Witnesses to Deity
Share
Witnesses to Deity
John 5:30-39
Main Idea: Jesus introduces four witnesses to his deity, leaving the religious leaders with no excuse for rejecting him.
- Witness 1: John the Baptist (5:33-35)
- Witness 2: The Works of Jesus (5:36)
- Witness 3: The Words of Scripture (5:39)
- Witness 4: God the Father (5:37-38)
One of the foundational truths of Christianity is belief in the deity of Jesus Christ. This doctrine undergirds the Christian faith. Without it everything else will crumble and fail. This is why the devil has always attacked this truth. If he can chip away at the foundation and weaken the support, then he may be able to topple the faith of the saints and stem the advance of the gospel. We must guard against apathy and indifference about Christ’s deity. We should regularly remind ourselves and one another of what upholds and buttresses the rest of our doctrine. What a tragedy to discover one day that through our negligence the foundation of faith has been subtly chipped away.
We cannot devote too much time or attention to the deity of Jesus Christ, for without it we have no genuine faith. C. S. Lewis, writing to a dear friend who had rejected Christ and embraced atheism, wrote,
If [Christ] was not God, who or what was He? . . . The doctrine of Christ’s divinity seems to me not something stuck on . . . but something that peeps out at every point [of the New Testament] so that you have to unravel the whole web to get rid of it . . . and if you take away the Godhead of Christ, what is Christianity all about?(Cited in Townsend, “C. S. Lewis’ Theology”; emphasis original)
The answer to Lewis’s question is a resounding, “Nothing!” Without the deity of Jesus Christ, there’s no Christian faith, no gospel, no power to save.
In verse 30 Jesus continues the theme that he and the Father are one. The obvious implication is that to oppose Jesus is to oppose God, to reject Jesus is to reject God, and to rebel against Jesus is to rebel against God. Jesus’s testimony about himself is clear.
At first glance Jesus appears to contradict himself in verse 31. He seems to be saying, “I know that I said I was God, but you have no reason to believe me.” In Old Testament law multiple witnesses were needed for a truth to be established as certain. For instance, in Deuteronomy 19:15 we find this legal requirement for a person to be convicted of a crime:
One witness cannot establish any iniquity or sin against a person, whatever that person has done. A fact must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.
Testimony without validation wasn’t accepted as true. So, Jesus is going to call witnesses to validate his deity right in front of the leaders, leaving them with no excuse for rejecting him.
Witness 1: John the Baptist
John 5:33-35
We were first introduced to John the Baptist in chapter 1.
And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and he rested on him. I didn’t know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The one you see the Spirit descending and resting on—he is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.” (1:32-34)
John is convinced Jesus is the Messiah, and he makes it known. At this point, the religious leaders Jesus is talking with have heard John’s message. They know what John thinks about Jesus. They know John’s witness, but they reject it. Jesus doesn’t let them off the hook that easy. He doesn’t say, “Well, John says this about me, but you’ve rejected it so let’s move on.” He reminds them they had at one time listened to John and valued what he said. They hadn’t just heard John’s testimony; they had requested it! They had “sent messengers to John” (5:33) to find out what he had to say. In fact, they had even liked what John said for a time. They “were willing to rejoice for a while in his light” (v. 35).
Before Jesus burst on the scene, John was preaching the Messiah was coming. They liked that message. They were excited about the dawning of the messianic age. But when Jesus appeared and John pointed to Jesus as the Messiah, they didn’t like that as much. Jesus didn’t fit their image of what the Messiah should be. He didn’t come in riding a white horse and ready to overthrow the Roman oppression. Instead, he overthrew money tables in the temple and exposed their hypocrisy. That’s when they stopped listening to John—not because his message changed but because their comfort level changed.
Jesus describes John as a lamp, a description that provides many helpful applications for us and our witness. A lamp must be lit. You could even translate that word “burning” as “ignited” (v. 35). Our witness will only be effective if God ignites it. That’s one reason we pray. A lamp provides guidance and direction; it’s not the destination. It’s not the center of attention. The lamp simply illuminates the way to something else; it serves a greater purpose. A lamp eventually burns out. The verbs used to describe John’s ministry are all in the past tense. John has borne witness. He was a lamp. John’s life and ministry served a purpose for a time, but it eventually ended. We only have a short time on this earth to impact people for Jesus.
