

does this

mean?

The process

of discovery,

this process

of coming

to a

problem

passage,

first of

all,

it begins

with prayer

and continues

with prayer

all the way

through.

But what

I've labeled

here is

step one,

is asking

the hard

questions.

Each of

these steps

must be

bathed in

prayer.

Asking for

God's

wisdom,

asking for

his help

as you

walk your

way through.

Ask the

hard

questions.

What are

your knee-jerk

reactions when

you hear

the phrase

from Jesus'

lips,

you are

gods?

I can tell

you what's

coming through

my mind.

Is Jesus

really saying

what I

think he's

saying?

Isn't

this

counterproductive

to his

argument,

his

declaration

of divinity?

If there

are other

gods,

then how

does that

help his

argument?

If there

are other

gods,

then how

can we

identify

them?

What is

their role?

Is there

a deeper

meaning here?

Something

below the

surface?

Which

passage is

Jesus

quoting?

And what

is the

context?

Christ,

what is

Jesus

trying to

accomplish

with this

approach?

Does this

contradict

everything that

I know to

be true

about Jesus

and about

God?

God is

one,

and yet

Jesus

says,

you are

gods?

Begin with

the questions.

Write them

down.

Be willing

to be honest

about what

you see,

and ask

those questions

and pray

for God's

guidance in

arriving at

the right

conclusions.

Secondly,

look at the

quote in

its context.

So I

would encourage

you to keep

your finger

here in

John chapter

John 10 · chapter mention

10 and

turn back

with me to

Psalm 82.

Psalm 82.

This is where

this quote is

taken from.

Psalm 82.

I'm just

going to want

to read the

first couple

of verses

and then

verse 6

where this

verse comes

from.

Psalm 82.

A psalm

of Asaph.

God has

taken his

place in

the divine

council.

In the midst

of the gods

he holds

judgment.

How long

will you

judge unjustly

and show

partiality

to the wicked?

And dropping

down to

verse 6.

I said

you are

gods,

sons of

the most

high,

all of

you.

Nevertheless

like men

you shall

die and

fall like

any prince.

Arise

O God,

judge the

earth for

you shall

inherit the

nations.

What you'll

find here in

this passage

is you'll

find this

interplay

between the

divine name

God being

used for

God Almighty

and the

divine name

gods being

used for

those who

are judging

in his

place.

You'll

find throughout

this passage

that they

are judging

in a way

that is

ineffective.

They're judging

in a way

that's partial.

They're judging

in a way

that's unjust.

They're judging

in a way

that is not

representative

of the

commission

that they've

been given.

They're not

honoring

that divine

commission

that God

has given

to them

and yet

they're still

acting in

a way

that God

has placed

them as

authorities

over the

people.

But their

true identity

will be

revealed in

the end.

you will

die like

mortals

because they

have failed

to honor

and fulfill

the responsibility

of what God

has called

them to do.

And in

some way

Jesus applies

this verse

to himself.

In a very

liquid way

what Jesus

is saying

is if this

was true

of the

judges of

old

then it

can be

true of

me too.

I have

been given

a divine

commission.

I have

the divine

word.

And so

I in

that way

am

considered

God

as well.

And this

may remove

some of

the accusations

of blasphemy

but it

still

doesn't

resolve

the tension

in our

own

life

and our

own

hearts

with

what is

Jesus

talking

about.

Step

three of

this process

is to

look at

the words

in phrases

and any

concordance

will help

you with

this.

Any

Bible

app

will help

you with

this.

Many

times you

actually get

a good

definition

of the

words

from reading

the gospel

writer

or reading

the author

of the

book,

the letter.

And that

term is

often defined

through the

course of

the writing.

But we

find in

this passage

that when

Jesus uses

the word

God,

he uses

the word

theos.

This is

the divine

title.

And when

the author

of the

Psalms

uses

the word

God,

he uses

the word

Elohim.

That is

the divine

title.

So there

is no

misunderstanding

here in

interpretation.

It's not a

translational

issue.

This word

is for

God.

Then you

have to ask

yourself the

question,

okay,

so where

are some

other examples

of how

this word

is used

in the

Old

Testament?

And you'll

find again

through a

concordance

that it's

used of

angels

in Job.

Remember

how the

angels

of God

are

presenting

themselves

before the

Lord?

It's also

used as

Samuel.

In 1 Samuel

28,

his spirit

is called

up by

Saul and

by the

witch that

was there.

