Two Ways of Thinking (John 8:21–30)

Series: “John: Life in Christ’s Name”Text: John 8:21–30

By: Shaun Marksbury Date: Aug. 27, 2023

Venue: Living Water Baptist ChurchOccasion: AM Service

Introduction

Today, we have satellites and technology with which we can look down upon the earth. We can use lasers from space to measure the heights of mountains and the movement of shorelines. We can craft intricate and accurate maps for the globes that we see adorning classrooms and bookshelves, not to mention what we can pull up on our phones and computers today.

Yet, incredibly, globes have been around for thousands of years. Without our technology, Greek thinkers were able to utilize mathematics, experiments, and simply observation to determine the shape of our world. They didn’t just determine what coastlines looked like by sailing ships and drawing them; they could tell that the whole earth isn’t flat but instead a sphere. They drew maps onto globes as early as the third century BC.

Those globes were not nearly as accurate as ours, perhaps with large mistakes, though we don’t have them anymore to examine. We can see globes from later in history, some which do have mistakes, though it’s incredible to consider what they were able to determine without a view from above.

The oldest one we have actually comes from Christoher Columbus’s time. Remember, kids, in 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. Folks in Europe at that time were trading with people in India, but they had to sail south and all the way around the large continent of Africa to get there. Columbus was determined to be the first to find a path to India going the other way around the globe.

With calculations for the circumference of the earth in hand, Columbus asked for money for his voyage. Unfortunately, he had two problems. First, he didn’t know about two whole continents blocking his path —later called the Americas (no one did). Second, some experts were telling him that his math was wrong, and that he would run out of supplies long before he reached India. Undaunted, he eventually won funding and set sail.

Of course, you know that story. He eventually landed in islands now called the West Indies and referred to the natives there as “Indians.” He thought he had found that coveted path to India. I’ve read that he could not be convinced of his error, believing it until his dying breath. He was certainly brave, and we have benefited from him, but he suffered with a limited view. It’s not as though he had Google Earth to correct him!

We can all get caught up in what we see in front of us, forgetting our own limited perspective. That is what Jesus is explaining here. It’s not that the Pharisees can’t figure some things out, but they don’t have the view from above them. Without that, they can’t even always understand what is in front of them.

Whether it’s Columbus or the Pharisees or just us, we need God’s overlooking perspective. Without it, out thinking will be bound up with what’s in front of us in this world; God gives us the view from above. So, let’s consider today which of the two ways of thinking we’re using by asking four questions: Do you recognize the time is short? Do you recognize the true identity of Christ? Do you recognize God’s testimony? Do you recognize Jesus’s mission? Let’s start with the first of these.

First, do you recognize the time is short (vv. 21–22)?

Then He said again to them, “I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.” So the Jews were saying, “Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?”

It’s easy to look around us and assume that everything will continue as it always has. The Pharisees and many of the Jews did not realize how short the time was growing for them. Within the next generation, not only will they have rejected their Messiah and have crucified Him, but they will face a siege by the Romans which will leave Jerusalem and its temple in ruins. Even worse than that is that many of them will even face the Roman sword, and after that, the judgement of the God who sent Jesus to them.

So, Jesus (who comes from above) warns them. In fact, He repeated the same warning He gave them back in John 7:33–34, “For a little while longer I am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me. You will seek Me, and will not find Me; and where I am, you cannot come.” Now, He says again, “I go away” or “I am going away” (LSB), “and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.” This warning is more pointed than the last one.

This death isn’t the end of physical life, for we each have an eternal soul. The Lord will judge each of us based on our works — how often we sin by lying, stealing, reacting out of unjust anger, and the like. He tells us all sinners have a destiny “in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death” (Rev. 21:8). This is the warning Jesus gives.

He tells them that they’re in a state of sin. He will repeat this thought in v. 24, “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” Because of who each person is (a sinner), they produce sins.

There is a point at which God’s grace ends. People heard the preaching of Noah and thought nothing would change, until God closed the door of the ark and it started to rain. Similarly, the gathered people heard Jesus’s warnings and rejected them. At some point, folks realize the error of their ways, but sometimes, when it is already too late.

Yet, like with Noah, the Jews here don’t have the higher perspective on how their world is about to change. They choose to mock Jesus. In v. 22, they were saying, “Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” They lock onto one part of what He says, don’t understand it, and ignore His clear warning. And since they frame this question in the original language to expect a negative response, they are asking it to ridicule His warning.

