I. Three Witnesses In The Son 6
6 This is He who came by water and blood — Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth.
A. Jesus Is The Son Of God
1. The object of the apostle in this verse, in connection with 1John 5:8, is to state the nature of the evidence that Jesus is the Son of God.
2. He refers to three well-known things on which he probably had insisted much in his preaching — the water, and the blood, and the Spirit.
3. These furnished evidence that Jesus is the Son of God and by extension the Messiah of Israel and the Savior of the world.
B. Jesus Came By Water And Blood
1. This does not mean that when he came into the world he was accompanied in some way by water and blood; but the idea is that they were remarkable testimonials in to his character and work.
a. An ambassador might come with credentials
b. A warrior might come with the spoils of victory
c. A prince might come with the insignia of royalty
d. A prophet might come with signs and wonders
i. The Lord Jesus came
a. with power to raise the dead
b. to heal disease
c. to cast out devils
ii. But John says nothing of those thing and saved his remarkable in his view that he came by water and blood.
2. He came by (in, with) water.
a. Clement of Alexandria believes baptismal regeneration and faith were in view, and blood publicly acknowledged that.
b. Some consider that the words are used to denote the fact that the Lord Jesus was truly a man, and that the apostle means to say that he had all the properties of a human being — a spirit or soul, blood, and the water the human body is largely made of.
c. Others suppose that by his coming by water, there is reference to his pure life, as water is the emblem of purity.
d. Many expositors suppose that the reference is to the baptism of Jesus to mark the entrance on his public work. The reference to blood is undoubted a reference to his death.
e. Some, by the water here, have understood the ordinance of baptism as it is appointed by the Savior to be administered to his people, meaning that the ordinance was instituted by him.
f. There remains, then, but one other interpretation; to wit, that he refers to the water and the blood which flowed from the side of the Savior when he was pierced by the spear of the Roman soldier.
i. This would be the obvious interpretation, and would be entirely clear, if John did not immediately speak of the water and the blood as separate witnesses.
ii. In the case of the water and blood that was extracted by the tip of the spear, THAT water and blood give singular witness to the physical death of the Savior.
3. He came by blood, referring, doubtless, to the shedding of his blood on the cross.
a. The most poignant picture we have of Christ is when he shed His blood on the Cross for us.
b. By this, the apostle says, that the blood shed at his death furnished a crucial evidence or witness of Who He is.
c. Not by water only, but by water and blood.
i. John the Baptist came by water only; that is, he came to baptize the people, and to prepare them for the coming of the Messiah.
ii. Jesus was distinguished from john by the fact that his ministry was characterized by the shedding of blood for the remission of sin.
4. And it is this Spirit.
a. We have two of the witnesses: water and blood.
b. Now we have the third: the Holy Spirit.
c. That is, he is the greatest witness in the matter, confirming all others.
i. He bears witness to the soul that Jesus came by water and blood, for that would not be received by us without his intervention.
ii. Is so true that the Holy Spirit may be called truth itself, as God is so benevolent that he may be called love itself.
II. Three Witnesses In The Earth 7-8
7 For there are three that bear witness in heaven: the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one.
8 And there are three that bear witness on earth: the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree as one.
A. The Holy Spirit Bears Witness To The Fact That Jesus Is The Son Of God
1. He did it at the baptism of Jesus.
2. Christ was eminently endowed with the influences of the Holy Spirit
a. It was predicted that the Messiah would be
b. It was appropriate he should be
3. The Holy Spirit bore witness to his Messiahship, after his ascension, by descending, according to his promise, on his apostles, and by accompanying the message which they delivered with saving power to thousands in Jerusalem.
4. He still bears the same testimony on every revival of religion, and in the conversion of every individual who becomes a Christian, convincing them that Jesus is the Son of God.
5. He does it in the hearts of all true Christians, for no man can say that Jesus is Lord but by the Holy Spirit of God.
B. The Water Bears Witness That Jesus Is The Son Of God.
1. It was proper that the Messiah should be baptized when he entered on his work
a. perhaps it was expected
b. the fact that he was baptized showed that he had in fact entered on his work as Redeemer.
2. An undoubted confirmation was then furnished to the fact that he was the Son of God
a. by the descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove
b. and by the voice that addressed him from heaven
c. Here we have all members of the Godhead present at the same time in the same place displayed in different forms.
3. His baptism with water was an emblem of the purity of his own character, and of the nature of his religion.
4. Perhaps it may be implied here, also, that water used in baptism now bears witness to the same thing,
a. as it is the ordinance appointed by the Savior;
b. as it keeps up his religion in the world;
c. as it is a public symbol of the purity of his religion;
d. as, in every case where it is administered, it is connected with the public expression of a belief that Jesus is the Son of God.
C. The Water Bears Witness That Jesus Is The Son Of God.
1. The shedding of the blood showed that he was truly dead — that his work was complete — that he died in reality, and not in appearance only.
2. The remarkable circumstances that attended the shedding of this blood
a. the darkened sun
b. the earthquake
c. the rending of the veil of the temple
d. showed in a manner that convinced even the Roman centurion that he was the Son of God.
3. The fact that an atonement was thus made for sin was an important witness for the Savior, showing that he had done that which the Son of God only could do.
D. These Witnesses Agree
1. They agree in one thing; they bear on one and the same point: the fact that Jesus is the Son of God.
2. All are appointed by God as witnesses of this fact; and all harmonize in the testimony which is borne.
3. The apostle does not say that there are no other witnesses
III. Three Witness In The Church 9
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son.
A. The Witness of Men [If We Receive The Witness Of Men].
1. We constantly act on the belief that what others say is true
a. that what the members of our families, and our neighbors say is true
b. that what is reported by newspaper is true
c. What we read in books, and what is sworn to in courts of justice, is true.
2. We could not get along a single day if we did not act on this belief
a. We accept the witness of the Apostles.
b. Why would we have a problem accepting the witness of God?
B. The Witness Of God [Greater].
1. Is more worthy of belief; as God is more true, and wise, and good than men.
a. Men may be deceived, and may unknowingly bear witness to that when is not true —God never can
b. Men may intend to deceive — God never can
c. Men may act from rumors or hearsay — God never can
d. Men may desire to puff themselves up — God never can
2. We could go on and on, but God’s witness is true and never meant to deceive.
C. For This Is The Witness Of God
1. God’s testimony is borne by the Spirit, and the water, and the blood.
2. If you saw his baptism, and heard the voice from heaven, could doubt that he was the Son of God?
3. How many saw his death on the cross, and witnessed the amazing scenes which occurred there, and failed to join with the Roman centurion in saying that this was the Son of God?
4. Who indeed has felt the influences of the Eternal Spirit on his heart, ever doubted that Jesus was the Son of God?
IV. Conclusion