And his

spirit comes

and he

refers to

him as

Elohim.

It's used

of Moses

in his

relationship

with Aaron

in Exodus

Exodus 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

16.

It says,

and he

himself

will be

as a

mouth for

you,

speaking of

Aaron,

and you

Moses

shall be

to him

as God

Elohim.

It's also

used of

Moses

to Pharaoh.

It says

in Exodus

7,

1,

so the

Lord said

to Moses,

see I've

made you

as God

to Pharaoh

and Aaron

your brother

shall be

your prophet.

It's also

used of the

judges in

Exodus 21.

So we

can see

from this

passage,

we can

see from

the Old

Testament

that this

divine title

is used

for those

who are

given a

divine

commission.

Now,

did Jesus

just blow

up your

theology?

Did Jesus

just create

some unsettledness

in your

heart as

even with

me this

past week?

How am I

supposed to

understand this

argument?

Who is a

God?

Then,

and what

does that

make Jesus?

Step number

four in this

process is to

look for

qualifying

statements.

How does

Jesus begin

to answer

this question

in his

dialogue with

these Jews?

We see

here that

Jesus seeks

to

emphasize the

fact that

the word of

God cannot

be broken.

He emphasizes

that on two

occasions here

in just a

couple of

verses.

He says

in verse

34,

is it

not

written

in your

law?

And then

later on

in verse

35,

and the

scripture

cannot be

broken.

Jesus

wants his

hearers to

understand

that he is

speaking in a

way that is

consistent with

the scriptures.

Jesus is

upholding the

integrity and

continuity of

the word.

It almost

takes your

breath away,

doesn't it?

It is.

For me,

there's this

check in my

spirit.

There is this

hesitancy in

my posture.

What in the

world is Jesus

trying to say?

And we begin

to actually feel

some of the

gravity of

what the

Jews were

experiencing

when Jesus

made such

bold claims.

Jesus turns

everything upside

down for

them.

He consistently

wants them to

reorient their

perspective with

the law.

He says,

you have heard

it said,

but I say

to you.

He says,

bless those

who curse

you,

bless and

curse not.

He says,

blessed are the

poor in spirit.

The first

shall be last,

the greatest

shall be least.

He who saves

his life will

lose it,

but whoever

loses his

life for my

sake will

find it.

Jesus

consistently

turns everything

upside down.

He shatters

expectations.

He wants to

reorient

your

perspective.

Maybe Jesus

is helping

us with that

this morning.

Reorienting

our perspective

about the

privilege of

being called

by the

divine name.

There is

unbelievable

privilege,

but there is

unbearable

responsibility

apart from

us.

Jesus now

though,

he sets

himself

apart.

He sets

himself apart

in these

next few

verses.

In verse

36 in

particular,

he says,

do you say

of him whom

the father

consecrated

and sent

into the

world.

Now Jesus

is helping

to move

them from

a point of

lesser to

greater.

What would

be common

to those

who have

received the

word,

now moving

to the

one who

is giving

the word

itself.

Jesus

infinitely

greater,

sanctified

by the

father,

bringing the

immortal

word,

the flesh

who has

made word

and dwelt

among us.

He is

infinitely

greater

because

he is

from

the

father.

The only

one who

has come

from the

father,

the only

one who

is set

apart,

the only

one who

is sanctified,

the only

one who

stands by

himself as

the authority

of the

word.

Jesus

is consecrated

and dedicated

and made

holy by

the father.

He is

distinct

and this

would have

been particularly

important

during this

time,

this feast

of dedication

where they're

purifying and

sanctifying the

temple and

Jesus borrowing

from that

language which

had been

fresh in

their minds

helping them

to understand

that he

was the

sanctified

one.

He was

the consecrated

one from

the father.

He stands

apart from

the crowd.

He is the

only one sent

into the

world.

This alone

can be

assigned to

Christ.

step five

in this

process

would be

to ask

yourself

the question

is it

consistent

with

scripture?

What do I

know about

this?

Is it

the conclusions

that I have

drawn?

Are they

consistent with

what I see

everywhere else

in the word?

Who does

Jesus refer to

as gods?

We find that

here in verse

35.

it says

if he

called them

gods

to whom

the word

of God

came.

Those are

the ones

to whom

God

allows and

shares his

divine title

with.

Those to

whom

the word

of God

came.

Those who

have been

commissioned

by God

to represent

his authority.