The Jews were (and many still are) quite legalistic in their approach to God. They believed they had to perform certain works to earn their salvation, and they thought that they could sin in such a bad way that it would forever keep them from going to heaven. It’s true that suicide is a violation of the sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” However, we know that God in Christ can forgive murders, and He forgives people even if they haven’t confessed every sin to Him. It is an egregious sin that always harms and changes everyone around it, but only those in Christ have the heavenly perspective on how God can forgive even that. Those who are earthly cannot understand God’s grace in Jesus, which brings us to the next point:

Second, do you recognize the true identity of Christ (vv. 23–25)?

And He was saying to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” So they were saying to Him, “Who are You?” Jesus said to them, “What have I been saying to you from the beginning?

Those having true understanding from above don’t see that there is something wrong with this world today. They also see the true identity of Jesus. Unfortunately, these Jews respond with a woeful ignorance.

Jesus highlights the two ways of thinking in these verses. He says that they (emphasizing the pronoun here) are from “the lower regions” or “from below.” Jesus is saying is that theirs is a sinful or worldly way of thinking. As such, in v. 24, we read, “Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins.” Those who are from below inherit the sinful condition of Adam, and we prove it when we sin. We cannot save ourselves, and no one else from this world can save us. We need someone from above to enter our condition and deliver us.

This is where Jesus says He originates. He contrasts them to where He is from (and He emphasizes the pronoun for Himself) — above, as in, from heaven. They should already know this about Him. Jesus already said in John 3:13, “No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.” John the Baptist also identified Jesus as above all; he said in John 3:31, “He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.” This points to the preexistence of Christ and His greater perspective, but their limited, worldly perspective won’t allow them to see Him for who He is.

So, He says, “Y’all are from this world” while He says He isn’t. He doesn’t originate from this dark system like we do. He’s from above it all. He’s transcendent.

None of us could fully comprehend this about Him. We must have Christ call us out of the world. “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” (John 17:14–16). We are no longer of the world because one who came from above made us new creatures in Him.

Yet, we have to believe who Jesus is. That’s how Jesus concludes v. 24 — “unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” There is no hope for deliverance from our sins except in Jesus Christ. This is why we call Him the Christ, the Messiah, because He’s the anointed one for this task.

Jesus says something else interesting here. Nearly every translation like this one adds the pronoun “He” to “I am,” which is why it is in italics in some translations. The translation, “I am He,” is a possible rendering. Yet, one notable exception is the Good News Bible, which says, “if you do not believe that ‘I Am Who I Am’.” Moreover, the NASB footnote here says, “Most authorities associate this with Ex 3:14, I AM WHO I AM.” So, it is also possible to read this “unless you believe that I AM, you will die in your sins.”

He uses this expression of Himself in multiple places (e.g., Mark 13:6; Luke 21:8; John 4:26; 13:19). He will make it clear in this chapter. For instance, in v. 28, He says, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He [or, just, “I AM”], and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.” If the Jews weren’t getting suspicious that this is a claim to deity, they certainly did in v. 58 — “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am;” their response to this final claim is that “they picked up stones to throw at Him” (v. 59). We’ll talk more about this when we get there, but from this point on John, He uses the title “Son of God” more for Himself (John 10:36; 11:4, 27; cf. 1:49; 5:25). It’s obvious that Jesus is saying that His being from above means that He’s deity, which is what the first three verses of John affirms!

This is what we need to believe, but do His worldly listeners understand this? Verse 25 says, “So they were saying to Him, “Who are You?” They place the emphasis on the pronoun, meaning that there is sharpness in this question. It’s almost as though they have blinders and earplugs in so they can’t hear what Jesus is saying or see what He’s doing. They want it that way. They are willingly ignorant.

They have already seen and heard all the evidence, so there’s a bit of exasperation in Jesus’s reply. He says, “What have I been saying to you from the beginning?” From the announcement of John the Baptist, Jesus has been ministering in Israel and they have the Word of God for comparison. They have heard what Jesus has said and they still don’t know.

Those who are below will never know or fully embrace the identity of Christ. It implies that His is the only correct view, the one from above it all. We might be able to stumble through many parts of our lives, even making some impressive maps in this world, but the transcendent view shows just how far off we can be. We need a Jesus that can reveal the truth from above to us, and that leads us to the next point:

Third, do you recognize God’s testimony (vv. 26–27)?

