After healing a man who suffered a disorder for thirty-eight years, Jesus is challenged by the Jewish leaders for telling the man to pick up his bed and walk. They believed that Jesus was violating the Sabbath laws taught by Moses.

For this reason the Jews began to persecute (annoy, torment) Jesus and sought to kill Him, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, My Father has worked [even] until now, [He has never ceased working; He is still working] and I, too, must be at [divine] work.

(John 5:16-17 AMPC)

When Jesus said that He and His Father were both at work, this made the Jews more determined to kill Him because He not only was breaking the Sabbath but He…

“…actually was speaking of God as being [in a special sense] His own Father, making Himself equal [putting Himself on a level] with God.

(John 5:18 AMPC)

So Jesus began telling them about His relationship with His Father and how as a human being on Earth He was completely dependent upon His Father…

So Jesus answered them by saying, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, the Son is able to do nothing of Himself (of His own accord); but He is able to do only what He sees the Father doing, for whatever the Father does is what the Son does in the same way [in His turn].

(John 5:19 AMPC)

While Jesus was completely divine, the book of Philippians explains how He chose to set aside His privileges as God. Another way to say this is that He did not want to play His God card while coming as the suffering servant. It says that Christ…

Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained, But stripped Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being.

(Philippians 2:6-7 AMPC)

Claim to be the Son (3:42)

In the next video, Jesus continues teaching the Jewish authorities and telling them about the special relationship He had with His Father. He was telling them that God, who is a Spirit, operates as a witness who testifies concerning Jesus’ identity. He alludes to the word of God not living in their hearts and their total inability to grasp the meaning of their own scriptures which pointed to Him. Because they refused to acknowledge Christ’s true identity, He said they were not willing to receive from God. They instead were seeking the praise and honor of human beings.

Witness to the Son (2:21)

Because they saw Moses as one of the great Fathers of their faith, Jesus calls them out on that belief. Why did we spend so much time covering the Old Testament scriptures of Genesis, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy? Because as Jesus said “if you do not believe and trust his writings, how then will you believe and trust my teachings?”

Put out of your minds the thought and do not suppose [as some of you are supposing] that I will accuse you before the Father. There is one who accuses you--it is Moses, the very one on whom you have built your hopes [in whom you trust]. For if you believed and relied on Moses, you would believe and rely on Me, for he wrote about Me [personally]. But if you do not believe and trust his writings, how then will you believe and trust My teachings? [How shall you cleave to and rely on My words?]

(John 5:45-47 AMPC)

In John 5 Jesus makes the following claims:

• Claimed that God was His own Father
• Claimed that He had to Work as well as God
• Claimed He sees what the Father is doing
• Claimed He does what He sees the Father do
• Claimed That the Father Loves Him as His Son
• Claimed that the Father shows Him all that He is Doing
• Claimed that He will show Him greater things that will soon amaze them all
• Claimed that just as the Father gives life so He gives life
• Claimed that the Father has entrusted all judgement to the Son
• Claimed that the Father wants everyone to honor the Son as much as they honor the Father
• Claimed that those who don’t honor the Son don’t honor the Father either
• Claimed that He was sent by the Father
• Claimed that those who Hear His words and Believe in the Father have Eternal Life
• Claimed to be telling the truth
• Claimed that the time was coming and had come when the dead would hear His voice and live
• Claimed that just as the Father was the source of life so the Son was the source of life
• Claimed that He had the right to judge because He was the Son of Man (title for the Messiah in the OT)
• Claimed that all the dead would hear His voice and come out of their graves
• Claimed that He can do nothing on His own Authority
• Claimed to judge as God would tell Him to in the moment
• Claimed that His judgement is right
• Claimed that He was not trying to do His Will but the Fathers
• Claimed that Father was testifying on His behalf
• Claimed that John spoke on His behalf
• Claimed that His witness was greater than John’s
• Claimed that the deeds His Father gave Him to do show that the Father had sent Him
• Claimed that the Father testifies on His behalf
• Claimed that the people He was talking to had never heard God’s voice or seen His face
• Claimed that they did not keep His message in their hearts
• Claimed that this was because they did not believe in the one God sent
• Claimed that the scriptures (The Hebrew Bible) spoke about Him
• Claimed that they were not willing to come to Him for life
• Claimed that He was not looking for human praise
• Claimed that He knew what kind of people they were
• Claimed that they had no love for God in their hearts
• Claimed to come in His Father’s authority
• Claimed that they like to receive praise from other human beings
• Claimed that they did not want to win praise from God
• Claimed that Moses would accuse them before God
• Claimed that Moses wrote about Him
• Claimed that they did not believe what Moses wrote about Him
• Claimed that because of this they could not believe in Him as Messiah