[If you would like to receive free weekly sermons from Jonathan, please contact him at jonrmcleod@yahoo.com.]
Imagine hearing a knock on your front door. You open up the door and find a man you have never seen before.
“Hello,” he says, “I’m a representative of billionaire John Smith and today is your lucky day. You have been randomly picked to receive a one-time gift of $25,000.” He hands you a legal form and a pen. “If you sign right here, the check will be sent to you in the mail.”
How would you react to this amazing news? If you’re like me, you would probably be skeptical. Usually, if something is too good to be true, it’s too good to be true.
I’d want some proof that I was really going to be sent the money. I would ask the man for a business card. I would ask to talk to the man’s superior. I’d check the date. Is it April Fool’s Day?
Some people think the claims of Jesus recorded in the New Testament are too amazing to be true.
Jesus claimed:
• “I am the SON of God!”
• “I am able to RAISE the dead!”
• “I am the JUDGE of all people!”
How do we know Jesus’ claims are true? Is there any proof?
“If I testify about myself, my testimony is not valid. There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is valid” (vv. 31-32).
On another occasion Jesus said, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going” (John 8:14). The apparent contradiction can be resolved because the statement in chapter 5 is based on legal grounds whereas the statement in chapter 8 is based on personal knowledge.
The law demanded two or three witnesses. “One witness is not enough to convict a man accused of any crime or offense he may have committed. A matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses” (Deuteronomy 19:15).
The witnesses that support Jesus’ claims:
1. The witness of JOHN THE BAPTIST
“You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth. Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved. John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light” (vv. 33-35).
“John was a lamp” – His witness was small (though important) and temporary. “Was” may indicate that John was now dead or at least in prison.
“That burned and gave light” – A lamp’s light shows people the way in darkness. John’s witness pointed people to Jesus who is the way to eternal life.
“And you chose for a time to enjoy his light” – The historian Josephus wrote that people “were aroused [or overjoyed] to the highest degree” by John’s message (Ant. 18.5.2, 118). They were excited because he preached that the coming of the Christ was near.
John the Baptist’s testimony:
• “The next say John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29; cf. v. 35).
• “I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God” (John 1:34).
• “You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him’” (John 3:28).
2. The witness of Jesus’ WORKS
“I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent me” (v. 36).
The quality of a person’s work reveals something about his or her character.
The Gospel of John lists seven amazing of Jesus:
(1) The turning of water into wine (2:1-11)
(2) The healing of the official’s son (4:43-54)
(3) The healing of the lame man (5:1-15)
(4) The feeding of the multitude (6:1-14)
(5) The walking on the water (6:16-21)
(6) The healing of the blind man (9:1-41)
(7) The raising of Lazarus (11:1-44)
John calls these miracles “signs.” They are signs because they testify to the validity of His claim to be the Son of God (cf. John 20:30-31).
Jesus later said to those who doubted Him, “The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me” (10:25). In His final discourse to the disciples He asked them to believe Him “on the evidence of the miracles themselves” (14:11).
The miracles of Jesus were usually followed by a confession of faith by many of the spectators (2:11; 4:53; 6:66, 69; 9:38; 11:45).
3. The witness of the FATHER
“And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent” (vv. 37-38).
When Jesus said, “There is another who testifies in my favor” (v. 31), He was probably talking about the Father.
There were times when the Father spoke from heaven, expressing approval of Jesus and affirming that He is the Son of God:
• “As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased’” (Matthew 3:16-27).
• “While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!’” (Matthew 17:5).
• “‘Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour”? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and will glorify it again.’ The crowd that was there and heard it said it had thundered; other said an angel had spoken to him” (John 12:27-29).
The Father also testified concerning Jesus through the other four witnesses.
4. The witness of the SCRIPTURES
“You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life” (vv. 39-40).
Several times John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus fulfilled OT Scripture. For example, when the soldiers at Jesus’ crucifixion decided to cast lots for His garment, John comments, “This happened that the scripture might be fulfilled which said, ‘They divided my garments among them and cast lots for my clothing’” (19:24; cf. 12:38; 13:18; 15:25; 17:12; 19:36-37).
Not only does Jesus fulfill individual sayings of Scripture, but Jesus claimed that the entire OT testified about Him (1:45; 2:22; 3:10; 12:41; 20:9).
The Jews thought they could gain eternal life by their study of OT law. The famous first-century rabbi Hillel used to say, “The more study of the Law the more life.... If a man…has gained for himself words of the Law he has gained for himself life in the world to come.” Tragically, in their diligent study of the Scriptures they missed the one the Scriptures pointed to: Jesus.
Illustration: Sign reads, “Park: 3 km ahead.” You don’t stop there and have your picnic around the sign. The sign points you to the park.
“I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death” (Romans 7:10).
“Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. For I can testify about them that they are zealous for God, but their zeal is not based on knowledge. Since they do not know the righteousness that comes from God and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. Christ is the end of the law so there may be righteousness for everyone who believes” (Romans 10:1-4).
The OT law reveals that all people are sinners and need a Savior.
The primary purpose of Scripture is to point people to Jesus.
5. The witness of MOSES
“But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?” (vv. 45-47).
In Jesus’ day, many Jews believed Moses to be Israel’s mediator and advocate, who prayed for them in heaven as he had interceded for the Israelites on earth. Instead, Jesus says Moses is their accuser.
Moses was the author of God’s law (Genesis through Deuteronomy).
“Take this Book of Law and place it beside the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God. There it will remain as a witness against you” (Deuteronomy 31:26).
“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin” (Romans 3:19-20).
The book of Deuteronomy contains a prophecy of Jesus: “The LORD said to me [Moses]: ‘…I will raise us for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I commanded him. If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name, I myself will call him to account’” (Deuteronomy 18:17-19).
Had the Jews really listened to Moses they would have been convicted of their sin and eager to recognize the Savior.
The Verdict
Jesus declares that these five witnesses prove that His claim to be the Son of God is valid.
We today, like the Jews in Jesus’ day, are faced with a crucial decision: Will you and I believe the claims of Jesus?
• Is He the Son of God?
• Is He able to give life (spiritual and physical) to the dead?
• Is He the Judge of all people?
If His claims are true, we must commit our lives to Him.
Christ’s Claims: The True Identity of Jesus
John 5:31-47
Jesus claimed:
• “I am the _______________ of God!”
• “I am able to _______________ the dead!”
• “I am the _______________ of all people!”
How do we know Jesus’ claims are true? Is there any proof?
“If I testify about myself, my testimony is not valid. There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is valid” (vv. 31-32; cf. Deuteronomy 19:15).
The witnesses that support Jesus’ claims:
1. The witness of ______________________________
“You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth. Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved. John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light” (vv. 33-35).
2. The witness of Jesus’ _______________
“I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent me” (v. 36).
3. The witness of the _______________
“And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent” (vv. 37-38).
4. The witness of the ____________________
“You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life” (vv. 39-40).
5. The witness of _______________
“But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?” (vv. 45-47).