Who Is Jesus? How John 5 Reveals the Son of God's Authority
From the sermon preached on October 11, 2026
Who is Jesus? In John 5:19-29, Jesus answers that question himself: he is the Son of God, united with the Father in love, in the power to give life, in the authority to judge, and in the honor he deserves. He leaves no room for the polite middle ground where Jesus is merely a wise teacher.
Pastor Andy Hoot of Mosaic Boston opened his sermon with four words he first heard in a seminary classroom: theology leads to doxology. The study of God leads to the worship of God. The more clearly we see who God is and what he has done, the more deeply we are moved to praise him.
Psalm 119:14-16 shows the pattern, as the psalmist meditates on God's testimonies and ends in delight. The context of John 5 matters too. At the Pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem, Jesus had just healed a man who waited 38 years to walk, and the religious leaders were furious that the man carried his mat on the Sabbath.
Their anger sets the stage for the clearest answer Jesus ever gives to the question "Who is Jesus?" This post walks through four ways the Father and the Son are united, and why those truths are meant to end not in a debate but in a song.
How Are Jesus and God the Father United in Love?
Jesus begins in John 5:19 with a phrase that signals absolute seriousness: "Truly, truly," which is like saying "amen and amen." Pastor Andy compared it to Bluey, the Australian children's cartoon, where a shocked Bluey asks, "For real life?" That is the force of Jesus' words here: this is the truest thing the Pharisees will ever hear about him.
Then comes the claim that the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. Read quickly, that might sound like an apprentice copying a master. But verse 20 gives the motive: the Father loves the Son and shows him everything, so the bond between Jesus and God the Father is not a chain of command but a relationship of love.
Pastor Andy, who does much of the premarital counseling at Mosaic, pointed to engaged couples in Boston who move from separate apartments into one shared home. Their delight is to do things together, like two hands on the same knife cutting a wedding cake. Jesus and God the Father are united far more deeply than any bride and groom, and every miracle Jesus performs puts that love on display.
For the religious leaders, this was explosive. Claiming this kind of unity between Jesus and God the Father made him equal with God, and they wanted to kill him for it (John 5:18).
Here is one small step for today: read John 5:19-23 slowly and underline every action the Father and the Son do together. Notice how often love, not mere duty, is the reason given.
What Does Eternal Life Through Jesus Look Like Right Now?
In John 5:20, Jesus promises that the Father will show him greater works so that his hearers will marvel. A man's legs, withered for decades, now pulse with life. But Jesus is pointing ahead to John 11, where he will call Lazarus of Bethany out of a tomb after four days.
Verse 26 explains why: as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. The bad news underneath this is that apart from Christ we are spiritually dead; we do not need a little inspiration, we need resurrection. Verse 25 says the hour "is now here when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live."
That is why eternal life through Jesus is not only a future hope. In verse 24, Jesus says whoever hears his word and believes the Father who sent him has eternal life and has passed from death to life, in the present tense. The Apostle Paul says the same in Colossians 3:3: "For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God."
Pastor Andy put it memorably: Christians look at their own death in the past rather than the future, whether they are teenagers or retirees. That is the opposite of what the Pharisees offered, since their 39 extra Sabbath rules stole life from people instead of giving it. Eternal life through Jesus means hearing his voice, believing his promises, and walking in his commands, starting this week.
One step for today: before bed, read John 5:24 out loud and put your own name in place of "whoever." Let the present tense of "has passed from death to life" sit with you.
Why Jesus' Authority Over Judgment Brings Peace in Chaos
In John 5:22, Jesus makes an even bolder claim: "the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son." Verse 27 adds that this authority belongs to him because he is the Son of Man. That title reaches back to Daniel 7, where one like a son of man receives everlasting dominion after the beastly kingdoms of the world are judged.
Jesus' authority over judgment is not comfortable news. Verse 29 says all who are in the tombs will come out, some to the resurrection of life and others to the resurrection of judgment. Verse 23 says whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, and Pastor Andy named the hard truth plainly: no path to honoring God the Father bypasses Jesus Christ.
