His parents said these things because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities who had already decided that anyone who confessed Jesus to be the Christ would be expelled from the synagogue.
“Therefore, every person who acknowledges me in front of people [i.e., to be their Lord and Christ], I will acknowledge him [i.e., to be my disciple] in front of my Father in heaven.
Here is how to know [who is speaking from] the Holy Spirit of God: Every spirit [i.e., person] who proclaims that Jesus Christ has come [to earth] in a physical body is [speaking] from God. [See I Cor. 12:3].
After this happened, one of Jesus’ disciples, named Joseph from Arimathaea, asked Pilate (but secretly, for fear of the Jews) if he could remove Jesus’ body [from the cross]. Pilate granted him permission, so he went and removed the body from the cross.
The Jewish authorities will expel you from their synagogues. In fact, the time will come when whoever kills you will think he is doing a service to God.
They replied to the beggar, “You were born entirely in sins [i.e., you have been a sinner all your life], and you are [trying] to teach us?” Then they threw him out [of the synagogue. See verse 22].
This man went to Jesus one night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we [i.e., speaking of himself and other Jewish leaders] know that you are a Teacher sent from God, for no one could perform these [miraculous] signs that you are doing unless God were with Him.”
“And I tell you, every person who acknowledges me in front of people [i.e., to be his Lord and Christ], the Son of man will also acknowledge him in front of God’s angels.
You are blessed when men hate you and withdraw their fellowship from you and speak abusively about you and reject your name as evil, [all] for being loyal to the Son of man.