Series: 1 John
Title: The Greater Witness
Text: 1 John 5: 5-9
Date: March 24, 2019
Place: SGBC, NJ
Some hearing my words see no evidence why you should believe my gospel: you see and hear no facts to convince you this is the
word of God, no witnesses to persuade
you that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.
Yet, some man comes along telling you some mystifying
philosophy and you will receive that.
They have no facts, no witnesses, they simply tell you something that
tickles your ears and you receive their word.
Not only that, in everyday life, we receive the witness
of men: concerning history, concerning the food we eat, concerning the medicine
we take. We simply believe what men tell
us without looking into these things in great depth. We simply receive things as true without having
verification that what they tell us is true.
What about in a court
of law? What is required in a court of
law before we receive the witness of men?
One, there must be more than one witness—there must be two or more
persons and/or documents that bear witness to the facts. Two, they must be credible witnesses—they must
be truthful, of good character or their testimony can be torn to shreds. Three, there must be corroborating witness—each
testimony must agree with the other to verify the facts. When these things all agree then we receive
the witness of men. We do not
doubt. We do not question. When these things all agree we believe their
witness to be true and we receive it.
Why then do we not
believe the witness of God—1 John 5: 9:
If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is
the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.
Subject: The Greater Witness
Proposition: We
should receive the witness of God because it is greater—this is the witness of
God which God himself has testified of his Son.
I want to do two
things in this message. One, I want to
comfort you who believe by showing you what great witness God has given us that
the Lord Jesus is indeed the Son of God, the Savior of his people. Two, for those who are skeptical, I want you
to behold how great the witness of God is which testifies that the Lord Jesus
is the Son of God. “If we receive the witness of
men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he
hath testified of his Son!”
Divisions: I
will use the three things required in a court of law: 1) Has God provided two
or more witnesses? 2) Are the witnesses of
God credible? 3) Do all the witnesses of
God corroborate, do they all agree in their testimony?
HAS GOD PROVIDED TWO OR MORE WITNESSES?
In the law of God,
God requires there must be more than one witness.
Deuteronomy 19: 15: One
witness shall not rise up against a man for any iniquity, or for any sin, in
any sin that he sinneth: at the mouth of two witnesses, or at the mouth of
three witnesses, shall the matter be established.
For this point, we
will simply note the number of witnesses God has provided. Has God provided more than one witness to testify that the Lord Jesus
is the Son of God, the Christ, the Savior of his people?
One, witness is the
Lord Jesus himself—1 John 5: 6: This is
he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by
water and blood. We will look more
at this witness in a moment.
Two, is the witness of
the Holy Spirit—1 John 5: 6…And it is
the Spirit that beareth witness. The
Spirit beareth witness by speaking through a host of men that he used to record
the word of God.
2 Peter 1: 21: For
the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake
as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
2 Timothy 3:16: All Scripture is given by
inspiration of God
The way the Spirit of God used men to write this book is
a witness that they were moved by the one Holy Spirit of God. Men who did not know each other, living on two
separate continents, in separate countries, hundreds of miles apart, without modern
communication, wrote in three different languages, over the span of 1600 years. Yet, this book has one unified, harmonious
message that fits together as if they were sitting across the table from each
other in the same room speaking one language.
Why? It is because they all wrote
by the same Spirit of God. He gave them
all what to write.
Men will say, “Prove to me the Bible is the Word of God”. But
the burden of proof is on the infidel to prove it is NOT the word of God! The next time someone says to you, “Prove to
me the Bible is the Word of God”. You
say to them, “Prove to me it is not”.
Also, the Spirit of God bore witness when he descended on
our Lord Jesus at his baptism. By the
Holy Spirit, the Man, Christ Jesus, spoke like never a man spoke. He did what no man ever did before or since. This is one way that "It is the Spirit that beareth witness" that he is the Christ!
Furthermore, the
Spirit of God came upon the Apostles on
the day of Pentecost confirming that Christ is indeed the exalted King. He made them all speak in foreign languages which
they had never learned prior to that day.
