John 8:45-46

Interestingly, in our verses for today, we find Jesus graciously posing two questions to His hearers in an effort to show them the unreasonableness of their infidelity. These questions could easily be asked of modern day mankind as well: Can anyone prove Jesus guilty of sin? Furthermore, if Jesus is telling the Truth, why then is it He is not believed? The accusations they held against Him were malicious and groundless and utterly false. Even the pagan Pontius Pilate while condemning our Lord credits Him as faultless yet all the while Pilate misses the mark that he himself was in the very presence of Truth – standing right before his obviously blinded eyes:

38 "What is truth?" Pilate asked. With this he went out again to the Jews and said, "I find no basis for a charge against him. John 18:38 (NIV)

King James Version states this in the following way: “I find in Him no fault at all.”

“Jesus was as pure as Adam before the fall and as holy as Almighty God in eternity. Though He had mixed and mingled with humanity for thirty-three years in dusty towns and jostling cities, and though Satan himself had tested Him, there was nothing in the Son of Man to mar the brilliance of His intrinsic and white-hot holiness.” Robert J. Morgan

“When Pilate declared, ‘I find no fault in this man,’ he did thereby in effect pronounce the sacrifice without blemish.” Matthew Henry

None but Jesus could ever say I have no sin. Spotless and pure, innocent and undefiled, His character being utterly without flaw - Jesus is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world as the Baptist rightly proclaimed:

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! John 1:29 (NIV)

The writer of Hebrews describes our great High Priest using similar terms:

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. Heb 4:15 (NIV)

24 but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. 25 Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. 26 Such a high priest meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. 27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. Heb 7:24-27 (NIV)

Paul puts it in yet another way found in 2 Corinthians:

21 God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 2 Cor 5:21 (NIV)

Sadly, many do not receive God’s abundant Provision of grace and His Gift of righteousness choosing rather to believe the lies of Satan, self or the world rather than the Truth – scorning our Lord’s invitation to come to Him as seemingly foolishness. We choose to remain shackled in bondage to the slavery of our sin which weighs heavily upon us and leads us spiraling onward down the broad path of death and destruction. Conversely, Jesus desires to lead us in triumphal procession down the narrow path of life and peace - spreading through us the sweet aroma of Christ to all around. Amazingly, we readily choose this deceit over His Truth. Perhaps it is our unwillingness to change. Perhaps it is our lack of faith to believe Him. Perhaps it is our desire to go our own way, to be our own “god”. Jesus came to set the captive free. He came to remove the shackles so that we could not only dance in the freedom He brings, but also so that we could lift our hands to praise Him.

“He who affirms that Christianity makes men miserable, is himself an utter stranger to it. Suppose you that God will give all the happiness to His enemies, and reserve all the mourning for His own family? Shall His foes have mirth and joy, and shall His home-born children inherit sorrow and wretchedness? Shall the sinner, who has no part in Christ, call himself rich in happiness, and shall we go mourning as if we were penniless beggars? No, we will rejoice in the Lord always, and glory in our inheritance, for we ‘have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but we have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry Abba, Father’...We have the earnest of our inheritance in the comforts of the Spirit, which are neither few nor small. Heritors of joy forever, we have foretastes of our portion.” C. H. Spurgeon

Jesus is telling us the truth – He is the Truth. Why is it so hard for so many to believe?