If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing

 

 "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."  Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'  Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  And the prophets are dead.  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"  

 

Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  

 

Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."  Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

 

- John 8:47-59 

 In our current readings, Jesus is attending the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem (beginning from this reading).  He has been disputing with the religious leaders.   In yesterday's reading, they answered Him, "We are Abraham's descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone.  How can You say, 'You will be made free'?"  Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.  And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.  Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.  I know that you are Abraham's descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.  I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father."  They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father."  Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.  But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God.  Abraham did not do this.  You do the deeds of your father."  Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father -- God."  Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.  Why do you not understand My speech?  Because you are not able to listen to My word.  You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.  But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.  Which of you convicts Me of sin?  And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?  He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

 

  "He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."  Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"  Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.  And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.  Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."  Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon!  Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, 'If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.'  Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead?  And the prophets are dead.  Who do You make Yourself out to be?"   Today's reading begins with Christ's final statement to the religious leaders from yesterday's reading.  As these authorities in the temple are unable to defeat Christ through logic or truth, my study Bible comments, here they begin to resort to personal insult (see also John 9:34).  

Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.  Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him.  And if I say, 'I do not know Him,' I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.  Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  Once again, Jesus speaks regarding potential witnesses to His identity, as if offering testimony.  He will not testify of Himself, as He says for it is not for Him to honor Himself.  But the Father bears witness and honors Him -- and they do not know God the Father.  Then He offers another witness from the Scriptures, father Abraham.

 Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"  Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."  Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.  Here Jesus uses the divine Name of God from the Old Testament, first revealed to Moses in the burning bush (Exodus 3:13-15).  This is the use of the I AM (Ἐγώ εἰμι/Ego eimi) here by Christ, in this particular context, which these men of the Council understand completely.  To them, my study Bible says, this was a direct, explicit, and unmistakable claim to perfect equality with God.  Therefore, this is what they clearly evidence by their reaction (Then they took up stones to throw at Him . . .).  (See also Mark 14:62-64.)   My study Bible adds that St. John places special emphasis on the use of this Name in order to clearly reveal Christ as God.  This divine claim, it says, illuminates Christ's authority, which is even over death (verse 52), which is a power that belongs only to God the Father.

In today's reading, Jesus declares, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing.  It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God."  This may seem to us like a perplexing statement.  In our modern culture (especially in the West), we are used to thinking about ourselves as reliable witnesses or unreliable, truthful or untruthful.  But this is not the division Jesus is speaking of here, not the same type of discernment.  Jesus is speaking about what kind of yardstick by which we choose to measure things, and particularly to measure what is true and what is not true.  For this measurement -- and especially for the evaluation of this identity Jesus is expressing here -- only one yardstick will do.  There is only One who can measure and testify as to whom Jesus really is, and that is God the Father.  If we go back to Peter's confession of faith in St. Matthew's Gospel, Jesus replies to Peter directly afterward, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."  See Matthew 16:16-17.  Elsewhere Jesus also speaks of God the Father revealing truth to people, when He says in St. Luke's Gospel, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and revealed them to babes. Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight."    See Luke 10:21.  What we find in these two episodes is the affirmation from Christ that it is the Father who may testify to people.  Perhaps, of course, this happens in hidden ways.  But nevertheless, it happens, and this is made clear by Christ in His dialogue with these religious authorities who cannot understand nor "hear" Him.  Jesus will repeatedly make this claim, that they simply do not know Jesus because they do not really know God the Father.  Then He gives the example of another one to whom the Lord was revealed through faith, "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."  In chapter 10, Jesus will refer these men to Psalm 82:6, affirming that the word of God can come to human beings, when He says,  "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, “You are gods"'?  If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?" (see John 10:33-36).  So all of this simply invites us to ask also, what is our yardstick?  By whose judgment do we measure?  If even Christ does not use His own judgment ("You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one" - John 8:15); then how are we to judge with good judgment?   If He says in today's reading, "And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges" (verse 50), then how are we to understand good judgment, apart from seeking our own glory, so to speak?  It is very easy to believe that only Christ can hear the word of God, but what Christ really teaches is that He is from above, and so knows God and heavenly things (John 3:12).  But at the same time, He also makes it clear that through faith, and through grace, we human beings can also be open to the wisdom of God, for it even may come from the mouths of babes.  When the children praise and welcome Him in the temple as the Christ, Jesus is angrily asked by the leaders, "Do You hear what these are saying?"  He replies, quoting from Psalm 8:2, "Yes. Have you never read, 'Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise' ?" (Matthew 21:15-16).  When we pray, we are putting our trust and confidence in God.  We seek to establish, uphold, affirm, and deepen that communion with God.  Faith also asks of us that we grow in this deepening communion, for we walk a path.  When Jesus teaches, "I am the way," that word translated as way means "road" in Greek.  Part of that deepening reliance and faith means that we must seek for ourselves to know the ultimate yardstick.  Like Christ, we seek the judgment of the Father, we pray for illumination by the Holy Spirit, we ask Christ to show us His path, to lead us in the road of righteousness and good judgment.  We can give up of ourselves and our own glory in order to seek the glory of the One who sent Christ, and whom He brought more deeply to us.  In St. John's chapter 5, Jesus asks the religious leaders, "How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?" (John 5:44).  Let us endeavor to do as Christ asks, and seek the honor that comes from the only God, the One whose judgment is true.