Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken—do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands. — John 10:34-39

First, let's recognize that what Jesus says here is confusing for us today. Mainly because we don't have an intimate relationship with the Law like the Jews did, and we have a minimal understanding of the reconsecration of the Temple celebrated on Hanukkah.

Even so, what Jesus is clarifying is relatively simple. He is dismantling their logical fallacies by referencing Scripture (Psalm 82:6). Thus, he makes four declarations:

1. God's people were designed to be consecrated and great.
2. God's Word on this will not be broken.
3. God is consecrating something more than this structure (i.e., the Temple).
4. God is consecrating his people through me, Jesus, His only Son.

I find two things remarkable about this:

1. How hard Jesus is willing to work to explain the truth to religious men.
2. How resistant, proud, and stubborn religious men can be to his truth.

Every time I see this in the Gospel of John, I immediately reflect on my spiritual resistance. I ask myself, "Where am I resistant to Jesus?" And sometimes, I struggle to find an answer to this question mainly because I need to take more time to reflect on the question.

Here's a potential solution to this issue. It's bold. It's going to be challenging for you. Instead of trying to reflect and identify where you resist Jesus and his truth — ask him to reveal it. Pray that God, Jesus, and the Spirit would speak to you about one area where you have resisted the truth. And then, when he reveals it, which he will — stop resisting. Submit your proud and stubborn attitudes and desires to him and discover the freedom of living in the greatness of Jesus.

ASK THIS:

1. In what ways have I been resistant, proud, or stubborn in accepting the truth of Jesus and His teachings? How can I actively seek to surrender and submit those areas to Him, experiencing the freedom and greatness that comes from living in His truth?

DO THIS: Pray that God would reveal and stop resisting the truth.

PRAY THIS: God, reveal to me any areas where I have been resistant to your truth and give me the strength and humility to surrender those areas to you, experiencing the freedom and greatness that come from living this life your way.

PLAY THIS: Overcome.