NOTES for Joh 8:51-52

Those listening to Jesus stubbornly cannot understand Him. He speaks to them both in parable-images and directly. But the parables still have to be explained later, and the truth spoken "straight on" provokes such a reaction that, if not for His miraculous disappearance, Christ would have been killed long before His hour came.

Today we read that the absolute truth that Jesus saw Abraham and, in general, was before Abraham, irritates the Jews beyond measure. It does not fit into their heads (see John 8:37) that any person could be greater than their father Abraham. That Jesus can be not simply a man but God is very difficult to understand and accept.

Because in that case Jesus must be listened to and His words must be kept. Not every heart is ready to take this difficult step of trust. As the apostle Paul will later say, "we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles" (1 Cor. 1:23).