Reflecting on John 5:16-30“My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.” (John 5:16)
Does Jesus say this because He is fully divine, equal in substance to God?
Or does He say this because He is fully human, claiming to be God’s Son?
Adam and Eve before sin could call God their Father because they were God’s children.
They could also say that they were working, just like their Father was working.
This is what it means to be made in God’s image: God’s child living with, like and for God!
I am not questioning Jesus’s divine origin (see Philippians 2:6, same word for ‘equal’).
I do think we miss something important if we only see these words through that lens.
Jesus is saying that His actions as a human fully compare to God’s actions.
He is saying that He has a close, familial relationship with God.
We were made to say the very same thing, and to work just like Jesus did.
Jesus comes to restore humanity to who we were made to be.
To relate to God as His child, to reflect His character, and to represent Him on earth.
People should see God’s goodness and character at work in us, every day of the week.
As Jesus followers our work is to heal like Jesus, not kill like the leaders (5:18).
We never take a vacation from the fruit of the Spirit; it is what we were made for.
Whatever task I engage in, Jesus is helping me to work with, like and for God.
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, You are 'God with us' showing us what it looks like to be fully human. Thank You that by Your grace and with Your help, I can call God my Father, and can join with You in living WITH, LIKE and FOR God everyday of my life.