Yet for those who belong to Christ, Jesus' authority over judgment is also a deep source of peace. While preparing this sermon, Pastor Andy lost both electricity and Wi-Fi, just days after six people in his household had battled a stomach bug. He felt panic and anger rising; instead he stopped and prayed, because a flat tire or a dark apartment is not bad luck when Christ rules every detail.
Accepting Jesus' authority over judgment changes how we give credit, too. When an athlete at the Super Bowl podium thanks "God," verse 23 presses further: the Father is honored when the Son is honored. Naming Jesus is not narrowness for its own sake; it is agreeing with his own answer to "Who is Jesus?"
Here is a practical step: the next time something small goes wrong today, pause before reacting and pray one sentence that names Jesus as Lord over it.
What Does John 5 Teach About the Son of God and the Father?
Pastor Andy outlined John 5:19-29 in four movements, each showing a way the Father and the Son of God are united.
1. United in Love
What it looks like: The Son does only what he sees the Father doing, because the Father loves him and shows him everything (John 5:19-20).
Why it matters: Jesus' obedience is not reluctant subordination; it reveals the heart of God.
2. United in Power
What it looks like: As the Father raises the dead, the Son gives life to whom he will (John 5:21, 26).
Why it matters: Spiritually dead people can hear his voice and live today.
3. United in Judgment
What it looks like: The Father has given all judgment to the Son of Man (John 5:22, 27).
Why it matters: No detail of history, or of your life, sits outside Christ's rule.
4. United in Honor
What it looks like: All people are to honor the Son just as they honor the Father (John 5:23).
Why it matters: Worship that leaves out Jesus does not honor God at all.
According to the sermon, letting these truths become our song looks like this:
Reminding one another of these truths when we are discouraged
Teaching them to our children
Carrying them into our homes, workplaces, schools, and neighborhoods
Remembering that the Son of Man reigns when we stand beside the grave of someone we love
Where Can You Hear the Voice That Brings Life?
Maybe "Who is Jesus?" is a question that has followed you for years, through long shifts, dissertation drafts, and quiet evenings that never quite feel like home. You do not have to settle it alone or pretend you have no doubts. Mosaic Boston gathers every Sunday at 9:15 and 11:15 a.m. inside Longwood Towers at 20 Chapel Street, just off the Green Line D at Longwood, and welcomes neighbors from Brookline and the Longwood Medical Area to Cambridge, Jamaica Plain, and across Norfolk County and Suffolk County.
Let Our Theology Lead to Doxology
Who is Jesus? John 5:19-29 answers that he is the Son of God, united with the Father in love, power, judgment, and honor. If we understand that "for real life," we cannot stay indifferent: the Son of God has come, the dead hear his voice and live, the Son of Man reigns, and the Father is glorified in all that the Son does.
Come find a seat at a Sunday service in Brookline, where we sing this song together every week, and plan your visit here.
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Frequently Asked Questions
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The Bible presents Jesus Christ as the eternal Son of God who took on human flesh, lived a sinless life, died on the cross for sinners, and rose from the dead. In John 5:19-29, he describes himself as one with the Father in love, life-giving power, judgment, and honor. He is fully God and fully man.
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Eternal life is more than endless existence; it is life with God that begins the moment a person hears Jesus' word and believes the Father who sent him (John 5:24). It continues forever and culminates in the bodily resurrection when Christ returns. Colossians 3:3 describes it as a life "hidden with Christ in God."
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Start with Jesus' own claims and works. In John 5, he claims equality with the Father, and the Gospel of John records signs such as healing a man paralyzed for 38 years and raising Lazarus to support those claims. The resurrection is the ultimate confirmation, and honest questions are welcome as you examine the evidence.
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The title comes from Daniel 7, where one like a son of man receives everlasting dominion over the kingdoms of the world. By using it, Jesus claims the authority to judge all people. It also emphasizes his true humanity alongside his divinity.
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It means that studying God (theology) should lead to worshiping God (doxology). The more clearly we understand who God is and what he has done, the more deeply we are moved to praise him. Psalm 119:14-16 models this, as careful meditation on God's word ends in delight.