John 10:31

John 10:31 says, Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.  The Jews again attempted to stone Jesus.  Men have been attempting to kill Jesus, or His testimony, ever since He first started preaching. While He was here, they couldn't stop Him from preaching and teaching, so they tried to and eventually did kill Him.  Since then, having killed Him, the world has attempted to kill His word, but since they war against God through the power of the Holy Spirit, they will never be successful. Verse thirty-two adds, Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?  Jesus said He had shown them many good works from the Father and asked for which of these were they trying to kill Him.  If we are truly following Jesus today, all they could charge us with is doing good works if we were confronted by the world.  Verse thirty-three continues, The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. They said they weren't trying to kill Him for His works, but for blasphemy for claiming to be God.  They still did not know Who He really was, even though He told them.  The world today, those who do not believe, will always see Jesus as someone other than the Messiah, the Son of God, and the Savior of mankind. Verse thirty-four states, Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?  Jesus answered with a quote from Psalms 82:6.  Verse thirty-five adds, If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken. Jesus said that since the scripture referred to those who believed in God as gods, or judges over other people, who were they to deny it.  They were not as God, even though Jesus Christ was.  Jesus was simply pointing out that the scriptures were opposed to what the Jews were saying.  We need to make sure that our claims about God are scriptural.  Verse thirty-six continues, Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God? Jesus never went against what the Scripture said, and neither should we.  If we feel something is wrong, we need to base it on God's word, not our own understanding or desires.  Verse thirty-seven says. If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not.  Jesus told them if He wasn't doing His Father’s work, then they didn’t have to believe Him.  If we are doing the work of the Father today, that doesn’t mean that people are still going to believe us or believe in Him.  Verse thirty-eight adds, But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.  Jesus said even if they didn’t believe Him that they should still believe the works so that they might know and believe, that the Father was in Him, and He in the Father.  If people today do not believe us when we tell them about Christ, will our works prove that He lives in us through the Holy Spirit and that we live in His word and will?  Verse thirty-nine continues, Therefore they sought again to take him: but he escaped out of their hand,  They didn't listen to Jesus, as they again sought to take Him, but He escaped out of their hands.  God's plan for salvation could not be stopped.  We can rest assured in the knowledge that nothing will ever take us from Him. Verse forty states, And went away again beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized; and there he abode.  Jesus went beyond the Jordan to where John had first baptized and abode there.  If people won’t believe the gospel in one place, we need to go to another as the Holy Spirit leads us.  Verse forty-one adds, And many resorted unto him, and said, John did no miracle: but all things that John spake of this man were true. Though John did no miracle they said that the things John said of Jesus were true. Verse forty-two continues, And many believed on him there. We are told many believed.  The things we do for God should always be consistent with what the Bible says about God, just as Jesus's life was the fulfillment of the prophecy of the coming Messiah.  We should never need a miracle to believe in Christ.