16 Now because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews began to persecute Him. 17 But Jesus answered them, “To this very day My Father is at His work, and I too am working.”

18 Because of this, the Jews tried all the harder to kill Him. Not only was He breaking the Sabbath, but He was even calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

19 So Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing by Himself, unless He sees the Father doing it. For whatever the Father does, the Son also does. 20 The Father loves the Son and shows Him all He does. And to your amazement, He will show Him even greater works than these. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom He wishes.

REFLECTIONS

Written by Mercy Saw

On first reading this passage, verse 19 stood out to me. What does it mean that “the Son can do nothing by Himself, unless He sees the Father doing it”? Isn’t Jesus fully God, so couldn't he have done whatever he wanted? Actually, this tells us something profound about the Trinity – that because the Son is fully God, he does everything the Father does, and always acts in perfect union with the Father’s will.

However, reading this verse in context, Jesus is speaking particularly about the work he came to do. Jesus gives us a glimpse of the intimate relationship he has with the Father, where the Father loves the Son and shows him his work, and the work that Jesus does is fully aligned with the Father's purposes. He can do nothing by himself, because he and the Father are so entwined in love and will.

This contrasts sharply with the Jewish leaders' response to Jesus' miraculous healing of the paralysed man. Rather than responding in joy or praise to God, the Jewish leaders instead try to persecute Jesus for breaking the law by working on the Sabbath. Whilst claiming to be doing God's work by upholding the law, they completely miss the signs pointing to Jesus as the one sent to do the work of the Father, the one who would bring the true Sabbath rest and restoration to creation. They act to oppose the work of God and ironically, they try to kill Jesus because they recognise he is claiming to be equal with God.

This reminds me that it is only by God's grace and work in us that any of us can see Jesus clearly as the one sent by God to reveal himself to us. It is possible – like the Jewish leaders – to see the miracles of Jesus and still not believe in him. This reminds me to keep praying for those who are lost, that God would work in them to help them receive Jesus as their Lord and Saviour.

This passage also fills me with thanks for the greatest work God the Father has done in raising Jesus from the dead, and through Him giving us new life. God is still at work in bringing people to himself, and we have the privilege of sharing in his work too by sharing the good news of Jesus and praying for the salvation of those who do not yet know him. This may feel small when we focus on our efforts, but we can be encouraged that God is the one who is powerful and mighty to save. Praise God that he is always at work!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mercy is a member of our Fairfield Morning congregation.