8:48
Having got nowhere, the religious leaders turn to insults. This is a common tactic employed by someone who is losing a debate. So Jesus is accused of being a Samaritan and having a demon. It has been explained before why the Jews treated the Samaritans with contempt. They also accused Him of having a demon. In the synoptic gospels we find several instances of Jesus being accused of being demonic.
8:49
Naturally, Jesus denies having a demon! He pays no attention to the Samaritan accusation. Any research into His birth and upbringing would have shown the Samaritan accusation to be without foundation. But He does not simply deny the demon accusation, rather He states that He honours His Father, and that His accusers dishonour Him. It was not Jesus who had the problem, but the religious leaders. It was not Jesus who was deluded about who He was and His standing with God, it was the religious leaders who were deluded. We see in the confrontations in John’s gospel that Jesus made absolutely audacious claims and would not back down at all. The claims were audacious because the truth was audacious, He is the Son of God. To have backed down would have been blasphemous. Likewise, we need to realise the full truth of the gospel, to expect the backlash, and to continue to hold to and to proclaim the truth of the gospel.
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