JESUS SAID, "I AM THE SON OF GOD" -- Saturday of the First Week of Lent

Yesterday when I was thinking about what made Jesus' last journey to Jerusalem so dangerous, I shared with you some reflections concerning how significant it was that Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. I think about how it must have been for Lazarus after he was raised from the dead.  We know Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha gave hospitality to Jesus and His disciples, as reported several times in the Gospels.  Until just before we read of Lazarus' impending death, we know more about Mary and Martha than their brother.  And we can tell that they believed in Jesus just as many others were come to believe.

By the point inn time that Jesus came back from beyond the Jordan where John the Baptist has been baptizing the multitudes to deliver Lazarus from death that is described in John's Gospel, Chapter Eleven, people had many opinions about who He was.  This is described in the tenth chapter of John's Gospel. Jesus was in the Temple for the Feast of Dedication that we know of as Hanukkah, and other men also celebrating the feast challenged Jesus about who He was (John 10:22-42).  They said to Him -- “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” (John 10:24b) Jesus answered them by saying, "“I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, they bear witness to me; but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”  (John 10:25b-30)

When I meditate on this, I remember the time when Jesus asked His disciples who Jesus said that He was as described in in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke (Matthew 16:13-20; Mark 8:27-30; Luke 9:18-21).  They answered, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Eli′jah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”(Matthew 16:14b) And then when Jesus asked them who they said that He was, Peter had the "A" answer, saying that Jesus is the Christ (the Messiah).  In each of the three versions of this important revelation in Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus tells His disciples to tell no one. But by the time Jesus has the discussion with the men in the Temple not long before He raises Lazarus from the dead, His identity as Messiah has been evident to the multitudes. 

The Gospel of John has a similar pericope when many of Jesus’ followers leave Him after He teaches them that He is the Bread of Life after He feeds the Five Thousand and Walks on the Sea of Galilee.  (John 6) Jesus asks the twelve disciples if they, too, want to leave Him and Peter answers Him saying, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” (John 9:67-69)

The revelation that Jesus is Messiah, also called the Son of Man and the Holy One of God, who was prophesied hundreds of years before Jesus was born by Isaiah and other prophets is essential. But beyond that Jesus is also proclaimed as the Son of God. Most of the leaders of the Temple, members of the Sanhedrin as well as other scribes, Saduccees, and Pharisees had a problem with people believing that Jesus embodied both of those identities. essential. But beyond that, Jesus is also proclaimed as the Son of the Living God.  Most of the leaders of the Temple, members of the Sanhedrin as well as other scribes, Saduccees, and Pharisees had a problem with people believing that Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of God.  This becomes clear when He has been captured by the Temple guards and brought before Caiaphas, the High Priest, and members of the Sanhedrin.

After many false witnesses have come forward to no avail, and Jesus has remained silent before His accusers, Caiaphas says to him —“Do You not answer? What is it that these men are testifying against You?” But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest said to Him, “I adjure You by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God.” Then Jesus answered him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

This is the final straw as far as those in power in the Temple are concerned.  From this point all the efforts to kill in the past are overshadowed by the events that ensue that culminate in Jesus’ crucifixion.

But we will spend more time on this in the next few weeks.  Today the most important thing is to think about who each one of us says that Jesus is.  What do you believe?  Why do you believe it?

I would like to invite you to meditate and pray about these questions with me if you feel led.

May the Lord continue to bless and keep you and yours.

Here are some resources online that you might find interesting:

Daily Exegeis

"Who Do You Say That I Am?" from Loyola Press