The Gospel of John: John 10.34-42

Read and meditate on John 10.37, 38.
Once again, Jesus appealed to His works. He urged His detractors to consider the works He did, whether they were in line with the kind of works God would do, and that had been prophesied of the Messiah.

                                            ³⁷“But if instead
of doing what My Father wants, I do
some other works, not His, then surely you
must not believe Me; ³⁸if, however, I
My Father’s works do, though you still deny
Me, yet believe the works, that you may know
and that you may believe it to be so,
that God the Father is in Me, and I
in Him.”

- John 10.37, 38

Reflect
1.  Jesus continued to point to His works, not simply because they were amazing, but because they were the very works prophesied of the Messiah in His coming. Look at Isaiah 61.1, 2. Jesus Himself cited this verse in His sermon in Nazareth, Luke 4.16-21. He expected these “gods” of Israel to know this passage, and undoubtedly they did. Why were they yet not convinced? Complete this prayer: Lord, Your works are more, and more glorious, than any other, and You have called and sent me to…

2.  Meditate on John 10.37. If we, who are called to be witnesses to Jesus, do not do the works of the Father, do we have any right to expect others to believe in Him? Explain. What works in particular should we be seeking to do (Eph. 2.10; Matthew 5.17-19; 22.34-40)? Teach me to do the works of the Father, the works of Your Law, O Lord. Today, show me…

3.  In verse 38, Jesus seemed almost to be saying, “Actions speak louder than words.” Explain. They may speak louder, but should we show people only our actions? Today, Lord, let my actions be such as to…

4.  With Jesus, it was always words and deeds, words and deeds. The words explained the deeds, and the deeds validated the words. The combination of the works and words of the Father meant two things: First, those who saw and either ignored or denied them, refusing to believe in Jesus, would come under the same judgment as the “gods” of Israel (Ps. 82), as Jesus clearly implied in this exchange with the religious leaders of His day. Should we include a warning of judgment in our witness for Christ? What would that look like? We don’t like thinking about judgment, Lord, but…

5. Second, Jesus insisted that the Father was “in” Him, just as the Father will be in all those who speak His words and do His works. Jesus did not explain yet how that could be, but He would do so soon enough (see chapters 14-16). The fact that God comes to dwell in those who believe in Jesus makes the Christian faith unique among the religions of the world. Why? What are the implications of this for us who believe? Bring together into one prayer the prayers you wrote for questions 1-4.

Summary
“The Son does not say, ‘The Father is in me, and I in him,’ in the sense in which we say it. For if our thinking is in line with him, then we are in God. And if we live the way he wants us to, then God is in us. Believers, by participating in his grace and being illuminated by him, are said to be in him and he in us. But this is not how it is with the only begotten Son. He is in the Father, and the Father is in him as one who is equal is in him whose equal he is. In short, we can sometimes say, ‘We are in God, and God is in us,’ but can we say I and God are one? You are in God because God contains you. God is in you because you have become the temple of God.… Recognize the prerogative of the Lord and the privilege of the servant. The prerogative of the Lord is equality with the Father; the privilege of the servant is fellowship with the Savior.” Augustine (354-430 AD)

If we are disciples and followers of Jesus, we will want our words and deeds to follow the pattern He established. How can we improve in each of these – words and deeds?

Closing Prayer
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;
Let them not have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless,
And I shall be innocent of great transgression.
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.

Psalm 19.13, 14

Psalm 19.12-14 (St. Christopher: Beneath the Cross of Jesus)
Who, Lord, can know his errors? O keep sin far from me!
Let evil rule not in my soul that I may blameless be.
O let my thoughts, let all my words, before Your glorious sight
Be pleasing to You, gracious Lord, acceptable and right!

T. M. Moore

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series IV a and b: John, edited by Joel C. Elowsky, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006. Verse translation of John by T. M. Moore.