They spoke those languages so well that the people understood as they
preached the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And the Spirit of God confirmed the Gospel preached with signs and
wonders. It is the Spirit who has
maintained the preaching of the gospel throughout history unto this day.
In addition, the Spirit of God also bears
witness within his people—the Spirit itself
beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God. He testifies in us that Jesus is indeed the
Christ, the Son of the living God. It is
through the Spirit of God that “of God is
Christ made unto us Wisdom, and Righteousness, and Sanctification and Redemption”
(1 Cor 1: 30)
Three, our text
declares where the witnesses of God are. There are three witnesses in heaven—1 John 5: 7: For there are three that bear record in
heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost. There are three distinct persons in the
Godhead. We do not worship three gods. We
worship one God in three distinct persons. It is not that he is merely manifest in
three distinct persons, he is one God in three distinct persons. The three persons of the godhead are God the Father,
God the Son (here he is called the Word because he is the revelation of the
Godhead—John 1: 1: In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God) and there is God
the Holy Ghost.
Four, our text declares
that God has provided three witnesses in the earth—1 John 5: 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the
Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. This is the unified testimony of THE
GOSPEL. Through his preachers preaching the gospel the Spirit of God bears witness that Jesus is the Christ the Son of
the living God, all our Salvation, by washing us by the water of the word and
sprinkling the blood of Jesus Christ on
our conscience in regeneration.
Now, to any who are skeptics,
here we have far more than one witness! When
we have this many witness of men in a court of law we receive their
testimony. So why do you not believe the
testimony of God? “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for
this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son”.
HAS GOD PROVIDED CREDIBLE WITNESSES?
In a court of law, the
witnesses must be truthful and of good character. If they are not then cross-examination can
destroy their testimony. So, has God
provided credible witnesses?
One, God bears
witness by the Lord Jesus Christ himself.
He is THE TRUTH! Christ said, “I am the Way, THE TRUTH, and the life, no man cometh to the Father but by me!” Not only is he truthful. Jesus Christ is THE TRUTH.
Two, the Spirit of
God bears witness of Christ—1 John 5: 6:…And
it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit IS TRUTH.
John 16: 13: Howbeit when he, THE SPIRIT
OF TRUTH, is come, he will guide you INTO ALL TRUTH: for he shall not speak of
himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew
you things to come. 14: HE SHALL GLORIFY ME: for he shall receive of mine and
shall shew it unto you.
Three, of the witness
in heaven, the triune God, he is holy, he is the Truth and he cannot lie.
Numbers 23:19: God is
not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent:
hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make
it good?
Titus 1: 2:…GOD, that CANNOT LIE…
John 1: 14: And the
Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as
of the only begotten of the Father,) full of GRACE AND TRUTH.
Deuteronomy 32: 4: He is the
Rock, his work is PERFECT: for all his ways are JUDGMENT: A God
of TRUTH and WITHOUT INIQUITY, JUST and RIGHT is he.
Four, the witness in
earth is the gospel whereby we are born again by the Spirit of God—the incorruptible
seed.
Psalm 33:4: For the WORD
of the LORD is RIGHT; and all his works are done IN TRUTH.
James 1: 18: Of his own will begat he
us with the WORD of TRUTH.
John 17: 17: Sanctify them through THY TRUTH: thy WORD is
TRUTH.
So, the witness of
God is far more than one witness and the witnesses of God are all true because
God is the Truth! Now sinner, you who receive
the witness of lying men, why do you not believe the truth from the true and
living God? “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater because
is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son”.
HAS GOD PROVIDED CORROBORATING WITNESSES?
In a court of law,
the witnesses must agree. Is that the
case with the witnesses of God?
One, the Lord Jesus Christ bears witness by
fulfilling the whole word of God. Christ
is the fulfillment of all that is written.
We see it by Christ fulfilling the scriptures even after his spirit had
departed from his body.
