“First John 5:9-12”

Sunday, October 29, 2017

“If we receive the testimony of men, the testimony of God is greater; for the testimony of God is this, that He has testified concerning His Son. The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has given concerning His Son. And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.”

--- End of Scripture verses---

Just as the Savior had done with His adversaries before him, John appealed to the numerous “witnesses” that testified to the fact that Jesus is the Son of God. The apostle quoted Jesus in John 5:33-37: “You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth. But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. He was the lamp that was burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me. And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.”

Jesus appealed to the testimony of John the baptizer (John 1:29-34), the proof of the miracles (works) He had done, and the verification of the Father in heaven that He was the Son of the living God. He went on in John 5:39-47 to appeal to the numerous Old Testament prophecies that spoke of the coming Messiah and His work of redemption, and how the very Law that His enemies claimed to cherish testified that He was the chosen One of God. But the culminating piece of evidence and the “greater” testimony was when the Father Himself proclaimed from Heaven: “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased” (Matthew 3:17). The Apostle John took the same approach as his Master when he appealed to the witness of “the Spirit and the water and the blood” (verse 8), but the greater (greatest) witness of all was God’s own testimony “concerning His Son.”

“The one who believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself” (verse 10). When we believe and embrace this all-important truth, the Lord and His word “abide within us” (1 John 4:15-16), and support us through all the travails and uncertainties of life. We may not understand why God allows certain things to happen or know all that the Lord has in store for us in the future, but we know for certain that Jesus is the Son of God, and that we can completely entrust our lives to His safe-keeping. When we “sanctify Christ as Lord” in our hearts (1 Peter 3:14), we know for certain that “God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (John 8:28). There is no more reassuring or comforting testimony than this: “that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son” (verse 11). In the grand scheme of things, when all has been weighed in the balances, everything else comes up miserably lacking in significance. If you have the Son you have eternal life. And if you have eternal life you have everything that means anything.

If you do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God, you are not merely making a mistake or believing a lie. You are calling God a liar (verse 10). Friend, you do not want to be in such a condemnable condition on the Day of Judgment. Equally awful would be to believe this truth yet not embrace it, and allow your life to be transformed by it and reflect it by your thoughts, words and deeds. “Worship the Lord with reverence and rejoice with trembling. Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, for His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!” (Psalm 2:11-12)

Please read 1 John 5:13-15 for tomorrow.

Have a blessed Lord’s Day!

-Louie Taylor

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