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Past Ponderings

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

PONDERING... Witnesses (1 John 5:5-13)

Witnesses
SCRIPTURE: 1 John 5:5-13
GIST: Jesus is the Son of God. Only life-changing belief in Him can result in eternal life.
 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? 6 This is he who came by water and blood--Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. 9 If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater, for this is the testimony of God that he has borne concerning his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life. 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life.
-1 John 5:5-13
Background
         To really get this passage, we need to keep in mind that 1 John was written to encourage believers who were facing false teachers. We see at the end of this passage, actually, that his primary purpose for writing the letter was so they could know if they had eternal life, if they were really saved. Therefore, all throughout this letter he has been reminding his readers of Truth, and providing them with tests to see if they have been transformed by this truth; that is, if they have really been saved. Here we come to a passage where John has just told his readers that Christians, those who believe in Jesus as the Son of God, as Messiah, will be the only ones who overcome the world. He then launches into this list of three witnesses that confirm that Jesus should even be trusted as the Christ—that He really is the Son of God. There are two  background pieces we have to understand to get the context of this passage. 1- John was countering false teachers (Gnostics et al) who called into question the Incarnation (Jesus= 100% God, 100% man). 2- The Old testament held that 2-3 witnesses were required to believe any testimony. And that was human testimony. John provides 3 testimonies from God, asserting that these are far more trustworthy. (Side Note: John provides more witnesses in his gospel, but these three were used specifically to address the issues his readers were facing). As we, too, live in a time that questions Jesus, these points are still relevant today.

Who were these witnesses? (verses 6-9)
     There has been a lot of speculation about what is meant by “water and blood” in this passage. But, I don’t want to muddy the water here 😀 (see what I did there?). The most reasonable explanation is that this refers to Jesus’ baptism and crucifixion—which mark the beginning and ending periods of His earthly ministry.
    1. Water- How was Jesus’ baptism a sign that He is the Son of God? Here’s a couple quick thoughts:
A-PurityBaptism is symbolic of being washed or purified
     a) Jesus didn’t need to be cleansed, which reminds us of His perfect life—which is a testimony of his divine nature.
     b) Jesus does this as an example for us. This is also symbolic of His purpose. He came to save the world from sin—to truly cleanse us in a way water never could—through His blood, He baptizes us with His Spirit. John the Baptist points this out in Mark 1:8.
B- TestimonyAt His Baptism, God says...“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matt 3:17b)
          C- False Teaching: John was countering the false teaching at that time that Jesus only became the Messiah when He was baptized, and then stopped being the Messiah when He died. Which, interestingly, the Jehovah Witnesses still teach today. That is why is follows his first statement immediately with: “ 6b not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth."
    2. Blood- This refers to Jesus’ death and resurrection (since the two cannot be separated). A couple points here:
          A-Real: Jesus really died—reminding us of His true incarnation.
          B-Purpose Realized:  This is how He saved us—through His blood. Forgiveness isn’t free. It’s costly. From eternity, Jesus’ plan to save us was wrapped up in His death. This is why the Law included the foreshadowing animal sacrifices, and why the author of Hebrews writes without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (9:22b). People don’t want to think about the blood. It seems too barbaric, or old fashioned. Let’s just talk about love, and peace, and joy. See, that’s the point. Jesus created us for that, but none this can be realized without the blood of Jesus. Romans 5:8 "8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” There is no peace, joy, or hope apart from this love.
     3. Spirit-In both of these, the water and the blood, John says the Spirit testifies because He is truth. This is the Holy Spirit. The third person of the trinity. He descended on Jesus at His baptism, and on the apostles at Pentecost, after Jesus’ ascension. And He continues to testify today. It is the Spirit who convicts sinners, reveals the truth of Scripture, of Jesus, and draws the lost to salvation. 

What was their witness? (verses 11)
11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.
     Jesus is the Son of God and eternal life comes through Him. I know this truth has been repeated so often we can become numb to it. Lord, please don’t let us. Let’s look at eternal life for a second. Since only God is fully eternal, eternal life is more than just life that never ends; it’s life with God, or being given a share in God’s life. William Barclay, theologian and Bible teacher, put it this way: 

"What we are promised is that here and now there can be given us a share in the very life of God…In God there is peace and, therefore, eternal life means serenity. It means a life liberated from the fears which haunt the human situation. In God there is power and, therefore, eternal life means the defeat of frustration. It means a life filled with the power of God and, therefore, victorious over circumstance. In God there is holiness and, therefore, eternal life means the defeat of sin. It means a life clad with the purity of God and armed against the soiling infections of the world. In God there is love and, therefore, eternal life means the end of bitterness and hatred. It means a life which has the love of God in its heart and the undefeatable love of man in all its feelings and in all its action. In God there is life and, therefore eternal life means the defeat of death. It means a life which is indestructible because it has in it the indestructibility of God himself.” (Barclay: The Letters of John and Jude, 134)

     Eternal life starts here. Then, Heaven, another topic for another day, is to fully experience life as God created us to. The creator of the universe  loved you enough to endure Hell so you could experience true love. Not some hokey, modernized version. 

Why does this matter? (10, 12-13, cf 5:4-5)
   1-It is a matter of life and death. (Only those who believe overcome the world.) "10 Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. 11 And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” And just leading into these verses:"4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. 5 Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” Not everyone will experience eternal life. However, we can know.
   2-It isn’t a mystery. (It can be known) 13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. John’s whole purpose here was to tell this people he cared so much about that they really could know if they were saved. For the GIST today, I said: Jesus is the Son of God. Only life-changing belief in Him can result in eternal life. How do we know if we’re saved? It’s not just believing Jesus, but believing in Him. Believing that He really is the Son of God who died to take your sins. Asking Him for forgiveness, and giving Him control of your life. If you know Him, serve Him. If you don’t, please come to Him today.

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