Authority Substantiated – John 5:19-47

The original question brought to Jesus in Mat 21 with respect to His authority triggers an exchange running all the way through chapter 22. The question asked by the chief priests and elders was: “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” In this chapter of Matthew's gospel Jesus does not answer the question directly, instead He deftly turns the tables of cross examination back onto the religious leaders. However, by the end of chapter 22, Jesus alludes to the answer by implication when He asks the Pharisees: “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He? (and if He is the Son of David) “how is it then that David in the Spirit calls Him Lord?” (Mt 22:42-43) The inference of Jesus' query touches on all three major points of today's message from John 5. On this occasion in John's gospel, Jesus gives a direct and thorough answer to the scribes and elder's original question. Here in no uncertain terms, He reveals His standing and power to both declare and execute the woes and judgements of Matthew chapters 23-25. Like the reference to Ps 110 in Mat 22 in passing, here the nature of the Godhead is explicitly elucidated along with the office of the Son of Man alongside the prophetic context of the Old Testament scriptures. Today's message will serve to illustrate the symphonic harmony of the Gospels.