However, there’s more to this image of a lamp. The same word translated “lamp” is found in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the Septuagint (LXX). This is the Bible Jesus and the Jews would have regularly used. This word for “lamp” is found in Psalm 132:17: “There I will make a horn grow for David; I have prepared a lamp for my anointed one.” The “horn” for David is a reference to the Messiah—also called God’s anointed. The Messiah will have a lamp prepared for him. Jesus and John the Baptist are the fulfillment of this promise. John was the lamp prepared for Jesus, the Messiah. But there’s still more. In the previous verse of Psalm 132, we read, “I will clothe its priests with salvation, and its faithful people will shout for joy.” The same word translated “shout for joy” is found in our passage in John 5. In verse 35 Jesus says, “You were willing to rejoice [same word] for a while in his light.” If you put all of this together, you see a strong indictment against the religious leaders. The psalmist prophesied that true saints would see the lamp prepared for the Messiah and rejoice. Jesus reminded them that they rejoiced “for a while,” but they stopped rejoicing. What does that say about them? They are not genuine saints. Genuine saints would not stop rejoicing in the light.
Jesus doesn’t need John’s testimony to convince himself of what is happening (v. 34). He’s got three more witnesses even greater than John. The reason he included John’s witness was so some of them who had heard it might remember, turn from their rebellion, and be saved. Jesus mentioned John’s testimony as an act of grace.
Witness 2: The Works of Jesus
John 5:36
If they don’t believe because of John’s witness, they should believe when they see Jesus’s works, which make his deity self-apparent. When Nicodemus came to Jesus, he was motivated, at least in part, by the works of Jesus. He said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one could perform these signs you do unless God were with him” (John 3:2). All that Jesus does testifies he is God. There’s no natural explanation for Jesus’s works; there has to be a supernatural cause. The most obvious explanation and the explanation the religious leaders should arrive at is that Jesus is the Messiah. The coming of the Messiah would be marked by miracles and signs that could only be attributed to God. In chapter 7, verse 31, the crowds understand that Jesus is doing supernatural works: “However, many from the crowd believed in him and said, ‘When the Messiah comes, he won’t perform more signs than this man has done, will he?’” There is a saying, “If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it must be a duck.” Jesus walks like the Messiah, talks like the Messiah, and does works that only the Messiah can do. The only logical conclusion is that Jesus is the Messiah. He is God.
This is why Jesus performs the miracles he does. His miracles aren’t motivated solely by compassion for the sick or love for the dying. They’re signs pointing people to a right understanding of who he is. Can’t Jesus heal sick and dying people without anyone knowing it’s him? In fact, can’t he stop people from ever getting sick or dying? So, why does he perform miracles? Peter answers that question in a sermon he gave on the day of Pentecost:
Fellow Israelites, listen to these words: This Jesus of Nazareth was a man attested to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through him, just as you yourselves know. (Acts 2:22)
The works of Jesus make it clear he’s divine. By themselves, his works should be enough to convince them of the deity of Jesus Christ.
Witness 3: The Words of Scripture
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.
Witness 4: God the Father
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.
Reflect and Discuss
- What are we to believe about Jesus from this passage?
- How are you guarding against apathy and indifference about Christ’s deity? Who in your life is encouraging and standing watch with you?
- Why does Jesus describe John the Baptist as a lamp?
- How is Psalm 132 used as a reference in this passage?
- Why does Jesus list John as a witness when the other three witnesses are so much greater?
- Why does Jesus perform miracles? What should be the people’s response?
- What two major themes run throughout the Old Testament? How do they point to Jesus?
- Why does God choose to work through sinful, flawed people like Moses and David and then tell everyone their faults through Scripture?
- If someone were to write down your story of salvation, what would Jesus have delivered you from? How would the unmerited love and mercy of God to you be evidenced from your past?
- If the Jews haven’t seen God or heard his voice, how can Jesus list God as a witness to his deity?