1 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. John 5:19 “I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. John 5:30 Last week we were talking about how Jesus allowed the Father to operate and perform His will through Jesus, and that we can live exactly the same way.

2 Here is how Lenski interprets Jesus’ statement: “My utterances are derived from the Father; they are really his. This is clear evidence of the oneness of Jesus with the Father. Every time Jesus opens his mouth (λαλ ῶ, ῥ ήματα) to say something (λέγω), it is the Father who speaks through his mouth. Not that Jesus is a phonograph or an automaton. Then he and the Father would be anything but one, he would be nothing. This oneness and identity of even the very utterance evidences a oneness of the two persons concerned. For Jesus is not like the prophets who must say, “Thus saith the Lord,” showing that God uses them only as instruments and messengers. Quite the opposite. When Jesus opens his lips, he, indeed, speaks (λαλ ῶ and λέγω), every word and utterance is truly his; but what he says and the words he employs, every word and utterance, are the Father’s own thought and speech. The two speak as one because they are one, Jesus in the Father, the Father in Jesus.” Lenski This last week I had so many opportunities to share this incredible asset. Can you imagine the power this would grant the person who is in a situation of his or her own making, that is really beginning to take a horrible toll on a devastated marriage? Imagine the help you could receive in a relationship where no matter what you say, it can be destructive, like when your wife asks you, “Do I look fat in this?” or “Do you think I’m putting on weight?” Imagine a relationship so devastated and so fragile that pretty much anything you might say on your own is going to cause more blood flow and loss. How helpful could it be where no matter what your circumstances might be, that you could tap into the heart and the mind of the Father so that He could give you His thoughts and His words so that healing could begin? This is quite literally what we are talking about here. Do you remember what Jesus said as He walked the earth as a human being who laid aside the prerogatives and expressions of deity?

3 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing Note the use of double negatives. In Greek, the double negatives emphasize the negation much like “I can NOT, I CAN NOT…” in the same manner as I hearI judge

4 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge That is how Jesus lived His life – every day. Is that how we live ours? Do we only judge our situations on the basis of what we hear from the Father so that literally what comes out of our mouths is the result of the shared union of the Father with our hearts, so that our thoughts are His as well as ours, and they are literally exactly how we think?

5 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge In all honesty, probably none of us enjoys the kind of union with the Father as Jesus did, and so on occasion, self-serving and stupid things do pass through our lips and we hurt others and say destructive things.

6 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge And let me also say that it IS possible for you all, each one of you, to be as connected to the Father as Jesus was as a man on the earth. It is only a matter of duration of time. Clearly, Jesus’ duration of unbroken union and oneness with the Father was never even interrupted, and that duration compounded into an absolutely flawless condition which none of us has.

7 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge But you can choose to stay in that condition for longer durations, and move closer and closer towards the actual experience of Jesus as a man on the earth. In other words, every one of us seated here today could choose to lay every aspect of our will at the Father’s feet, be totally free of selfishness and enjoy His heart, His desires and His thoughts.

8 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge But then as you engage life in constantly evolving situations, you open your mind to selfish perspectives and eject the will, the thoughts and desires of God, and you express your selfish, fleshly desires. But isn’t it at least nice to know that for a time, you can experience the Father, love Him, engage Him for a moment as Jesus did, and learn to expand those moments?

9 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge So I don’t want you beating yourself up if you recently stepped in it and did something destructive. If you did, go back to that person and tap into your union with the Father again, and let Him think in your head, share His other-seeking values with you, and speak love and healing through your lips again so that you may be healed in your relationships.

10 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge I want you to realize what is available to you always so that you can make better choices when you want to.

11 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge Now do you see what an incredible asset it is that you, right now, can submit your will to the Father and become one with Him in the most incredible union – so that you can speak the most powerful and effective words in critical and sensitive situations?

12 “Ο ὐ δύναμαι ἐ γ ὼ ποιε ῖ ν ἀ π ʼ ἐ μαυτο ῦ ο ὐ δέν· καθ ὼ ς ἀ κούω κρίνω” Not power ability I do out of myselfnothing in the same manner as I hearI judge Imagine – the potential of no more self-centered, critical, destructive or stupid things passing through your lips! That is EXACTLY what Jesus is describing for us!