John 5:18, " . . .

making Himself
equal with God."
by Matt Slick
"For this cause therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only
was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal
with God," (John 5:18, NASB).
When using this verse against the Jehovah's Witnesses (and any
other group that denies Jesus' deity), the response they have is as
follows. They ask if Jesus actually sinned and broke the Sabbath.
Of course, He did not. Then they try to point out that John the
Apostle was commenting about what the Jews thought and not
what Jesus was actually doing and claiming. Therefore, they say,
when it says that Jesus was " . . . calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with
God," they respond that that is what the Jews were thinking and not what John was saying.
The Jehovah's Witnesses are quite wrong.
The context of this verse is John chapter five where Jesus had healed a lame man on the
Sabbath and told him to take up his pallet and walk. The Jews inquired about this man and
why he was carrying the pallet. He said that Jesus healed him and told him to walk. It then
says in John 5:16-18,
"And for this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on
the Sabbath. 17But He answered them, 'My Father is working until now, and I Myself am
working. 18For this cause therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because
He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making
Himself equal with God."
Yes, Jesus healed on the Sabbath. Obviously, that was right for Him to do, but the Jews
thought He was breaking the Sabbath. Therefore, when John says that Jesus was breaking the
Sabbath, he was clearly saying that Jesus was breaking the Jews erring conception of the
Sabbath and not the real Sabbath. Then, in addition, John says that Jesus was calling God His
own Father and making Himself equal to God. John is making two comments--one about the
Jews erring claim and the other about Jesus claiming to be divine. But the non-Christian
cults will not accept this answer. So, let's analyze the issue some more:
If it was only the Jews who thought that Jesus was making Himself equal to God, then can
the Jehovah's Witness point out in the context of what Jesus said and did that would cause the
Jews to think this? If he cannot find the place in scripture, then the only thing left to
conclude is that the comment is John's and not that of the Jews.
But, someone might ask the Christian where and what it was that Jesus said that meant He
was claiming to be equal with God. The answer is simple: calling God His own Father is
claiming to be equal to God as John the Apostle says. Nevertheless, let's look at the chapters
prior to John 5:18 for any clues to Jesus' claims regarding His relationship to the Father.

 John 2:16, " . . . stop making my Father's house a house of merchandise."

 John 3:16, Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of God.
 John 4:34, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work."
 What can we conclude from this information? Quite simply, Jesus is the Son of God, and He
calls God His own Father. So, the problem is in understanding what the phrase Son of God
means. Apparently, in the biblical culture, it means to be equal with God--as John the
Apostle stated. But, again, the Jehovah's Witnesses will say that the term Son of God means
that Jesus is not God. Okay, if that is so, then does the term Son of Man mean that Jesus is
not a man? Of course not. If the term Son of Man means that Jesus is a man, then what does
the term Son of God mean?

Why didn't John correct the error?

Also, if Jesus was not God, why didn't John the apostle clarify the situation? After all, it is a
perfect opportunity to do so. Remember, John clarified other points. Here is an example:

 "This saying therefore went out among the brethren that that disciple would not die; yet Jesus
did not say to him that he would not die, but only, 'If I want him to remain until I come, what
is that to you?' (John 21:23, NASB).
 "The Jews answered and said to Him, 'Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and
have a demon? 49Jesus answered, 'I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you
dishonor Me." (John 8:48-49).

John was definitely in the position to correct such a great error as Jesus being God in flesh,
but He doesn't do it. This is not something you would let slide if you were writing a gospel
about who Jesus really is.