Testimony Of God Series

What people do with God’s testimony to Jesus Christ shows their eternal destiny. There are only two possible responses: to believe God’s testimony, or to reject it. No one can remain neutral, for as Jesus said, “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Matt. 12:30). Whoever/The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. If someone accepts the testimony of God, they have an internal assurance (in himself) that what they have believed is actually true. Reformers called this the testimonium Spiritus Sancti internum, or the internal testimony of the Holy Spirit. It is given in addition to the historical evidence (Rom. 8:16). (Walls, D., & Anders, M. (1999). I & II Peter, I, II & III John, Jude (Vol. 11, p. 224). Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)

Whoever/the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar. To deny that Jesus Christ is who God said He is, to refuse to believe in the testimony that God has borne/given concerning His Son, renders God a liar—which is the severest of all blasphemies since God is perfect truth and cannot lie (cf. Num. 23:19; 1 Sam. 15:29; Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18). Rejecting God’s witness concerning His Son is not a misfortune to be pitied, or overlooked in the name of tolerance. It is a heinous, damning sin and an affront to God’s holy nature. Those guilty of it must not be patronized, comforted, or reassured, but confronted and called to repentance. This is no trivial issue; the integrity of God is at stake. Saving faith in Jesus Christ results in a lifelong hold on eternal life (cf. 3:23; 4:2, 15; 5:1, 4–5). Since true faith perseveres, those who turn away from the gospel reveal that they were never saved in the first place (cf. 1 John 2:19). The testimony believers have in themselves is the true testimony concerning Jesus Christ which they heard from the eyewitnesses and have accepted and internalized (Kruse, C. G. (2000). The letters of John (p. 181). Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans Pub.; Apollos.)

• John has a shocking assessment of those who refuse to believe the testimony of God: “You are, in essence, calling God a liar.” Such an image seems harsh. Few people would be so bold. Yet whenever someone questions what the Scriptures teach or sits in judgment of difficult theological truths, that is what he or she is doing—attacking the holy character of the Creator. What does your lifestyle say about God? Are you living in such a way that others can see that God is trustworthy and true? Or do others see your example and conclude that God’s words and ways are not to be believed? (Barton, B. B., & Osborne, G. R. (1998). 1, 2 & 3 John (p. 112). Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House.)

John closes this section in verse 12, by setting out the eternal results of the only two possible responses to God’s witness to Jesus Christ: Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have the life. Here again the exclusivity of the gospel is evident. Only those who believe the Father’s witness to the Son and acknowledge Jesus as Lord and Savior have eternal life; all who refuse to do so do not have the Son, and consequently do not have eternal life. By placing our faith in Jesus Christ we receive the gift of life. Because of our faith, Christ lives in us and we in him (3:24; 5:20). Therefore, at present we already possess eternal life and joyfully sing, in the words of Horatius Bonar: “Yes, in me, in me he dwelleth; I in him, and he in me! And my empty soul he filleth, Here and through eternity”. (Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953–2001). Exposition of James and the Epistles of John (Vol. 14, p. 358). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.)