John 19: 32: Then came the soldiers, and brake
the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him. 33:
But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake NOT
his legs: 34: But one of the
soldiers with a spear PIERCED HIS SIDE, and forthwith came there out BLOOD AND
WATER. 35: And he that saw it [John] bare record, and his record
is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. 36:
For these things were done, that THE SCRIPTURE SHOULD BE FULFILLED A bone of
him shall not be broken. 37: And again another scripture saith,
They shall look on him whom they pierced.
In all the word, the
water of washing declared Christ our
Sanctification and the blood declared
Christ our Righteousness. Christ made his people righteous by his obedience
unto the death of the cross—"without
shedding of blood is no remission of sins.”
Romans 3: 24: Being
justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25:
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, …
Christ is our
Sanctification. He said, “Except I wash thee, thou hast no part in
me.”
Hebrews 2:11: For
both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which
cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,
Hebrews 10:10…we are
sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all….14 For by one offering he hath perfected for
ever them that are sanctified.
The water and blood
flowed from his wounded side as scripture said it would; a bone of his was not
broken as scripture said.
Two, the Spirit bears
witness with Christ in full agreement that Christ is the salvation of his
people—"And it is the Spirit that beareth witness” All the witness of men are in perfect
agreement throughout the word of God which is the Spirit bearing witness with
Christ that Christ is our righteousness and holiness. When the veil of the temple was rent in twain
from the top to the bottom, the Spirit of God recorded it and bore witness that
Christ is the way into the holiest of all, God’s very presence (Mt 27:51). To punctuate his witness
with Christ that Christ is all that he said he is, the Spirit made the soldier bear
witness,
Matthew 27: 54: Now
when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake,
and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.
Three, do the witnesses in heaven all agree
that Christ is the salvation of his people? —1 John 5: 7 For there are three that bear
record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are
one. Our triune God bore witness in
perfect agreement when he spoke from heaven saying that this is my beloved Son
in whom I am well pleased! The triune God testified in agreement
from heaven when he raised Christ from the dead and he sat down at God’s right
hand—"Him hath God exalted with His
right hand to be a Prince and a
Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. And we are
His witnesses of these things; and so
is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey Him”.
(Acts 5:31-32) What did God in three persons testify to us in full
agreement with each other when Christ arose from the grave and sat down? “When
he had by himself purged our sins he sat down at the right hand of God”.
Four, do the earthly witness agree? —1
John 5: 8: And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the
water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. Oh, may he speak this gospel into your
heart now. May the Holy Spirit wash you
with the word and purge your conscience with the blood that you might see that
these three agree in one—these three corroborate in full agreement that Christ
is everything a sinner like you needs for acceptance with God.
Hebrews 10: 14: by one offering he hath perfected for
ever them that are sanctified. 15: WHEREOF THE HOLY GHOST also is a witness to
us.
Christ Jesus loved us
and gave himself for us “That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the WASHING
OF WATER BY THE WORD, That he might present it to himself a glorious church,
not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and
without blemish.” (Eph 5: 26-27)
Hebrews 9: 14: How much more shall
THE BLOOD OF CHRIST, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without
spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
For you who believe, bless
God, here is why? 1 John 5: 10: He that believeth on the Son of God HATH THE WITNESS IN
HIMSELF
For you who will not
receive his testimony—1 John 5: 10…he
that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the
record that God gave of his Son. In the
face of all these faithful, true, corroborating witnesses you go on calling God
a liar by not believing the record God has given of his Son.
For us both this is
the record—1 John 5: 11: And this is the
record, that God hath given to us
eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12: He that hath the Son hath life; and he that
hath not the Son of God hath not life.
This is the word to
you who believe—1 John 5: 13: These
things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that
ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of
the Son of God.
As we hear all these
witnesses testify together that Christ is all our Salvation, I think, what more
can God say to us! This is the song we
will close with:
How firm a foundation, ye
saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His
excellent Word:
WHAT MORE CAN HE SAY, THAN TO YOU HE HATH SAID
You who unto Jesus, for refuge
have fled?
Amen!