https://app.dropwave.io/episode/9628f397-828a-406e-aaf6-22351fdbff60/judica-lent-5-ad-2025.mp3

++ JESU JUVA ++

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Jesus speaks to the unbelieving Jews. They believe themselves God’s chosen people. But Jesus, as the Divine Son of God Himself, declares that they are not of God.

He speaks clearly. He says that He was before Abraham. He says that God the Father is His Father. He says that He is the Son of God. They say that He must be executed by stoning in accord with Levitical law. He is a blasphemer. Within a theocracy, there is no greater sin than blasphemy. So they call him a demon. They take up stones to administer their judgment against Him.

He did the works of God. They could not deny it. They heard His words, but they could not embrace them. They understood what He said, but they refused to believe Him. Whoever is of God hears the Word of God. They could not hear it because they had rejected God.

They said Abraham was dead, but you know Abraham’s bosom is the home of all who have died in faith. He believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness. Upon the mountain of the Lord, it was provided. God provided the Sacrifice. Isaac did not die. Abraham was glad. He rejoiced in the day of Jesus.

They said the prophets were dead, but you know how Moses and Elijah meet Jesus at His Transfiguration. You remember how they converse with Him about His Exodus. The One those prophets foretold has appeared. The One through Whom all things were made now stands in human flesh before the Jews.

He was the One who called Abram to leave his homeland, promising him a better country. He was the One who promised him a son through whom the world would be blessed.

Whoever keeps Jesus’ Words shall never see death. The Word of Jesus is life. Abraham kept His Words. The Prophets kept His Words. So Abraham is not dead. The Prophets are not dead.

But these Jews do not receive His Words. They call Him a Samaritan. They say He has a demon. They mock Him for promising eternal life in His Word. The Word has been proclaimed clearly. The Jews refuse understanding. They know neither the Scriptures nor the power therein. They refuse to have His Word, so they are dead in their sins.

The Word of Jesus overflows with life. He is the God of the living. But the Jews refused that life. Instead, they wanted death. They sought to take the life of their God. They sought to take delight in His death. By their hatred of God, they demonstrate that they are no children of Abraham. Sharing the blood of Abraham according to the flesh was not enough. They did not share Abraham’s faith. They did not believe as Abraham did.

Abraham and the Prophets are not dead. God is not dead. Jesus is not dead. But all those who refuse the Word of Jesus are dead. Even if they are Jews, if they reject Jesus, they will die in their sins. So Jesus continues to speak the truth to them. Before our text today, this is how He calls them to repentance: If you were Abraham's children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did. You are doing the works your father did… You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires.

These words are harsh. But these words are truth. Only the truth could ever pierce and convert their stony hearts. So Jesus speaks to them with these strong words. No true child of God would attack God. No one who lives by the Word of God would oppose God’s Word. The Kingdom of God is not divided against itself. But their father, the devil — that ancient Serpent would desire to murder God. Because they follow his desires, their true religion is evident.

Jesus worked miracles. He fed 5000. He healed the blind. He raised the dead. They awaited a messiah, but Jesus does not look like the savior they wanted. He calls Himself the Son of God. He speaks the Divine Name that God had given to Moses. He calls Himself by the name these Jews considered too holy to speak. He rightly says, Before Abraham was, I AM. He takes the Divine Name as His own.

But when they have heard His confession, they don’t fall down in worship. They don’t remove their sandals because they stand on holy ground. Instead, they take up stones to kill Him.

The scribes, the priests, and the Pharisees believe they are right to oppose Jesus. The scribes interpret the Bible. The priests offer the sacrifices that God had commanded. The Pharisees exercise religious authority.

They had political authority. The Roman Empire itself recognized their office and permitted them to rule. They had religious authority. They taught the Old Testament. They had tradition. Their job was to do what had been handed down to them. They had money. They wore their long and fancy robes in public. They were good at praying. They made long prayers in public. They kept the Law of God. They even tithed from their spice drawer.

And above all, they had the Temple — the great and majestic building of beautiful stones. They offered sacrifices in God’s name. They were the ones God had appointed. They were the establishment church.

The scribes, the priests, and the Pharisees all claim to speak with God’s authority. And, in a sense, they do. Jesus says in Matthew 23 that the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat. They instruct the people in the ways of the Ten Commandments. But Jesus also says in that same passage that “they preach, but they do not practice.” Repeatedly, throughout that chapter, Jesus calls the Pharisees blind guides and hypocrites.