“I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these I speak to the world.” They did not realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father.

Last time, we considered the fact that Jesus isn’t here to judge, but that doesn’t mean He doesn’t judge. He can see where people are off course. He could outright condemn them, but that is not His current purpose. He could begin correcting all the ways those around Him are wrong, but He settles on saying the most important point for them to know.

This might not be the clearest response at first glance. He says, “He who sent Me is true.” Of course, we know that God is true, and this is a common refrain in John (John 3:33; 7:28). If God is true and He sent Jesus, then the message Jesus speaks is true. Jesus says that He has indeed heard from God, and these are the words He speaks to the world. In other words, He gives a true and faithful revelation (John 12:49; 15:15).

Anyone reading and believing the Bible would see this. One might say that the Pharisees knew God’s Word and the people learned it in synagogue. However, if they applied any knowledge with belief, then they would have recognized the Father’s testimony earlier — which is why Jesus said in John 5:37–38, “And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.” They did not recognize God’s testimony!

Consider how deep their ignorance goes. In v. 27, we read, “They did not realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father.” Remember that, in v. 19, they even asked, “Where is Your Father?” They have no clue that Jesus has been talking to them about God all this time! All of the previous references to the Father went over their heads. They believe God exists (so do the demons, James 2:19), but they don’t have any reverence for Christ, and they couldn’t even conceive that He was speaking of the Heavenly Father.

They are from below, from the earth. He is from above, transcendent. If we cannot accept who Jesus is and whose testimony He brings, then we will, too, will die in our sins, not realizing how late the hour is. The only hope is to listen to Him and understand why He came, bringing us to the final point today.

Fourth, do you recognize Jesus’s mission (vv. 28–30)?

So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me. And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him.

Jesus tells them that there is coming a time when they will lift Him up, but He doesn’t mean in praise. He previously said He would be lifted up just like the serpent in the wilderness (John 3:14). He’s referencing His coming death on the cross, when He’ll draw all men to Himself (John 12:32). It’s at that point that they will realize who He is, literally “I AM,” just like in v. 24.

The crucifixion revealed who Jesus was. He fulfilled Scripture throughout the time of His suffering, paying for the sins of the people (Isa. 53:10–12), and there were signs accompanying His death. Remember that, even the centurion at the cross became very frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matt. 27:54). It was at that time that Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea revealed themselves as secret disciples by preparing Jesus’s body for burial. After the resurrection and the ascension, 3,000 people in Jerusalem came to faith in Christ on Pentecost (Acts 2:41).

Jesus predicts this ahead of time. He says that they will come to realize at this point not only who He is, but that “I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.” This begins to speak of His not only His words, but also His works. That goes on into v. 29, where Jesus says, “I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” He said His food is to do the Father’s will (John 4:34), and He does.

That’s why He has such perfect communion with the Father; He says, “And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone.” Jesus and the Father are one in essence and in purpose. He is the Son who is pleasing to the Father, meaning that those of us who want to be pleasing to God need Jesus!

Understand that Jesus didn’t just die on the cross for our sins. He also lived the perfect life with God that we were supposed to, but failed. He came and fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law. Sometimes, you will feel like you need to prove something to God, maybe get baptized or join the church or something like that, but Jesus has already performed every work that the Father requires. Where we have sinned, missed God’s holy standard, Jesus’s blood on the cross covers those sins. We are pleasing to God only if we are in Christ.

We must see that this is why Jesus came. It’s not just to teach us to love one another, although He did do that. It wasn’t just to become victorious over the forces of darkness, although He did that. He came to live the life we couldn’t and pay the penalty we owe. This was the reason He came, and we would do well to take our eyes off the world and place them above.

Will people believe Jesus? We read in v. 30 that they did. However, we’ve seen people with superficial faith before, so we’ll have to wait until next week to see the true nature of their belief. The bigger question is whether you believe today.

Conclusion

There are people who know some of this. It’s easy to flip through the radio stations or through videos on your phones and find people who know that the time is short. There are some people who know that Jesus was more than a man. There are many who profess belief in God. And, there are folks who recognize that Jesus died for the sins of the world. However, not everyone understands all of this or even applies it to themselves. They may know a lot of important points compared to others in the world, but they lack that true heavenly perspective.

If you find you need that perspective, simply look to Christ and believe what He has said. He will both save you and open your eyes to His exalted truth!