Witnesses to Deity

John 5:39

Jesus acknowledges the seriousness of the religious leaders’ study of the Scriptures. They diligently search through the Scriptures, and the Scriptures present a detailed witness to Jesus Christ. When Jesus mentions the Scriptures here, he’s referring to the Old Testament. In many ways you can boil the teaching of the Old Testament down to two main themes. The first theme is that man is hopelessly rebellious and unable to save himself. From the moment Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit, they became captive to sin. Their children were sinners (one was a murderer), and their grandchildren were sinners. Nothing they could ever do would be enough to save themselves from their sin. Apart from God they had no hope for rescue.

Have you noticed that even the heroes of the faith are recorded in unflattering terms? Think about Noah. After the ark landed, he got drunk and naked. Or Abraham—the friend of God, the father of Israel didn’t trust God enough to wait for a legitimate son. Moses led God’s people out of Egypt but was forbidden to enter the promised land because of his disobedience. Even David, a man after God’s own heart, committed adultery and then murder to cover it up. Why does the Bible display all their dirty laundry? Because we need to understand that every person is a sinner in need of a Savior. Every single one of us, no matter how noble we may appear, is a rebel without hope, alienated from God.

The second theme that runs throughout the Old Testament is that God will send a Savior. From the moment mankind fell into sin, God promised a Rescuer. The Old Testament describes in great detail this one who would come. He’s called the promised Seed, the Lion of Judah, the Son of Man, the Suffering Servant, the Passover Lamb, and the Messiah. These are just a few of the descriptions of Jesus that saturate the pages of the Old Testament. The entire weight of the Old Testament stands behind the claims of Jesus. Every word is a witness to who he is.

John 5:37-38

Standing behind the previous three witnesses is the greatest witness of all—God himself. Now these Jews have not seen God, and they have not heard God’s voice. How could they possibly know what God wants? The only way they can know him is through his revelation to them. God reveals himself to mankind through his messengers, through his works, and through his Word. What does Jesus present as support for his claim of deity? A prophet, supernatural works, and the Scriptures. In the same way and manner God reveals himself to mankind, Jesus reveals his deity to man. To doubt the claims of Jesus is to disregard God’s revelation about himself.

Just like the religious leaders, we are completely cut off from God because of our sin. We have no way of knowing who God is and what God wants apart from his revelation to us, and his revelation to us makes clear the deity of Jesus Christ. Denying the deity of Jesus Christ is to set ourselves up as greater than God; it is to exalt our opinion over God’s. That’s a frightening place to be.

It all boils down to this: if Jesus is not God, he could not have paid the penalty for our sin. If Jesus is not God, we would be unable to cling to his righteousness. If Jesus is not God, we would be without hope. But Jesus is God. Phillis Wheatly, a young slave girl, wrote a poem at the age of thirteen to the students at the University of Cambridge. I can think of few words that more beautifully and accurately exalt the deity of Jesus Christ and the effects of his sacrifice.

Students, to you ’tis giv’n to scan the heights

Above, to traverse the ethereal space,

And mark the systems of revolving worlds.

Still more, ye sons of science ye receive

The blissful news by messengers from heav’n,

How Jesus’ blood for your redemption flows.

See him with hands out-strecht upon the cross;

Immense compassion in his bosom glows;

He hears revilers, nor resents their scorn:

What matchless mercy in the Son of God!

When the whole human race by sin had fall’n,

He deign’d to die that they might rise again,

And share with him in the sublimest skies,

Life without death, and glory without end. (“To the University of Cambridge, in New England”)

Eternal life and eternal glory with Jesus are at stake. The deity of Jesus Christ is the foundation of our hope. May we never fail to know, defend, and share the truth that Jesus Christ is God.