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man had ever done. The living evidences of his divine power had been
before them day after day; yet their hard and caviling hearts asked
for still another sign of his divinity before they would believe. Had
this been given them they would still have remained as unbelieving as
before. If they were not already convinced of his Messiahship by what
they had seen and heard, it was useless to show them more marvelous
works. The dignity of God’s holy Son was not to be compromised to
gratify a questioning crowd.
Said Jesus, “For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears
are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time
they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should
understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should
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heal them.” Unbelief will ever find cause to doubt and reason away the
most positive proof. The Jews stood constantly upon guard, lest they
should be forced by overwhelming evidence to yield their prejudice
and unbelief. Though their understanding was convinced, they refused
to surrender their pride and self-righteousness, admitting that they, who
had boasted of their wisdom over all the rest of the world, themselves
needed a teacher.
The Jews had assembled to celebrate the passover. In eating the
flesh of the lamb, they were to remember that it represented the Lamb
of God, and their protection when the first-born of their enemies were
slain in Egypt. The blood that the Hebrews were commanded to have
upon their door-posts, and which was a sign of safety to them, also
represented the blood of Christ, which was to be shed for the sins of the
world. The Saviour has power to finally raise from the dead all those
who, by faith, eat of his flesh and drink of his blood. This spiritual
food gives to the believers a well-founded hope of the resurrection to
immortal life in the kingdom of God.
These precious truths Jesus declared to the incredulous multitude,
saying, “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that
cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from Heaven,
not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is
the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given
me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.
And this is the will of Him that sent me, that every one which seeth
the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life, and I will
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raise him up at the last day.”