The Four-fold Witness

See full series: 2021
See full series: the-teachings-of-jesus-2020-21

The Four-fold Witness

Sermon by  Thomas Thornhill Jr

Passage: John 5:31-47


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THE TEACHINGS OF Jesus 2020-21 (55)

 

As we continue our study of the teachings of Jesus, we want to note that He was often teaching to help people better understand the kingdom, salvation, His purpose and godly living.  But occasionally, He defended Himself.   That is one of the strengths of the gospel of John where we have been for the past several months.  In our lesson today we want to examine a passage where Jesus is making the case for WHY they should believe Him.

 

  1. Background
    1. Jesus had healed the man at the pool of Bethesda. It was a Sabbath (5:1-15)
    2. Because Jesus did these works on the Sabbath, they sought to kill Him (5:16).
    3. Jesus boldly declares His relationship with the Father
      1. They had both been working together (5:17) – a declaration that angered the Jews even further (5:18)
      2. Jesus declared that He did the will of the Father (5:19-21), even to the point of giving life, even as the Father.
      3. Jesus notes that the Father had even committed judgment to Him so that all should honor the Son (5:22-23)
    4. Then the bold declaration in vs. 24, Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
    5. This is followed by a warning of judgment to ALL mankind – a passage that clearly declares all will be judged at the same time (5:25-29). That judgment will be based upon whether or not one (properly) believes in Jesus.
    6. 5:30, Finally Jesus declares His righteous judgment because of His relationship with the Father – He does not seek His own will but that of the Father.
  2. The Fourfold witness
    1. With such bold declarations, Jesus appeals to the Jewish leaders and others, to accept Him – NOT blindly, but by putting together the facts. In vs. 31 He notes, “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true”, implying the need for proof (evidence) to convince others that He was who He claimed to be.  Jesus then presents 4 witnesses to consider.
      NOTE: Concerning witnesses, under the LOM, 2 or more witnesses were required… – Deuteronomy 19:15, 17:6. This is also emphasized in the New Testament – 2 Corinthians 13:1, Matthew 18:16, 1 Timothy 5:19, etc.  Jesus offered 4 on this occasion.
    2. The Father – John 5:32, 37
      1. He had declared Him publicly at least 3 times
        1. At His baptism – Matthew 3:13-17
        2. At the Mount of Transfiguration – Matthew 17:5
        3. Later in John – John 12:28 – a voice from heaven declaring that He had glorified His name as Jesus requested.
      2. It was the authority of the Father that we behind John’s teachings and identifying Jesus, the miracles Jesus performed, and as we shall see next, the prophetic scriptures. All of these declare plainly the hand of God in the workings of Jesus.
    3. John the Baptist – John 5:33-35
      1. John the Baptist was a forerunner to Jesus – something the Jews anticipated prior to the coming Messiah. In his preaching he prepared the way (Malachi 3:1, 4:5-6; Isaiah 40:3 – quoted as being fulfilled in John – Matthew 3:3). John 1:19-28 where John explained his mission to the Jewish leaders.
      2. At the baptism of Jesus – it was clearly revealed. John 1:29-34 records this as testimony of John the Baptist identifying Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world (vs. 29) and “the Son of God” (vs. 34).
      3. NOTE: Beyond John, there are numerous human witnesses to Jesus as recorded in the gospel of John – Nicodemus (John 3:1-2), the Samaritan woman and community (John 4:28-29, 39-42), Peter who would declare Him as the Son of God (John 6:68-69), the man born blind who received sight from Jesus (John 9), etc.
    4. Through the works He did – John 5:36
      1. Works is a reference to the miracles Jesus performed.   They were also called signs (John 3:2, 6:2) and wonders (John 4:48).  A miracle is an act that is impossible with purely natural means.  A TRUE miracle thus involves intervention of the supernatural – God.
      2. Jesus noted that these “works” “bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.”
      3. John selected 7 miracles in the life of Jesus to record.  Each one demonstrates His power
        1. John 2:1-10 – He turned water to wine at Cana – demonstrating His power over natural substances AND quality. Anything He touched was the best!
        2. John 4:46-54 – Jesus healed a nobleman’s son – power over disease and sickness, AND distance
        3. John 5:1-9 – Healing a lame man of 38 years at the pool of Bethesda – showing power over diseases and time
        4. John 6:1-14 – feeding 5000 men with a few loaves of bread and fish. This shows the power of Jesus over quantity
        5. John 6:16-21 – walking on water – showing His power over nature and its laws (including gravity).
