Joel M Bradshaw

16So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him. 17In his defense Jesus said to them, “My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” 18For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.–John 5

1. Jesus had performed a miracle on the Sabbath.
2. The Sabbath is a holy day set apart to honor God and where no regular work is done. It was highly regulated by Jesus’ fellow Jewish people.
3. Jesus’ basic point was that God still works on the Sabbath doing things that only God can do. If God stopped working, the grand physics of the universe would come screeching to a halt.
4. But Jesus took it a step further. He didn’t just call God “Father,” but “my Father.” And he made the point He works and does work like God.
5. There are some who say that Jesus never claimed to be God. Then what do you do with this passage? What would your best friend say about you? Jesus’ best friend, John, said that they were persecuting Jesus because He claimed to be God by calling God His Father.
6. The religious leaders wanted to kill Jesus because Jesus claimed to be God, not just some “renegade rabbi” who had a following. Jesus couldn’t break the Sabbath any more than God could. Jesus also was doing things that only God could.
7. People claim that Michael Jordan doesn’t have to call himself the greatest basketball player ever. He just holds up all the championship rings on his fingers and they speak for themselves. Jesus didn’t have to say, “I am God.” He simply called God His Father and then let his miracles speak for Him!–JMB