(Verse 42-43) - There is a string of words at the beginning of this verse that, coming where it does, and in conjunction with the rest of the section, underscores at least eight things. First, it emphasizes how truly hard the doctrine Jesus was just preaching really was. Nevertheless means in spite of. It indicates that what follows would not normally be thought to follow what just was said. This is true for two reasons. Jesus just said that God had not revealed Himself to any of them. Thus, they were not able to believe. Also, Jesus seemed to indicate that this state of unbelief was what God wanted for some purpose of His. We know, from hindsight, that this purpose was the crucifixion and the redemption of His people.

Additionally, what Jesus was teaching would seem to indicate that salvation was a very difficult thing to accomplish. This is one of the doctrines that Jesus taught that was extremely difficult for men to grasp or to accept. It was in these kinds of places that the disciples would say: This is a hard saying, who can receive it? Indeed? Who can receive it? Apparently, only those to whom God grants the power to do so! That is difficult for us to choke down!

Second, it speaks of how hardened the Leaders really were. The point that even such as these believed! These leaders were the last ones that any one would have expected to believe the report of Christ. If anyone would have been expected to disbelieve, it would have keen these Jewish leaders. Indeed, many did refuse to believe in Jesus. However, even among such hardhearted and unrepentant folks as these there were some. The language points out to us just how unusual this was, because they were so very hard of heart and stubborn of will.

Third, it speaks of truly difficult it is for men to be converted. All things considered there is a real sense in which it is a hard thing for a man to come to Christ. There are so many things that can get in the way, and that can hinder one's progress toward salvation. This is especially true as age and power and influence grow. The older one gets, the more there is to overcome and the more there is to give up. These men had power and prestige and opinions and they all conspired to prevent them from hearing and understanding  the Gospel. The sad truth is that the older one gets, the less likely one is to come to Christ.

Fourthly, it speaks of how patient God is and wide His mercy is. No one is excluded from the call and command of the Gospel; God saves men from every corner of humanity. There is literally no one who is more despicable than these leaders are. There is no more wickedly deliberate opposition to God recorded in the Bible than that of these need. If ever a group deserved to be excluded from the gracious call of God to repent, it was this group of wicked, hypocritical leaders. And yet, they were not excluded. And, if we remember the previous section, we see that God, in His unfathomable mercy, gave some of these men the ability to receive Christ's report - the Gospel. Now, that is grace!

Fifth, it speaks of how fervently men will oppose the true work of God. These supposed men of God turned quite quickly and easily to murder to protect themselves and their interests. We have to assume that these well normal, average people. They were unregenerate, but they were still normal people. We must assume that extortion and murder were not a normal part of their daily lives. Yet. They were willing to go even to these extreme lengths to see to it that they and theirs were protected. Even average people well go to extraordinary extremes when pressed to it.

Sixth, it speaks of how very much impact the opposition of the enemies of the Gospel, even in relatively small numbers, can have on men. These, who saw the truth of who Jesus was and what He taught, were silenced by the fear of the power of these men. It demonstrates that the Pharisees were willing to use their position to silence their enemies. They had, in fact, done just this in the case of the man born blind. He had spoken of his faith in Jesus openly just a short while before and the Pharisees had put him out of the Synagogue. They had every reason to believe they would do it again.

Seventh, it shows the danger of a Sacramental, clergy-centric form of religion. Abstractly, we can see the danger of the clergy having this kind of power and authority. Any time a class of super-saints exercises the power to include or exclude a person from the fellowship of the body there is both room and temptation to abuse and misuse that authority. God intended the earthly authority of the church to reside, not in single men, but in a local council of elders. Their authority is limited to the local assembly in which they participated and it was not final. The sacramental approach is unBiblical and leads to this, and other Rends of abuse.

Eighth, it shows the danger of loving or esteeming the opinion and praise of men more than the praise of God. Even though these men believed, they still, understandably as new believers, feared the world. They were, after all, only recent believers. Yet, even so, their fear of men, their love of the praise of men (one and the same in this context) caused them to effectually deny the Lord. While this may be understandable ln their position, I think we can all agree that it is a terrible thing

How do those facts apply to my life?:

 Any time we mix religion and politics we stand in danger of falling into the kind of temptations to which the Pharisees succumbed. We must be very sure that our relationship with God stands on the firm ground of His Word if we are to remain right!