John 8:29 Commentary and Bible Study

In the history of the world, only Christ could make this claim, and the claim is not made boastfully. He is God. This was his purpose to show forth perfection, to live a perfect life, to earn the blessings of salvation for all his people, to demonstrate the Godhead. So it is right for him to make the claim. It would be wrong for anyone else to make boastful claims of any kind, but it is right for him, because he is God.This refers not only to specific events, like the miracles which he did, or at the end of his life, his allowing himself in apparent weakness to be arrested and tried and nailed to a cross. It refers not only to the major events, but it refers to every breath he took, every instance of every day, because God, the Father, constantly sustained the Son. All his actions, all his words, all his behaviour, everything he did was perfect. His disciples who were close to him were astonished by him. Even if he reproved them, it was always done in such a way, not in the way we might reprove, some vindictiveness might creep in or anger or annoyance or peevishness or whatever. Everything he did was holy and perfect and right.And this was one of the things which sort of hangs over this whole passage, when Christ spoke, well I cannot even begin to imagine it or describe it to you. But he was just the personification of holiness and perfection and goodness. Whether he was firm, whether he was gentle, everything about him was absolute perfection. The people had never seen such a being – ‘Never a man spake like this man’ – not only how he spoke, but how he behaved, his demeanour, his expression.When they interrupted him, his responses were always perfect, modulated, absolutely appropriate. And this was really what moved so many, even who would not deeply believe but would be partly persuaded. Look again at verse 29, the second part – ‘I do always those things which please him. As he spake these words, many believed on him.’ They were overwhelmed by him. Even some of the Pharisees who were against him, they were melted by him and overwhelmed because he was perfection. That verse should hang over everything in this chapter and then it comes to life for us.