Witnesses to Jesus

[B-A-C]

Witnesses to Jesus,
The first witness... Jesus Himself.
John 5:30; "I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.
John 5:31; "If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true.

Jesus did testify about Himself, but He says if He "alone" testifies about Himself, His testimony is not true. He was referencing the law here.

Deut 17:6; "On the evidence of two witnesses or three witnesses, he who is to die shall be put to death; he shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness.
Deut 19:15; "A single witness shall not rise up against a man on account of any iniquity or any sin which he has committed; on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed.

The second witness... John the Baptist.
John 5:32; "There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.
John 5:33; "You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth.
John 5:34; "But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved.
John 5:35; "He was the lamp that was burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.
John 5:36; "But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John;

John the Baptist said this is the Lamb that takes away the sins of the world. John the Baptist saw the Holy Spirit descend upon Jesus like a dove. John the baptist heard the voice say "This is my beloved Son".
The Pharisees asked John, are you the one? Are you the Messiah? and John truthfully said "no".

The Pharisees liked John the baptist at first, they thought he might be the Messiah. "He was the lamp that was burning".. they (the Pharisees) "were willing to rejoice for a while in his light".

John 1:21; They asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" And he *said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No."
John 1:25; They asked him, and said to him, "Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?"
John 3:28; "You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent ahead of Him.'

John the Baptist said someone coming after me Who is greater than I am.

The third witness... His works.
John 3:36; 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.

By now Jesus had already done many miracles, He had made a blind man see, a lame man walk, turned water into wine, healed a sovereign's son who was 18 miles away.
The Pharisees knew all the this, they saw the miracles. They knew other men could not do the things that Jesus did.

The fourth witness... the Father
John 5:37; "And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form.

When Jesus was baptized a few "unusual" things happened. One of them was a voice from heaven.

Matt 3:17; and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased."
Mark 1:11; and a voice came out of the heavens: "You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased."

Jesus tells them, you have never heard His voice at any time, and yet when I was baptized everyone around heard His voice.
The other thing Jesus says here is you have never "seen His form". Yet everyone saw the dove descend upon Jesus.

Jesus is giving them these examples telling them... hey they never happened before to anyone else, but they happened to me.

The fifth witness... the Word
John 5:38; "You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.
John 5:39; "You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;

Why is Jesus telling them this? Back in verse 34 He says "I am telling you this, so that you might be saved". These are things we need to know about Jesus
in order to be saved. He is Messiah, He is the Son of God. He is the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world.

John 5:40; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.
John 5:41; "I do not receive glory from men;
John 5:42; but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves.

Jesus tells them you do not have the love of God in you.

John 5:43; "I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him.
John 5:44; "How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?

Jesus says I have come in the Father's name. ..but.. if someone else comes in their own name, that's who you will receive. Who does the world receive? Practically every religion except Jesus.

John 5:45; "Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope.

Jesus says He won't judge them before the Father, but Moses will.

The sixth witness.... Moses and the Law
John 5:46; "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me.
John 5:47; "But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?"

Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. "The law". (He likely didn't write the end of Deut).
But in Moses's writings, Jesus is hidden if you know where to look. The Pharisees didn't believe Moses, and many people today don't either.

John 5:39; "You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;

People are looking all over the Bible for answers, but the answer is standing right in front of them.

[next] ...why did Jesus even have to say these things, what happened right before this?

 

[B-A-C]

* Small side note here, before I forget*

Acts 1:8; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."

There is a seventh witness now.... "us". Jesus said we will be His witnesses... even to the remotest parts of the earth. More about that later.
I'm out of time this morning.

 

[B-A-C]

So why did Jesus need to bring up all these witnesses to prove who He was?

We need to go back a bit. I started with the end of John chapter 5, but let us go to the beginning of John chapter 5.

John 5:1; After these things there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
John 5:2; Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheep gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porticoes.
John 5:3; In these lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, and withered, [waiting for the moving of the waters;
John 5:4; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool and stirred up the water; whoever then first, after the stirring up of the water, stepped in was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted.]
John 5:5; A man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years.
John 5:6; When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had already been a long time in that condition, He *said to him, "Do you wish to get well?"
John 5:7; The sick man answered Him, "Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me."
John 5:8; Jesus *said to him, "Get up, pick up your pallet and walk."
John 5:9; Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. Now it was the Sabbath on that day.
John 5:10; So the Jews were saying to the man who was cured, "It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet."
John 5:11; But he answered them, "He who made me well was the one who said to me, 'Pick up your pallet and walk.'"
John 5:12; They asked him, "Who is the man who said to you, 'Pick up your pallet and walk'?"
John 5:13; But the man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place.
John 5:14; Afterward Jesus *found him in the temple and said to him, "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you."
John 5:15; The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
John 5:16; For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath.
John 5:17; But He answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working."

Jesus healed on the Sabbath... This wasn't the only time He did this. But why? Why did He heal on the Sabbath, have you ever stopped to consider this?
This man had been laying there in this condition for 38 years. Surely one more day wouldn't have made that much difference... why the Sabbath?
It says that Jesus "knew" that he already been in this condition for a long time.

