John 10:19-21 - Lesson #104

Jesus made His claims in such a way that a decision was required. He was the good shepherd who was sent from God to lay His life down for the sheep. And yet, He remained in complete control of His life; "I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again" (John 10:18). These were not normal claims. They required some processing and caused understandable division.

John 10:19-21
"Therefore there was a division again among the Jews because of these sayings. And many of them said, 'He has a demon and is mad. Why do you listen to Him?' Others said, 'These are not the words of one who has a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?'"

Accusing Jesus of having a demon seemed to be the common response when other explanations for His actions could not be found; "The people answered and said, 'You have a demon'" (John 7:20). Jesus did not fit into the established system of truth so one solution was to dismiss Him as being controlled by a demon. Today we might just say "You're crazy!" and walk away.

But there was another group who could not accept the solution which said Jesus was demon possessed. They had witnessed Jesus give sight to a man born blind (John 9), and to assign this miracle to a demon did not fit their definition of truth. They began to process the inconsistency of their system, but stopped short of the necessary evaluation which would have led them to an acceptance of the only eternal truth.

We often think that wrestling with truth is a modern issue, and we're critical of anyone who dares to ask the questions. But the quest for truth has always been a worthwhile pursuit. We can see the wrestling of Pilate when he asks Jesus, "What is truth?" (John 18:38). And the Greek philosophers spent entire lifetimes attempting to construct consistent systems of truth hundreds of years before the days of Jesus. No, asking the questions is not new - neither is it wrong. The fault is in failing to resolve the questions.

When Jesus presented a challenge to their system of truth, the Jewish leaders tried to dismiss Him and walk away. But when continually faced with such a glaring inconsistency, they failed to evaluate their system and, finally, attempted to remove the inconsistency by having Jesus put to death.

What is our system of truth? Does our system account for the beginning of the Universe, give meaning to why we live day to day, or have a consistent answer to what happens when we die? These are good questions! But we cannot ask the questions and then fail to develop a system of truth which will govern all the rest of our days. Let's honestly ponder the issue of truth and consider the words of Jesus as He prayed to God the Father; "Your word is truth" (John 17:17). If we refuse to walk away, we will find the word of God is more than true, it is the only consistent and saving truth.