John 5:19-24

Honor the Son as You Honor the Father

One day a Hindu philosopher visited a school in a small village and asked if he might lecture student on Hinduism. He was granted permission, and returned with two others. All sat on mats round the floor, and the Hindu philosophers gave an interesting talk on God, ending with a transcendent Being so far away and unapproachable, and man in the depths of such abysmal ignorance and degradation, that they were left gasping for breath.

When he suddenly stopped, the students cried out, “But go on, go on, you can’t stop there.” “Our religion stops there,” he replied.

The problem with false religion is that they don’t know the ONE TRUE GOD is!

The God who created the universe is not unapproachable. He is approachable and knowable. How do we know?

The ONLY ONE who KNOWS the ONLY TRUE GOD is the ONE who COMES from GOD - Christ Jesus.

Christ teaches that God cares for the fallen human beings.. God intervened by coming…and revealing himself through His Son - Jesus. God in the FLESH. But this is something so difficult for the JEWS (monotheistic) to understand and believe. So Jesus has to CLARIFY and EXPLAIN his equality with God. That is what we are going to look at today. Go with me now to John 5:19-24. I have entitled this Sermon - Honor the Son as You Honor the Father

What: Jesus gives a discourse to the Jewish leaders

Why: To disprove the Jews and to clarify why He is worthy of honor, not rejection and persecution.

Jesus gives four reasons in support of his claim of equality with God for which the Jews were angry at Him and trying to KILL Him.

Jesus We must honor Jesus as God and savior because:

I. Jesus is equal to God in His WORKS (vv.19-20)

the Son acts precisely like the Father (19)

“The Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing.”

He always acted in perfect harmony with and subordination to the Father’s will. Thus, His works paralleled those of the Father in both their nature and extent, for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.

Obviously, only someone who is equal to the Father could do everything that He does. Christ’s statement, then, was a clear declaration of His own divinity.

Jesus can do things that the father does - similarity of divinity (the power to heal, to do miracles)

Matthew Henry’s Commentary

Christ was so entirely devoted to his Father’s will that it was impossible for him in any thing to act separately

v.20 - In verse 20 Jesus described the oneness of the Father and the Son as a union of love: the Father loves the Son

“Shows him all things” - the Father REVEALS His plans to the Son. It is because of the Father’s love that He REVEALS all his plan to the Son (special relationship).

Jesus is the revealer of the Father - the visible manifestation of the Father

Hebrews 1:1–3 (NASB95)

1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. 3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.

All that man can know of God and his love in this life is revealed in Jesus Christ.

A. W. Tozer

Application: Know Him

II. Jesus is equal to God in His Power and Sovereignty (v.21)

the Son, like the Father, has power to give life (21) -

Jesus asserts his equality with God as having the parallel power with God to raise the dead just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life.

The Jews revered and honored the OT Prophets like Elijah (1 Kings 17:22) and Elisha (2 Kings 4:34–35) who both raised a dead person to life.

by saying “The Son also gives life to whom He wishes” Jesus revealed himself to be of greater honor than Elijah and Elisha, Jesus did not merely act as God’s representative when He raised the dead, but as God Himself. The Son Himself gives resurrection and spiritual life to whom He wishes. As God is the source of life, so Jesus Christ is the source of life.

Application: Trust in him

III. Jesus is equal to God in His Judgment (v.22)

the Son has been given authority for judgment by the Father as the MEDIATOR.

The Jews believed that God is the “judge of all the earth” (Gen. 18:25;) the fact that the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son further attests to Christ’s deity.

The Jews believed that only God has the authority to judge and execute judgment. This authority has been given to Jesus - making Him equal with the Father.

Faith in Jesus has assurance of salvation / eternal life (God is the only one who can give salvation) (the only way to the Father)

You will not be judged by your good works but by hearing the word of Jesus and believing in Jesus as the savior.

When you die, you will face judgement and Jesus will be your judge.

2 Thessalonians 1:6–8 NASB95

6 For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, 8 dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

On that final, terrible day of judgment, those who have rejected Jesus will hear Him say, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness” (Matt. 7:23).

Application:

Fear Him

Tell others about the Judgment and the solution that is Jesus.

You have never truly found Jesus if you do not tell others about Him!

Charles Spurgeon

This sequence of supporting reasons for Jesus as equal with God have two main purposes.

1. That the hearers may be astonished (20) Jesus is God and there is only one God! an introduction to the TRINITY (fully explained later in John 14)

2. That they might honor the Son as they honor the Father. (vv.23-24)

to honor means to respect, to esteem, to revere.

If the President of the Philippines would enter the room, we should rise and give him honour. But if Jesus Christ came into the room, we should fall down on our knees and worship him.

In v. 23 there is a warning: Dishonoring Jesus means dishonoring the Father (equally honored)

How can a person dishonor Jesus?

Answer: by not believing in His words (like the Jews)

Conclusion:

In the final analysis, you never will go to heaven unless you are prepared to worship Jesus Christ as God.

Honor Jesus like the Father by hearing and believing in Jesus so that you will receive eternal life!