I and the Father
TRANSLATION
(22) At that time the Feast of Dedication took place in Jerusalem. (23) It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple courts in Solomon’s colonnade. (24) The Jews who were there gathered around him and asked, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.” (25) Jesus answered, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, testify about me. (26) But you do not believe because you are not my sheep. (27) My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, (28) and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. (29) My Father who gave them to me is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. (30) I and the Father are one.”
OBSERVATIONS
Of all the passages in Scripture which undergird the Doctrine of Security for those who believe in Jesus, these verses may well be the clearest. Repetitions here included “tell/told” (vss. 24 & 25), “you do not believe” (vss. 25 & 26), “my sheep” (vss. 26 & 27), “snatch them” (vss. 28 & 29), “my hand/the Father’s hand” (vss. 28 & 29). Jesus used the family term, “Father,” to refer to God four times (vss. 25, 29, & 30). To reinforce the assurance his shepherding provides for the sheep, Jesus used both a positive (“I give them eternal life”) and contrasting negatives (“and they will never perish and no one will snatch them out of my hand”).
OUTLINE
I. At the temple during the Feast, the Jews demanded that Jesus plainly identify himself. (22-24)
II. Jesus responded that he was the Good Shepherd doing the Father’s work. (25-30)
IDEA STATEMENT
As the Good Shepherd who came to give his life for the sheep, Jesus clearly declared himself to be one with the Father.
APPLICATION
Jesus had recently claimed to be God (“Before Abraham was, I AM”), a claim that resulted in his nearly being stoned for blasphemy (8:58 & 59). On this occasion, while in the temple at the Feast of Dedication, he made another astounding claim: “I and the Father are one.” Some have taken Jesus to mean by these words, “I and the Father share the same goal or have the same purpose in mind.” While that may well be true, Jesus meant a great deal more in this context.
By these words, Jesus was claiming to be equal with God, the second member of the Trinity, not merely a messenger or servant of God. The prophet, Isaiah, had foretold the coming of Messiah with these momentous words: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Is. 9:6). As the only One who fulfilled this prophecy, Jesus is truly worthy of our worship and greatest devotion. As Paul would write in Colossians, “He is the image of the invisible God…” (Col. 1:15). Along with claiming God as his Father, Jesus assured those sheep who belong to him that they can rest secure in the knowledge that they are kept safe both in the Son’s hands (vs. 28) and in the Father’s hands (vs. 29). Nothing and no one can ever penetrate that shield of protection.