16 So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him. 17 Jesus said to them, "My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I, too, am working." 18 For this reason the Jews tried all the harder to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.
In our verses for today, we find the Pharisees hot on pursuit to persecute our Lord. In their summation, He is guilty of breaking the Sabbath. What they fail to grasp is that Jesus had not come to abolish, break or negate the Law rather to perfectly fulfill it by fleshing out before their eyes an obedience that is not merely external but also internal - a true inner righteousness based on faith in God coupled with the power of the Holy Spirit. Both fully God and fully Man, it is Jesus alone who perfectly accomplishes this fete. Jesus tells us in Matthew:
17 "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. 18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Matt 5:17-18 (NIV)
Jesus also gives us the command for mercy stating that it triumphs over sacrifice. Many of His healings were done on the Sabbath putting meat to His Word below:
7 If you had known what these words mean, 'I desire mercy, not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the innocent. 8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." Matt 12:7-8 (NIV)
Jesus is far more interested in the inner spiritual vitality over the formality of the meager external obedience. We are not to live merely based upon the letter of the law but on the spirit of the gospel as well. Anybody can be disciplined enough to follow a set of rules – He looks for greater still. What is the motivation behind the action? Does it glorify God or man? Is it motivated by love or selfish ambition or vain conceits?
“Joy is love exalted; peace is love in repose; long-suffering is love enduring; gentleness is love in society; goodness is love in action; faith is love on the battlefield; meekness is love in school; and temperance is love in training.” Dwight L. Moody
“Every time we resist the slightest temptation, we honor God. Every time we overcome even the smallest problem by trusting and obeying our Lord Jesus, God is glorified in our lives. Whenever we choose character over convenience, faithfulness over ease, or honesty over deceit, we bring honor to the Lord Himself.” Robert J. Morgan
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 1 John 4:7-12 (NIV)
“You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.” Amy Carmichael
Indeed, Jesus is interested in the heart change or perhaps I should say exchange. He wants to take our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh. It is God who changes the human heart – His desire is for us to turn to Him – He seeks our will. He never forces us to follow; He woos us with love to come. The prophet Ezekiel tells us:
26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Ezek 36:26-27 (NIV)
Paul puts it this way in 2 Corinthians:
17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 2 Cor 5:17 (NIV)
It is interesting to me that when our ways are rocked it is often our desire to rid ourselves of the rocker! This is not dissimilar to what we see in our verses today. The Pharisees in their pretence for having a jealousy for God’s honor seek to slay His Son. Here they unjustly impute an offense to Christ’s Word equating Himself with God yet His Word is true – He is equal to God as He is God Himself. Jesus tells us clearly later in John:
“If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25 Jesus answered, "I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father's name speak for me, 26 but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. 30 I and the Father are one." 31 Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, 32 but Jesus said to them, "I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?" 33 "We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God." John 10:24-33 (NIV)