19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?"
20 "You are demon-possessed," the crowd answered. "Who is trying to kill you?"
The Jews were forever boasting of their pedigree to Moses and the Law yet in our verses for today Jesus claims their possession to be empty and useless for their lack of obedience – they themselves being notorious breakers of it. Jesus states that their neglect of the Law was universal. Assuming themselves to be Law keepers, they were self-confident over their religion and standing with a total disregard for the depravity in their own hearts. Their very desire to exalt themselves was a bad symptom and indicator of something wrong within. They made an outward profession of loving God but in their hearts and thoughts and choices they proved to be paste gems and not genuine. It is good to be reminded that daily practices, choices, conduct, habits and private character are the true evidence of a man and not what he boasts. We find Jesus Words in Mark testifying to this fact:
6 He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites; as it is written:
"'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. 7 They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.' 8 You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men." Mark 7:6-8 (NIV)
It is a good to take a careful look over what one exalts in their own lives – man or Jesus. Which do we strive to glorify and place on the throne? Happy is the one that hides behind the cross. He will be both a blessing to others and blessed himself as well.
The hearts and thoughts of all men being pristinely clear to His eyes, Jesus asks of these hearers why they were trying to kill Him. Jealous of His powers and following coupled with the fact that He put a severe kink in their own religious thinking and paths, these Jews wanted rid of our Jesus. Rather than seeking to understand His miraculous ways and Words they sought to rid themselves of Him. Do we find ourselves on this same course of action? Perhaps not taking the time or effort to seek or to understand Him, we kill the urging of the Spirit with our embracing of ourselves or simply our lack of desire to change when confronted with Truth.
“The teachings of Jesus hit us where we live. We cannot stand as impostors before Him for even one second. The Spirit of God uncovers our spirit of self-vindication and makes us sensitive to things that we have never even thought of before.” Oswald Chambers
We should never flatter ourselves into thinking all is right simply because it is right before men – what does that matter? What is of utmost importance is that our character is right before God. Christians are to be in the process of being transformed into Christ’s image in ever increasing glory - Christlikeness being the goal of the Christian’s walk. Paul tells us:
18 And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. 2 Cor 3:18 (NIV)
It would do us well to remember that God searches and judges the hearts and minds of all men and does not look upon us outwardly as man does. When God was leading Samuel to anoint the next king of Israel, He gave him the following Truth:
7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." 1 Sam 16:7 (NIV)
Interestingly, when Jesus confronted His hearers with the Truth they lashed out with a verbal assault from the pit of hell. Claiming Him to be demonically possessed, they covered His discovered Truth of their hearts with a lie, pretending they were not after His demise. Darkness hates light because light exposes deeds and manifests truth ridding the cover up of hypocrisy.
“Let us not think it strange if the best of men are ascribed the worst character. Those who would be like Christ must put up with insults, must not regard them, much less resent them, and least of all revenge them.” Matthew Henry
Darkness likes remaining in darkness. Men often prefer to hide behind their masks feigning righteousness rather than deal with the sin through the power of the Spirit which the light shows forth. Scripture tells us:
19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." John 3:19-21 (NIV)