Listening to some more sermons today.
RC Sproul: The Son of God, John 10.22-42 (27:57)
Probably the best series on the book of John that I’ve listened to thus far is Sproul’s. I’ve listened to his 3 sermons on John 11 twice now. They’re all very good.
The end of John 10 sets the stage for John 11. Jesus is in Jerusalem for the feast of dedication (Maccabeean in origin) which is called Hanukkah today. This is a winter celebration and John 10.22 even mentions as such.
The Jews in Jerusalem are demanding that Jesus tell them if he is the Christ or not. Their conception of the Christ is distorted, having been separated from the suffering servant language of later Isaiah. They wanted a warrior king to defeat Rome.
Jesus responds that he has told them (but not in the way they want) and they don’t believe because they are not his sheep. Only his sheep hear his voice. Jesus says he gives his sheep eternal life. This is the beginning of the controversy. Only God can give eternal life. But he goes on in 10.30.
I and the Father are one.
As Sproul states, there were no Arians, Jehovah’s Witnesses, or Mormons in the crowd. They rightly interpreted these things as a claim of divinity and clearly express that in 10.33.
you, being a man, make yourself God.
Jesus responds by pointing out their hypocrisy. Even judges (or perhaps angels) were called gods in the Scriptures. Apparently that’s ok, but when the Son of God (who is God) reveals himself as God, then that’s not ok! Such irony.
They don’t like his response, so we’re told they sought to arrest him. So he went across the Jordan to where John the Baptist had been baptizing (see John 1) and there he remained.
There is some interesting foreshadowing here. Jesus talks of his sheep and giving them life eternal. In John 11, he is going to demonstrate that visually.