Those accepting everyone and everything but Jesus.

John 5.41-47.

People regularly misunderstand this next bit because they regularly misdefine the word δόξα/dóxa, which Jesus uses throughout. The KJV translates it as “honour”—or as we Americans spell it thanks to Noah Webster, “honor.” And in American culture, “honor” means high respect. Great esteem. Reverence. Praises. Sometimes even worship… which makes some of us uncomfortable when people are getting honored like this, ’cause it can almost feel like idolatry. Honestly, sometimes it’s totally idolatry.

But dóxa doesn’t indicate a high opinion of someone; it just indicates one’s opinion. Good and respectable… or bad and infamous. It can go every which way. True, when Jesus is talking about the opinion people have of him, he rightly expects it should be a good one. He’s a good guy! He’s loving, kind, patient, generous, joyous; he exhibits all the Spirit’s fruit ’cause he’s loaded with the Holy Spirit. Jn 3.34 He never sins! Plus there’s the miracles—you remember this whole discourse was triggered by him curing someone who’d been disabled for decades. He’s done all sorts of good deeds like that. And let’s not forget he knows a ton about God and his kingdom.

Such a person should have the best reputation, whether it’s among devout religious people like himself, or among pagans who weren’t religious whatsoever, but who could nonetheless recognize a legitimately good, compassionate, and authentic guy when they saw him. Plenty of Christian ministers have just this kind of reputation: They’re well-known for their good character and good deeds, and everyone in their community respects ’em.

And then there’s Jesus among the people of Jerusalem. And they’re giving him crap because he cured the guy on Sabbath, and this must therefore mean he’s… evil? Wait, why’d they suddenly leap to that extreme? How messed-up is their thinking?

But lemme tell you: I run into plenty of people with the very same messed-up thinking. So have you. People who can’t fathom that a Christian minister is even Christian, simply because he’s a member of the wrong political party. Or because they don’t believe the Spirit does miracles anymore, and figure this person can’t possibly be doing miracles in the Spirit’s power; it’s gotta be the devil—and so they go straight to blaspheming the Spirit.

What’s their problem? It’s exactly the same diagnosis Jesus gives to his critics in Jerusalem: They don’t have God’s love within them. And without this particular fruit, no one can be trusted. No one can be loved. Jesus must be trying to deceive them for some reason, and no doubt they have plenty of paranoid, delusional guesses as to why. And since they imagine themselves devout, they’re pretty sure God gave them the power to discern just what he’s up to—and the power to ignore everything he says in his defense.

John 5.41-47 KWL

41“I don’t seek a reputation from people.

42But I knew you people:

You don’t have God’s love within yourselves.

43I came in my Father’s name

and you don’t accept me.

Another might come in their own name;

you’ll accept that person.

44How are you able to trust anyone?

You actually accept one another’s reputations?

You don’t seek the reputation which only comes from God?

45Don’t imagine I’ll accuse you before the Father:

Your accuser is Moses.

You once put your hope in him.

46For if you’re still trusting Moses,

it’s me you’re trusting,

for Moses writes about me!

47If you don’t trust those writings,

how will you trust my words?”

The usual misinterpretation.

Because bibles generally translate dóxa as “honor” or “glory” or “praise,” instead of “reputation” or “public opinion,” people are gonna read this same passage and think Jesus is only talking about high respect.

John 5.41 ESV

I do not receive glory from people.

John 5.44 ESV

How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

And various Christians are gonna claim Jesus teaches right here that his glory and honor come from God, and only God. And therefore our praise and honor and worship means nothing to him. Wait, what?

Yeah, it’s bad theology. Besides which, this passage isn’t even about greatness, might, power, or honor. Those are things we covet. Jesus doesn’t, and readily gave ’em up to become human. Pp 2.5-11

When Jesus says, “I receive not honour from men,” Jn 5.41 KJV it does not mean he rejects our praises. It only means, at that time, he was rejecting the general public’s two-bit opinions about who he is. Because they didn’t know him! They didn’t know what they were talking about. “They know not what they do,” Lk 23.34 KJV as he said of the Judeans when they mocked him as he died.