        6. John 9:1-12 – giving sight to a man born blind – showing power over even birth defects, and of course blindness
        7. John 11:39-44 – raising Lazarus after 4 days – showing His ultimate power over death.
      4. Recall Nicodemus in John 3:2 as he came to Jesus. This is an absolutely true statement, AND consistent with miraculous times throughout scripture – God’s message and messengers were being revealed.
      5. Also, of note is how His enemies could NOT deny His miracles – John 11:47-48, AND prompting them to attribute His miracles to Satan and demons (John 8:48, 10:20-21, cf. Matthew 12:24).
      6. John 20:30-31 concludes his gospel appealing to these miracles of Jesus.
      7. NOTE: Our faith in the reality of the miracles of Jesus lies in the fact that we are here today with the Word of God, knowing the tremendous sacrifices that have been made since He came to bring the gospel to all mankind (Mark 16:15).
    5. The scriptures bore witness of Him
      1. The final appeal Jesus makes was the scriptures – something every Jew held in high regard, though they often abused it.
      2. NOTE: Prophecy is a most powerful witness to the hand of God in the life of Jesus. ONLY God can know the future in such minute detail as declare EXACTLY what would happen hundreds or thousands of years before it occurred.
      3. Vs. 39 Jesus noted that they searched the scriptures, thinking that in them they would find eternal life – WHICH THEY DO! Jesus notes, “and these are they which testify of Me.
        Concerning their searching scripture, they did not always get this right.  Sometimes they counted letter and words and sought to parse every letter, word and phrase.  They would read between the lines.  BUT, they would also seek to determine intended meanings INCLUDING what to look for in their coming Messiah.  Jesus appealed to these here.  Consider how Jesus appealed to every section of the TaNaK (the 3 sections of the Hebrew scriptures).
      4. Through the prophets – here, I appeal to the prophets in the Old Testament (Isaiah – Malachi) which for the most part they identified as the prophets (a few of them were placed in other portions of their scriptures).
        1. Isaiah 40:3 – a forerunner before Him – John the Baptist – John 1:19-23.
        2. Isaiah 53:1 – He was rejected by many – John 12:37-40 records Isaiah 53:1 and 6:9-10.   And of course you can continue to read Isaiah 53 to see many details of His suffering that were prophesied some 700 years prior to His coming to earth.
        3. Zechariah 9:9 – your king coming in on a colt, the foal of a donkey – John 12:15 as Jesus entered Jerusalem
        4. Zechariah 12:10 – they would look on Him whom they pierced -John 19:34-37
        5. Micah 5:2 – Bethlehem –Matthew 2:5-6, John 7:42.
        6. These are just prophecies in John’s gospel. There are many others totaling in the hundreds.
      5. Through Moses – obviously they revered Moses (and Abraham) which Jesus notes in our text (John 5:45-47). He prophesied about Jesus –
        1. Genesis 3:15 – the seed of woman would crush the head of Satan. Galatians 4:4, 1 John 3:8, etc.
        2. Genesis 12:3 – to Abraham, all nations would be blessed through his seed. Jesus was of the seed of Abraham – Matthew 1 establishes this to his Jewish audience (Matthew 1:1-17).
        3. Deuteronomy 18:15-18 – a prophet like Moses (a lawgiver) – Acts 3:22, cf. John 1:45.
      6. Through the psalms – while not specifically mentioned in our text, many psalms prophesied of Jesus.
        1. Psalm 22 – a description of His crucifixion.
          1. Psalm 22:15 – “I thirst” – John 19:28
          2. Psalm 22:19 – parting His garments – John 19:24.
        2. Psalm 69:9 – zeal for your house has eaten me up – John 2:14-17 as Jesus cleanses the temple
        3. Psalm 41:9 – a trusted friend would betray Him. John 13:18-19.
        4. Psalm 69:21 – they offered him gall and vinegar – John 19:28-29 offered to Jesus on the cross.
      7. Thus, we can see multiple prophecies (in John) that were fulfilled in Jesus. While His speaking in John 5 was prior to many of these being fulfilled, many of them were already being accomplished.  They KNEW who Jesus claimed to be and what He had done to prove that.
      8. Consider Luke 24:44, Matthew 5:14-16 – pivotal passages about Jesus and scripture.

And thus, we see the appeal to Jesus on this occasion.  This is a powerful appeal to us as well.  Our belief in Jesus, while it is based upon faith is NOT a blind faith.  There is abundant evidence to consider as we weigh every aspect of our faith – the world we live in (created by God), the word we live by (the Bible), and the One we live for (Jesus & God).  Even Jesus didn’t expect faith to be blind as our text has shown.  Sadly, many of them rejected Him, while others believed.  What about you?  Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God?