Why did Jesus speak in riddles like we see here in chapter 8? Much of this riddle-style teaching is omitted from the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) perhaps because the synoptic gospel writers wanted to make things clearer. The riddles in the synoptic gospels are the parables and there Jesus tells us why he was so cryptic. Jesus was purposefully cryptic in order to veil his message from those who were not willing to believe. He tells the Pharisees here in John 8 that he is not of this world, that is, he does not belong to this world system but to the Kingdom of God. His way of looking at things and the worldly way of seeing things are at odds with each other. They are faced in different directions and their agendas are mutually exclusive. You cannot understand the things of God’s Kingdom if you are faced the way of the world. Revelation can only break through to those who are willing to turn around and set their hearts on the goals and agendas of the Kingdom of God. When your heart’s priorities align with God’s priorities then your mind will be opened to receive the impact of Jesus’ teaching. It is the heart’s motives that veil God’s message not just the intellect. The heart that hungers and thirsts for God and his righteousness is like a sponge that soaks up revelation and absorbs its life-giving power. To the person who is resisting God’s authority the Word becomes as boring as the sound of continuous knocking on a door that is never opened.
Ask God to help you to open your heart to him.
Read John 8:12-30
