Six Superlative Witnesses That Jesus Is the Son of God

1 John 5:9-10

John continues his parade of witnesses, calling to the stand at this point the strongest witness of all: God the Father. The "testimony" of the Father resounds again and again in verses 9-10 as the apostle employs what we call a "lesser to greater" argument. In the everyday affairs of life, "we accept the testimony of men." In the Jewish context, as we have noted, the testimony of two or three witnesses was necessary and sufficient to confirm something as true (Deut 17:6; 19:15). If that is so, how 134much more should we believe God Himself, especially when He has just supplied His own threefold witness of the Spirit, water, and blood (v. 8)? The testimony of God is indeed greater—superior in source, status, and significance—than the testimony of any human persons. It is more reliable and trustworthy because it comes from the God, who cannot lie (Heb 6:18).

The testimony given by God is a testimony "He has given about His Son" (v. 9). I think John is saying that the abiding testimony of Jesus' baptism, His crucifixion, and that of the Holy Spirit is God's historical witness that Jesus is His Son. Never did God give such a witness concerning anyone else in all of history. The Father's witness concerning His Son is singular and unique. Therefore, it demands a response from each and every one of us. Neutrality and indecision is not an option. In fact, to not believe that Jesus is the Son of God is to not believe God and to make Him "a liar, because [you have] not believed in the testimony God has given about His Son" (v. 10). John says that believing in Jesus as the Son of God is equivalent to accepting God the Father's testimony about His Son. To reject Jesus as God's Son is equivalent to charging God with perjury. It is that simple, and John is that straightforward. Again, Spurgeon is our helper:

God is to be believed if all men contradict him. "Let God be true, and every man a liar." One word of God ought to sweep away ten thousand words of men, whether they be philosophers of today or sages of antiquity. God's word is against them all, for he knows infallibly. Of his own Son he knows as none else can; of our condition before him he knows; of the way to pardon us he knows. There is nothing in God that could lead him to err or make a mistake—and it were blasphemy to suppose that he would mislead us. It were an insult to him, such as we may not venture to perpetrate for a moment, to suppose that he would willfully mislead his poor creatures by a proclamation of mercy which meant nothing, or by presenting to them a Christ who could not redeem them. The gospel with God for its witness cannot be false. Whatever may be the witness against it, the witness of God is greater! We must believe the witness of God. ("Faith, and the Witness Upon Which It Is Founded")

135Jesus said in John 5:37, "The Father who sent Me has Himself testified about Me." I believe the words of Jesus. I believe the witness of the Father.

We Have the Witness of Our Conversion

1 John 5:10

John now does a very interesting and strategic thing. He ties together our outward confession of Jesus as the Son of God to the inner witness we now have within ourselves. What we confess with our mouth, God makes real in our hearts. Paul said this as well in Romans 10:9-10:

If you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.

And in Romans 8:16 he adds, "The Spirit Himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God's children."

The internal witness of God's Spirit in the heart confirms to the child of God that he or she was right to believe that Jesus is the Son of God who alone gives the gift of eternal life (1 John 5:11-12). This internal testimony or witness is the personal presence of God in us, and it beautifully balances and complements the external and historical witness of the baptism and crucifixion of Jesus, all witnessed by the Holy Spirit. Plummer well says, "The external witness faithfully accepted becomes internal certitude" (The Epistles of John, 162).

In the context of pastoral theology and practical application, this verse is of great value. John does not point us back to a prior experience. He leads us to look now, today, to a present testimony and witness. Whom are you trusting today? Whom are you believing in today? Where is your hope and confidence today? Is it Christ? If so, then rest assured that you have the Son and His gift of eternal life. Not knowing the exact moment you were converted does not mean you are not saved. A past experience can be helpful, but it is present-day testimony that provides the confirmation and assurance that God wants you to enjoy and that your soul longs to have. "I am believing in Christ and only in Christ." You will find that confession to be a blessed avenue of assurance that will cause you to proclaim with passion and conviction, "Jesus is the Son of God."

We Have the Witness of Eternal Life

1 John 5:11-12

John calls his final witness to the stand to testify to the truth that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. This is a fascinating witness. It is the witness of "eternal life." The connection between having the Son and having life is so essential that John will mention "the Son" seven times in verses 9-13 and "life" five times in verses 11-13.

Eternal life is a God-quality, God-kind of life. It has a particular character or essence as well as a never-ending duration. Having Jesus, the Son of God, equals having eternal life. This is God's testimony. This is God's gift ("God has given us eternal life"; 5:11). This life is in His Son, and again it is found in no one else (cf. John 14:6). In fact, to have the Son is to have life. To not have the Son of God means you do not have life. Having the Son of God equals life. Not having the Son of God equals spiritual death. To not have the Son means you are a walking, talking dead man. You are a spiritual corpse in a physical body. James Boice notes:

John's reference to "eternal life" as the essence of salvation carries us back to the opening verses of the letter, in which he wrote that this life was revealed in Jesus, who is Himself the life. Eternal life is not merely unending life, therefore. It is the very life of God. What we are promised in Christ is a participation in the life of the One who bears this testimony. This life is not to be enjoyed by everyone, however. This life is in Christ. Consequently, it is as impossible to have life without having Christ as it is impossible to have Christ without at the same time possessing eternal life. (The Epistles of John, 166)

The Bible teaches that you do not have to hope you have eternal life or even think you have eternal life. It says you can know you have eternal life when you know you have the Son of God, Jesus Christ, as your Savior. This witness, this gift of eternal life, testifies to the eternal Son, for only He who is eternal can give you what is eternal.

Conclusion

I began this study with a quote from my hero from the past, Charles Spurgeon. Let me end with one as well. What is at stake in all of this? If137 our six superlative witnesses have testified to the truth, then what does all of this mean for you, for me, and for the world? Here it is in sum:

Let me, first of all, say a word or two about the way in which we are saved, the modus operandi of salvation, as we find it described in the Scriptures. Here it is in a nutshell. We have all broken God's Law and we are justly condemned on account of it. God, in infinite mercy, desiring to save the sons of men, has given His Son, Jesus, to stand in the place of as many as believe in Him. Jesus became the Substitute of His people and suffered in their stead, and for them the debt of punishment due to God was paid by Jesus Christ upon the Cross of Calvary. All who believe in Him are, thereby, cleared before the bar of Divine Justice.

Now, the Lord, having given His Son, has revealed this great fact in His Word. Here it is in this Inspired Book—the full statement of it—to this effect, that God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and that whoever believes in the Lord Jesus Christ has everlasting life. This is God's testimony! ... [A]ll we have to do in order to realize the result of Christ's passion is simply to believe the testimony of God concerning it and rest upon it!

The argument runs thus—Christ saves those who trust Him. I trust Him and, therefore, I am saved. Jesus Christ suffered for the sins of His people. His people are known by their believing in Him. I believe in Him and, therefore, He died for my sins, and my sins are blotted out. This is the summary of the transaction. God's testimony concerning His Son is at first believed, simply because God says so and for no other reason. And then there grows up in the soul other evidence not necessary to faith, but very strengthening to it—evidence which springs up in the soul as the result of faith, and is the witness referred to in our text—"He that believes has the witness in himself." ("The Priest Dispensed With"; emphasis in original)

So I ask, do you believe the testimony of these six superlative witnesses? Do you have this testimony in yourself? "The one who has the Son has 138life. The one who doesn't have the Son of God does not have life." I plead with you this day: Choose life. Choose Jesus.

Reflect and Discuss