WHAT DOES IT MATTER?

1 John 5:6-8 NLT
[6] And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water and by shedding his blood on the cross—not by water only, but by water and blood. And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony. [7] So we have these three witnesses— [8] the Spirit, the water, and the blood—and all three agree.

It mattered to John that Jesus was both a real human being, not another kind of being, as some were teaching. He took pains to point out that those who taught otherwise were against… anti Christ. It mattered to him that his readers were sure that Jesus, the human was also the real Son of God. To prove this testimony to be true, he had to produce at least two or three witnesses.

John delves into the unseen realm to produce his witnesses.

1. He recalls Jesus’ baptism and the voice from heaven. He must have heard the words of that heavenly witness, “This is my Son!” The Father meant the crowds around John the Baptist that day to hear His words.

1 John 5:6 NLT
[6] “And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son by his baptism in water…

2. Another powerful witness to Jesus’ identity as God’s Son is the whole cross event. Before His death, Jesus prophesied that He would be crucified and rise again. What other human could make such a ridiculous prediction and pull it off? And John saw it all!

1 John 5:6 NLT
[6] And Jesus Christ was revealed as God’s Son… by shedding his blood on the cross—not by water only, but by water and blood.

The cross event was no happenstance in history. It was planned before history. It was executed in time. It has eternal consequences. No other event in history has affected the world since creation as did the death of Jesus on a Roman torture stake. Who can deny the evidence that Jesus Christ was no ordinary man?

3. The Holy Spirit, lost to humanity when Adam sinned, was restored to the earth on the day of Pentecost. He took up permanent residence in every believer then and now. He constantly and persistently bears witness, in our spirits, to the truth of all that Jesus is and claimed to be.

1 John 5:6 NLT
… And the Spirit, who is truth, confirms it with his testimony.

Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would reveal His (Jesus’) identity to us when He (the Spirit) came, and He does. With the Spirit, we cannot know Jesus. He reveals and interprets all that Jesus is and does, in our hearts as we read His Word and experience Him in our lives.

John 16:13-15 NLT
[13] When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. [14] He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me. [15] All that belongs to the Father is mine; this is why I said, ‘The Spirit will tell you whatever he receives from me.’

1 John 5:9 NLT
[9] Since we believe human testimony, surely, we can believe the greater testimony that comes from God. And God has testified about his Son.

So, John, you have proved your point that Jesus is both Son of man and Son of God.