Can I get a witness?

 

John 5:31-47

Can I get a witness?!?!

Tonight’s message is entitled “Can I get a witness?”

Anyone that’s even been to a good ol fashioned tent revival knows this phrase well. In between preachers and sometimes in the middle of a sermon the speaker would pause what he was doing to say “Can I get a witness?” Opening the floor to all those that were present. Then a witness would come forth, and to the altar and testify about something the Lord has done for them in their lives. They are presenting themselves as a witness, someone who has personally experienced the blessings of the Lord and wants to share them with as many people as possible. What do we bear witness to? Our lives, our words, our actions all bear witness but to what exactly?

³¹ “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not ^[e]true. ³² There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true. ³³ You have sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth. ³⁴ Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.

Jesus has gotten into a theological debate with the Pharisees & Sadducees. They were accusing Him of violating the Sabbath. They have been scrambling for something to accuse Him with so they can get rid of Him. They respond with wanting to kill Him. Jesus responds with the Gospel. The last few sermons we have seen Christ explain to us Who He is, as the only begotten son of the Father. He is the way, the truth and the life and no man comes to the Father except through Him.

There next retort to this would have been “You’re just saying this about yourself. It doesn’t count.” He counters that before they can even respond with “If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true.” Jesus being the Logos, the living embodiment of truth, could easily bear witness of Himself. Jewish legal practice at the time, a person’s testimony about himself was not accepted in court.

Deut 19: 35 ““A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established”

You’ve already seen a witness! John the Baptist came as a witness to me and you ignored him. Jesus then says a verse that seems a bit tricky at first. I don’t receive testimony from man.

I know you’ve heard all manner of sermons that boil down to “God needs you to do this, that, or the other. “ You’ve seen all manner of preachers that say “God needs your money, time, resources.”

I’m here to tell you, as well intentioned as some of that might be. It’s complete poppycock! God needs nothing from you, NOTHING! He spoke the whole of creation into existence. Every breathe of take is an act of mercy overflowing from His sustaining grace. What possession do you own, what ability have you so perfected, that Almighty God somehow is unable to do so Himself? It is nothing but filthy soul condemning pride that makes us consider, even for a moment, there is something God needs of us.

What’s His motivation then? That people might be saved! This should be our motivation as well!

 ³⁵ He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. ³⁶ But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. ³⁷ And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form. ³⁸ But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. ³⁹ You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. ⁴⁰ But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.

He goes to call out their treatment of John. You enjoy Him for a moment but then once you were convicted you were done with Him. It’s a lot of people like that these days. That’s us, that’s me. There are certain preachers I don’t like to listen to because I know I’m going to be convicted by their sermons. Yet, I am always grateful in the long run that I did.

Jesus says you ignored John’s message and John’s testimony of me. Yet, don’t you remember what happened when I was baptized? The Father Himself spoke and said “This is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased.”  The Father Himself spoke of me! Gave testimony to Me. Yet, you ignored that also! You could not hear Him. You could not see Him. Why is that? Because you do not know the scriptures!

That’s an accusation that could be made to many of us in the church these days and it’s valid. Our Biblical knowledge is not what it should be due to the lack of time we spend in God’s Word.

However, these guys, the Pharisees and Sadducees were considered masters of the law. There entire lives revolved around the scriptures, knowing them, memorizing them, copying them and being experts in them. They could quote them backwards and forwards!

This is before google, the printing press, and neatly aligned chapters and verses with study aids. Here Jesus is telling them their life’s work has been nothing but a waist of time. One the greatest tragedies I have witnessed time and time again are people who know what The Bible says but don’t know the one who wrote it.

The Bible is our source for knowledge about God. There’s enough in the Bible revealed about Jesus for people to come to salvation. The Bible is a book about Jesus. When I was in the youth David sent us on a Biblical scavenger hunt. We had to find Jesus in every book of the Bible. Now, in the Gospels and the NT in general this was easy. Yet, as I went through the OT I found Jesus every where I looked as well. Start to finish the Bible is first and foremost a book about finding Salvation in Jesus. They knew all this knowledge about God yet they did not know God.

⁴¹ “I do not receive honor from men. ⁴² But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you. ⁴³ I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive. ⁴⁴ How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God? ⁴⁵ Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you—Moses, in whom you trust. ⁴⁶ For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me. ⁴⁷ But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

Jesus is now wrapping things up. If you had listened to John you would believe He tells them. If you had understood Moses you would believe. Two earthly witnesses. If you had listened to the scriptures you would believe. If you had listened to the Father you would believe. Two irrefutable spiritual witnesses. That’s double the requirement of the law. Not only did He provided multiple witnesses but ones of the highest caliber as well.

Charles Spurgeon preached a message on John 5:44 (Why Men Cannot Believe in Christ) and in that sermon he looked at how fame, honor, and celebrity hinder true faith. Here are a few quotes from that sermon.

· “When a man gets to feel that he ought to be honored, he is in extreme danger.”

· “Always receiving this undeserved honor, they deceived themselves into believing that they deserved it.”

· “Dear friends, it is very difficult to receive honor and to expect it, and yet to keep your eyesight; for men’s eyes gradually grow dull through the smoke of the incense which is burned before them.”

· “the praise of men generally turns the receivers of it into great cowards.”

· “But, oh, how many live on the breath of their fellow men; to be approved — to be applauded — that is their heaven; but to be despised, to be sneered at, to be called fool, to have some nickname applied to them; oh no, they would sooner go to hell than bear that.”

The stumbling block of the scribes and Pharisees was their pride. They lived and thrived on each other’s praise. Constantly tearing each other down while trying to present themselves in the best light possible. Sound familiar? There’s nothing new under the sun. To acknowledge Christ was to deny themselves. They chose to forfeit their souls instead of their standing with each themselves and others.

What kind of witness do we give? If those closest to us gave testimony to our lives what would it look like? What would it sound like? Would it glorify God or ourselves?

1 Cor 10:31 “Whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God”