Jesus dismissed their opinions of him, because he knows precisely who he is. And people have a lot of uninformed, ignorant, biased opinions about Jesus. I know I’ve sure spouted a bunch, back when I didn’t know any better. I grew up in churches which taught a lot of Christian-sounding junk. Some of it political, some sexist, some stingy or faithless or stupid or otherwise fruitless. None of it biblical, but it suited our biases. We swallowed it whole, and repeated it to whoever’d listen.

The flaw in our opinions? Same as the Judeans: We didn’t have God’s love in ourselves. We didn’t wanna love our neighbors, help the needy, nor acknowledge our powerless, pathetic relationships with God. We liked our opinions, and fought off any attempts to change them. Even when they came from the Holy Spirit himself. We were willing, same as the Judeans, to listen to any idiot who told us what we wanted to hear. We embraced ’em like game show hosts who wanted to give us free cars. No tests for rotten fruit; we just swallowed it whole.

If that’s the way we behave, of course we’re gonna struggle to know and follow Jesus. We’ve sank his message in a fetid lagoon of waste matter, and are too busy wondering why our lives smell so foul.

Moses for the prosecution.

Pharisees believed, same as a lot of Christians do, that when they died they’d stand trial before God. Michael would take position as their defense attorney, and Satan would stand at their prosecutor. Zc 3.1 When Christians borrow this idea, we swap out Michael for Jesus, figuring he’s our advocate now—an idea we take from 1 John 2.1-2. But actually Jesus is our judge. Jn 5.25 Relax; he’s a totally biased judge. He’s totally taken our side. It’s why Satan quit its job in frustration and just hassles us instead.

So it’s interesting where, in today’s passage, Jesus says, “Don’t imagine I’ll accuse you before the Father.” Jn 5.45 He’s making it clear he’s not the prosecutor. And I remind you the Pharisees figured Satan is the prosecutor.

Hey, so many doubters had called Jesus the devil, Jn 7.20, 8.48, 52, 10.20 ’cause that’s what the ancient Judeans did: If you don’t like someone’s teachings, call ’em a devil. (Just like Christians call ’em “heretics” or “cultists” or “demon-possessed.”) Maybe Jesus figured he’d play with the idea, and turn it on its head. But he’s not bringing their charge before the Father. Moses is. If you wanna know your real prosecutor, it’ll be the Law.

The Law defines sin. Ro 2.12 (Even for gentiles who try to claim they’re not under the Law, so it shouldn’t apply. Fair enough; Jesus will judge us by our consciences. Ro 2.15-16 Good luck!) In Jesus’s teaching, the Law is represented by Moses, the first judge of Israel, who received the Law from the LORD himself.

Pharisees (and Jews today) see Moses as Israel’s advocate. When the Hebrews built the gold calf, an outraged God said he wanted to smite ’em and start over with Moses, Ex 32.10 and Moses talked him down by offering his own life for theirs. Ex 32.30-32 Hence many Pharisees believed when they stood on trial, Moses would testify on their behalf. It’s in their myths, like The Assumption of Moses.

The Lord has on their behalf appointed me to pray for their sins and make intercession for them. For not for any virtue or strength of mine, but of his good pleasure have his compassion and longsuffering fallen to my lot. [Assumption of Moses 12] 

Yeah, I know the Assumption of Moses isn’t bible; it’s pseudepigrapha. Still reflects what Pharisees believed. So it was a huge twist for Jesus to say Moses isn’t on their side: He’ll be testifying for the prosecution. Moses told the Hebrews one day a prophet like him was coming whom they should definitely listen to, Dt 18.15 and they didn’t. Jesus is that prophet, Ac 3.22 and they rejected and killed him.

Christians skim over this idea because we imagine our trial before God will look way different. And it will: As I said previously, there is no trial for us Christians. We’re saved! Unfortunately, a lot of us take God’s grace too much for granted, and never consider the likelihood that if we’re as fleshly as the Judeans were… maybe we’re not as saved as we think.

But back to Jesus’s point: Moses pointed to Jesus, and if you know your bible, you’ll know this. If you don’t, you won’t. Study the scriptures!