Those who

God shares

his authority

with in

giving them

permission

to oversee

the things

of this

life.

He's given

them authority

but there's

also accountability.

He's given

them responsibility

but there's

also submission

to his

authority.

Maybe this

helps us

appreciate the

wonder of

the psalmist

in Psalm 8

who says

what is man

that you are

mindful of him?

And the son

of man

that you visit

him you have

made him a

little lower

than the angels

you have crowned

him with

glory and

honor.

You have

given him

dominion over

the works of

your hands

and you put

all things

under his

feet.

Maybe it

helps give

us a sense

of the

seriousness

of obeying

and submitting

to the

leaders that

God has

placed over

us.

There's a

passage that

was read

this morning

in Romans

13.

Be subject

to the

governing

authorities

for there

is no

authority

except

from

God.

and those

that exist

have been

instituted

by God.

They are

God's

agents

with a

divine

commission

to

exercise

divine

authority

on the

earth

under the

accountability

and submission

of God.

and I

trust

this

this

understanding

of this

phrase

will help

us to be

blown away

with the

unbelievable

privilege

of wearing

the divine

name that

God has

given to

us and

shared with

us.

We are

children of

God

as we find

in 1

John 3

1.

We are

sons of

God as we

find in

Romans 8

14.

In

Galatians

it says

for you

are all

sons of

God

through

faith

in

Christ

Jesus.

God

is called

our

father

in

Galatians

4

6.

We are

heirs

with God

in

Galatians

4

7.

You are

no longer

a slave

but a

son

and if

a son

then an

heir

of God

through

Christ.

can you

conceive

of it?

We will

in some

way be

like God.

In 1

John 3

2 it

says

beloved

now we

are

children

of God

and has

not yet

been

revealed

what we

shall be

but we

know that

when he

is revealed

we will

be like

him

for we

shall see

him as

he is.

John

continuing

this theme

says in

1 John

1 John 3 · chapter mention

chapter 3

7 and 9

he says

we have

the seed

of God.

Whoever

has been

born of

God

does not

sin

for his

seed

remains

in him

and he

cannot

sin

because

he has

been

born

of

God.

We are

being

transformed

into the

image of

God

as we

find in

2 Corinthians

3.18

it says

but we

all

with unveiled

face

beholding

as in

a mirror

the glory

of the

Lord

are being

transformed

into

the

same

image

from

glory

to glory

just

as by

the

spirit

of our

Lord

and we

are

seated

with him

in the

heavenly

places

Ephesians

2.5

says

even

when we

were

dead

in our

trespasses

he

made

us

alive

together

with

Christ

by grace

you have

been

saved

he

raised

us

up

and

seated

us

with

him

in

the

heavenly

places

unbelievable

breathtaking

shocking

truth

of scripture

you

if you

are in

Christ

through

faith

you

wear

the

divine

name

what

a

privilege

and it

has been

shared

with you

by God

shared

not by

merit

of your

own

and

shared

with you

that does

not come

independently

but comes

through

accountability

and comes

through

submission

to his

authority

it comes

as we

bear out

the glory

of God

in this

world

and seek

to make

his glory

known

in this

world

oh

amazing

no wonder

why

John says

behold

the love

of God

he's blown

away with

the reality

the truth

the wonder

of this

fact

God

has

by

his

grace

allowed

us to

share

with him

in all

things

that belong

to him

unbelievable

unbelievable

but with

privilege

comes

incredible

responsibility

and this

is where

Jesus

takes it

next

in verses

37 to

38

now that

he has

moved

the

issue

of

blasphemy

to the

side

now he

wants

these

Jews

to see

the full

glory

of his

works

he says

if I am

not doing

the works

of my

father

then do

not believe

me

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

am

in

the

father

he

has

neutralized

this

antagonism

he

has

taken

the

stinger

out

of

their

accusation

so again

they can

stand

on the

edge

of

the

wonder

of

the

glory

of

God

and

take

it

in

and

drink

in

the

wonder

of

God

as

evidenced

through

his

works

the

works

of the

father

bearing

out

in

the

person

of

Jesus

Christ

this

is

the

answer

for

any

skeptic

the

works

of

the

father

working

through

the

son

he

says

soak

it

in

drink

it

up

let

the

wonder

of

divine

working

wash

over

your

skeptic

heart

you

have

affirmed

!

my

works

as

being

good

do you

mean

it

what

will

you

do

with

my

works

they

are

divine

works

they

are

evident

works