Now according to the law, you couldn't work on the Sabbath... it was a day of rest. Still I find a little amazing the Pharisees weren't happy the man was healed, they were just mad that
Jesus did work on the Sabbath.

Exod 20:8; "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
Exod 20:9; "Six days you shall labor and do all your work,
Exod 20:10; but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter, your male or your female servant or your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you.

So did Jesus break the law?

Heb 4:15; For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.

The Bible says Jesus was without sin... so how can this be? Well, if it would have been anyone else besides Jesus it would have been a sin.
Why was it OK for Jesus?

Mark 2:27; Jesus said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.
Isa 40:28; Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable.

God doesn't become tired... man does. The Sabbath day was made for our benefit. Not Gods.
So did Jesus "sin" by healing on the Sabbath?

John 5:17; But He answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working."
John 5:18; For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

The Pharisees weren't wrong. Jesus was "making Himself equal with God".

John 5:19; Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
John 5:20; "For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel.
John 5:21; "For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes.
John 5:22; "For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son,
John 5:23; so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.
John 5:24; "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.
John 5:25; "Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.
John 5:26; "For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself;
John 5:27; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man.
John 5:28; "Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice,
John 5:29; and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

Hello... I'm Jesus... I can do things you can't. I can make the lame walk, make the blind see, and raise the dead, but I can only do these things because I am THE Son. The Son can do nothing of Himself.
But yet the Son is doing these things by some power. So Mr Pharisee, lets see what you got... where is your power? One of us has power and one of us doesn't.
Not only that... Just as the Father raises the dead..... so can THE Son.
Not only that... The Father has given all judgment to THE Son.
Not only that ... THE Son gets just as much honor as the Father.
I can do these things because I am THE Son of God. My Father gives Me this power. I am equal to God. I am God incarnate.
I am not subject to the Sabbath day, the Sabbath day was made for man.

Jesus was making it clear who He was by healing on the Sabbath.

... to be continued ...

 

[B-A-C]

It seems that John the Baptist knew who Jesus was before He baptized Him. But in Jesus's ministry John sends some of his followers to ask Jesus a question.

Luke 7:18; The disciples of John reported to him about all these things.
Luke 7:19; Summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, "Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?"
Luke 7:20; When the men came to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, 'Are You the Expected One, or do we look for someone else?'"
Luke 7:21; At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind.
Luke 7:22; And He answered and said to them, "Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the BLIND RECEIVE SIGHT, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the POOR HAVE THE GOSPEL PREACHED TO THEM.
Luke 7:23; "Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me."

Why would Jesus give John this message, if John was looking for the Messiah?

Isa 61:1; The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners;
Isa 35:4; Say to those with anxious heart, "Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you."
Isa 35:5; Then the eyes of the blind will be opened And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.
Isa 35:6; Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah.

In effect... Jesus is saying I am doing the things the Messiah was prophesied to do.

.. to be continued ..

 

[B-A-C]

So then Jesus takes up this entire chapter telling the Jews who He is. What He is. Where He came from.
These things all bear witness to who I am.

Why did He put so much emphasis on this... practically a whole chapter.

John 5:34; "But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved.

He was telling them these things.... so that they might be saved.

If you don't believe Jesus is THE Son of God. If you don't believe Jesus is equal to God, you better read this chapter again.
I was told once... there is no verse in the Bible that says you have to believe in the deity of Jesus in order to be saved.... maybe not, but there is a whole chapter.

 

[B-A-C]

oh yeah...speaking of witnessing about Jesus...

Acts 1:8; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth."

When people see you, are you are witness to Jesus. The Jews and Pharisees could not deny Jesus was from God.

John 3:2; this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."

Acts 4:16; saying, "What shall we do with these men? For the fact that a noteworthy miracle has taken place through them is apparent to all who live in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.

When you tell people Jesus is alive, and He has changed you... is it so apparent to them... that they cannot deny it?

 

[B-A-C]

Matt 3:17; and behold, a voice out of the heavens said, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased."
Mark 1:11; and a voice came out of the heavens: "You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased."

As I mentioned in the OP, the Holy Spirit and Father bore witness to who Jesus was when He was baptized, but some people don't know that wasn't the only time a voice from heaven
said "this is My beloved Son".

Matt 17:5; While he was still speaking, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, "This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him!"
Mark 9:7; Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, "This is My beloved Son, listen to Him!"

I notice the second time the voice comes down... it says "Listen to Him!"

 

[David1954]

Isaiah 9:6: His name shall be called, The Everlasting Father.

 

[QuestionIt]

Isaiah 9:6: His name shall be called, The Everlasting Father.

He wasn't the "Everlasting" father before?

 

[lentz]

That was way too much for me to read. But getting to the part of us being witnesses. And this is just how i see it and could be totally wrong.
But Jusus told the disciples to go unto all the earth. And they did. Paul referenced that.
As far as our witness,it is with our daily lives. Are walking the walk. The lost look at our lived,if they are no different than theirs,wheres the witness?
Do we lie Cheat steal defraud?
What is our witness,but to walk in faith.