Day 12 - 1 John 5:6-12 - Witness

6 This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement. 9 We accept human testimony, but God’s testimony is greater because it is the testimony of God, which he has given about his Son. 10 Whoever believes in the Son of God accepts this testimony. Whoever does not believe God has made him out to be a liar, because they have not believed the testimony God has given about his Son. 11 And this is the testimony: God has given us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12 Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

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John puts on his lawyer’s cap and takes up presenting evidence that Jesus is the source of life.*

Exhibit 1:  The water, Jesus baptism.  Something extraordinary happened when Jesus was baptized – the Spirit came down in the form of a dove and a voice boomed from heaven confirming Jesus as the Son of God.  John may have been there to witness that event, and if not him, others he knew testified to it.  This at least got people to thinking that Jesus was more than just another prophet.

Exhibit #2:  The blood, Jesus’ crucifixion.  We know John was at this one and what happened that day even left a Roman centurion doubtless as to who Jesus is.  The extraordinary events surrounding his death demonstrated the enormity of his sacrifice and the uniqueness of his death.

Exhibit #3:  The Spirit, the Day of Pentecost.  Just as Jesus had promised, the apostles experienced a dose of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost unlike any before.  It seems like this event, in culmination with all the others, sealed the deal for the apostles.  With boldness and confidence they unapologetically proclaimed that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan.

There is no doubt that John was convinced of who Jesus is, and he maintains that to deny the evidence is paramount to calling God a liar.  How much more evidence would be required; how much more could God have done?  To those who accept the New Testament as historical, and there is more than enough evidence to do that, Jesus is, without doubt, the Son of God and the source of all life.  Accept no substitutes!

*There is debate on exactly what John means by water,blood, and spirit.  These are my thoughts.