For hundreds of years, the test of truth in Israel was how one’s works verified one’s words. This was demonstrated in 1 Kings 17:24 after Elijah raised the widow’s son from the dead. She said, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth.”
In today’s passage, Jesus appealed to the same evidence, that is, what I do verifies what I say. There is a back and forth in appealing to His works and the Word.
- Jesus appealed to His works, vv. 31-33.
- He appealed to the word, vv. 34-36.
- Jesus appealed to His works, vv. 37-39.
- He appealed to the word, vv. 40-42.
What Jesus did verified what He said. He was, and is, man’s perfect God and God’s perfect Man.
