John 5:19 The son’s objective_

Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. John‬ ‭5:19 ‭NKJV‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

Rotherham translates verse 19 saying, “the Son cannot be doing of himself a single thing.”

In Jesus’ confrontation with the Jews it alternates between two extremes: total dependence upon God’s initiation and God-given authority to do as he pleases. In order for me to understand this, it’s important to let the words speak for themselves and not project my pre-determined meaning into them.

Motivation

I understand Jesus’ words better when I understand his motives. Motives are driven by values. Within each of us is a set of values — things that we consider important. The values we hold are the basis of our action and motivation. Wikipedia says: “Personal values provide an internal reference for what is good, beneficial, important, useful, beautiful, desirable and constructive. Values generate behavior and influence the choices made by an individual.” Whether it is love and acceptance, power or money, or to be known as charitable or kind — at the core of my motivation is a value that I hold.

Based on the law of Moses, the the most important law or the highest value men should hold is to love God. To value what he values. Love what he loves. Seek esteem first from Him and His pleasure. He is the compass and points to the true north as we navigate life.

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. ‭‭Deuteronomy‬ ‭6:4-5‬ ‭NIV‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

Within my flesh there is a constant competition for my values. I am tempted to contrast my life with others and be better, brighter, more capable (things which are all gifts to me in the first place). I am tempted to seek love and affection on my own terms. I am constantly in a position to be making a choice: Loving God or pursuing my own passions. Paul describes the war within in Romans.

So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. ‭‭Romans‬ ‭7:21-23‬ ‭NIV‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

Jesus’ values

Jesus was a man just like me. And to understand his statements in John 5, we must step back and understand a choice that he made. Jesus touches on it in this dialogue. In verse 41 he says, “And glory from men I am not receiving” followed moments later accusing the Jews; “How can you believe, glory from another are receiving, and the glory from the only God are not seeking?” The essential issue of John 5 is loving God and seeking His approval (glory) —it is the cornerstone of the kingdom. And Jesus made that choice. Irrevocably.

Similar to verse 19, he reaffirms his statement and adds an essential piece of information:

By myself I can do nothing… for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me. ‭‭John‬ ‭5:30‬ ‭NIV‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬‬

At his core, he made a choice to please and love his Father, not himself. One thing that is unique about Jesus was that he was born from the seed of God — he did not have the DNA of fallen man— I don’t believe he had the same weakness or propensity for an out-of-control struggle with the flesh and flaring passions that I do. I am the broken reed, not him. So a choice to not please himself isn’t just a passing sentiment, it was a life commitment.

The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father. John‬ ‭10:17-18‬ ‭NIV‬‬‬‬

And because of these things he could become the perfect lamb of God — the one that was spoken of in the garden as crushing the head of the serpent. The one the law of Moses foreshadowed in the offering. I can imagine that the Father posed this question to Jesus when he was very young, “Son, will you be that sacrifice for sin? Will you offer up your life for the life of many?” When Jesus approached John the Baptist, John, full of the Holy Spirit said, “See! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” By this moment, Jesus had made his choice.

Since Jesus had agreed to give up his life out of love for his Father, there can be no ambiguity about Jesus’ priorities and values. He did not have some superior, hidden, lofty self-ambition. So even though the Jews accused him of claiming equality with God — in a self-serving way, this is why he said he couldn’t be doing a single thing on his own. He was reliant on something that intrinsically was not natural. Death is an enemy, not a value, so to be committed to allowing this adversary his moment of triumph, he had to be submitted. It was the Father’s will, not his own that he sought. He had in these moments given up all self motivation for an objective that was entirely what the Father wanted. There may be no purer motivation than this type of selfless love.

Of course looking on the outcome of Jesus’ life after his death and resurrection it’s easy to see these things. But the Pharisees has a different lens through which they viewed him. A lens that reflected their own self efforts and ambitions born from a lower nature. Jesus didn’t have a planning session with his disciples discussing, “what is the best way to maximize our effectiveness and establish our core group while growing the messianic brand? I know, we’ll purposely venture out on the Sabbath and heal someone. That will surely draw the attention of the Jews and we can slowly erode their support base.” Quite the contrary. Led by the Holy Spirit, Jesus saw in his spirit the lone sickly man healed and then his actions mirrored what he saw. He had no self-agenda in the matter other than the integrity of fulfilling the job he was given to do.

For me this is a lesson. Although I must struggle with my lower nature and the competing desires within, I too may make a choice: “Father, how would you like to spend me today? I recognize I am in a broken world, so although I have many ambitions, I postpone pursuing them to allow you to achieve what you would like.” It means that I count my flesh as dead and elevate the value of loving God and receiving glory from Him. But even at the core of my ability to make this choice is the incredible grace of God — so there is no ability to boast except in Him.