Daily Devotional John 5:16–45
When I was working as an engineer, my company developed a product that relied upon a technology named Bluetooth that connected different devices. Curious about this strange name, I learned that Harald Bluetooth was a Danish king who converted his people to Christianity and united (or connected) the tribes of Denmark. Unfortunately, his son rejected Christianity and overthrew him.
He was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
JOHN 5:18
Jesus is the perfect Son. He always does the will of His Father. In John 5, we see that the Jewish leaders were committed to persecuting Jesus because He was doing His Father’s work (v. 17), claiming God to be His Father (v. 18). Notice that the Gospel of Mark opens with the statement, “The beginning of the good news about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1). For Mark, there was no confusion regarding the Sonship of Jesus.
In Luke’s gospel, he unfolds how Mary came to know that she was going to have a child. After the angel Gabriel gave her the message, Mary was confused as to the way this would happen, seeing that she was a virgin. Gabriel stated, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35). Gabriel wasn’t confused.
John says, “For this reason they tried all the more to kill him...he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God” (v. 18). We should have no doubts that Jesus claimed to be the Son of God and equal with God. The Bible is clear.
>> Christmas is just twelve days away. You may be busy with gift giving, cookie baking, and office parties. In all the hoopla, don’t forget the fact that Jesus is the Son of God Who came to take away the sin of the world. Let’s remember that the baby in the manger was God’s Son.
Pray with Us
While we may face ridicule or even persecution because of our faith, we know that in You, Lord Jesus, we have eternal life; we have “crossed over from death to life” (John 5:24).
Comments