1 JOHN 5: 6-12

GOD THE FATHER AS WITNESS

First

Happy Birthday to Israel … yesterday May 14.

63 YEARS OLD (May 14, 1948)

FATHER SPEAKING OF JESUS THE SON

“THIS IS HE WHO CAME BY WATER AND BLOOD – JESUS CHRIST, NOT BY WATER ONLY, BUT BY THE WATER AND THE BLOOD. AND IT IS THE SPIRIT WHO TESTIFIES BECAUSE THE SPIRIT IS THE TRUTH. FOR THERE ARE THREE THAT TESTIFY: THE SPIRIT AND THE WATER AND THE BLOOD, AND THESE THREE AGREE. IF WE RECEIVE THE TESTIMONY OF MEN, THE TESTIMONY OF GOD IS GREATER, FOR THIS IS THE TESTIMONY OF GOD THAT HE HAS BORNE CONCERNING HIS SON …

VS 10 - 12

.. THE ONE WHO BELIEVES IN THE SON OF GOD HAS THE WITNESS IN HIMSELF; THE ONE WHO DOES NOT BELIEVE GOD HAS MADE HIM A LIAR, BECAUSE HE HAS NOT BELIEVED IN THE WITNESS THAT GOD HAS BORNE CONCERNING HIS SON. AND THE WITNESS 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.”

‘HE WHO CAME BY WATER AND THE BLOOD’

“THIS IS THE MOST PERPLEXING PASSAGE IN THE EPISTLE AND ONE OF THE MOST PERPLEXING IN THE NEW TESTAMENT”

• JAMES MONTGOMERY BOICE

BUT FIRST LETS PRAY FOR GOD’S WISDOM TO BE APPLIED TO OUR HEARTS.

PRAY

IN CONTRAST TO SCRIPTURE

THERE IS A GROUP THAT CLAIMS TO BE GOD’S WITNESSES… “JEVOVAH’S WITNESSES”

THEY CLAIM TO BE PROPAGATING THE TRUTH THAT GOD WANTS PROCLAIMED…

BUT THE TRUTH THAT GOD IN HIS WORD REVEALED… THE TRUE WITNESS OF JEHOVAH GOD IS THAT JESUS IS THE CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD, GOD INCARNATE.

THEY ARE LIARS … BECAUSE THE VERY THING THAT GOD REVEALS IN HIS WORD.. THEY DENY… SUMMED UP IN THIS TEXT.

CONSIDER

AGAIN I John 5: 6 +

“THIS IS HE WHO CAME BY WATER AND BLOOD – JESUS CHRIST, NOT BY WATER ONLY, BUT BY THE WATER AND THE BLOOD. AND THE SPIRIT IS THE ONE WHO TESTIFIES BECAUSE THE SPIRIT IS THE TRUTH. FOR THERE ARE THREE THAT TESTIFY: THE SPIRIT AND THE WATER AND THE BLOOD, AND THESE THREE AGREE. IF WE RECEIVE THE TESTIMONY OFMEN, THE TESTIMONY OF GOD IS GREATER, FOR THIS IS THE TESTIMONY OF GOD THAT HE HAS BORNE CONCERNING HIS SON:”

WHAT DOES “WATER AND BLOOD” REFER TO?

I FOUND 8 (EIGHT) ALTERNATIVES…

HANG IN THERE… DON’T PUT YOUR MIND IN NEUTRAL… WE ARE JUST GETTING STARTED

WATER

BLOOD

BAPTISM OF JESUS

CRUCIFICATION OF JESUS

TERTULLIANGAEBELEINJ.MacARTHURKAY ARTHUR

SPROUL: THIS IS UNLIKELY, SINCE JOHN IN HIS GOSPEL DOES NOT DIRECTLY RECOUNT THE BAPTISM OF JESUS

WATER

BLOOD

REFERS TO THE TWO SACRAMENTS (BAPTISM AND COMMUNION)

LUTHERCALVIN

SPROUL: THIS IS UNLIKELY, SINCE JOHN DOES NOT RECOUNT THE INSTITUTION OF THE SACRAMENTS IN HIS GOSPEL

WATER

BLOOD

REFERS TO JOHN 19:34 THE BLOOD AND THE WATER THAT FLOWED FROM JESUS AT HIS DEATH WHEN SPEARED

AUGUSTINESPROUL

SEE JOHN 20:20;25-27

WATER

BLOOD

OUR BAPTISM

RECEIVING COMMUNION

WATER

BLOOD

WORD OF GOD

HIS DEATH -CRUCIFICATION

J V McGEEJOHN MITCHELL

WATER USED IN SCRIPTURE SYMBOLICALLY FOR WORD OF GOD

WATER

BLOOD

RECEIVED THE “CHRIST SPIRIT” AT BAPTISM.CHRIST “SPIRIT” LEFT HIM JUST BEFORE DEATH

CERINTHUS GNOSTIC LEADER(REPORTED TO LIVE IN EPHESUS SAME TIME AS JOHN)

McGee “Water Speaks of Word of God”

The Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus (John 3:5)“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God”

The water is the living WORD applied by the Spirit of God. “He that came by water” – it is the Word of God that the Spirit of God uses… Even Jesus Christ, not be water only, but by water and blood. Thus for salvation, one needs the above coupled with the cross… the substitutionary death of Christ.

WATER

BLOOD

O.T. SACRIFICIAL SYMBOLISM - WATER OF PURIFICATION, BLOOD OF THE SACRIFICE

PLUMMERCANDLISH

WATER

BLOOD

CHRIST NATURAL BIRTHHIS DEATH - CRUCIFICATION

CURRIE/HALL JOHN BEGINS HIS GOSPEL AND EPISTLE AFFIRMING JESUS CHRIST FULLY MAN AND FULLY GOD

WATER

BLOOD

YOUR ALTERNATIVE

AND THE BEST ALTERNATIVE IS?

(Your humble teacher’s opinoin)

McGee “Water Speaks of Word of God”

The Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus (John 3:5)“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God”

The “water” is the living WORD applied by the Spirit of God. “He that came by water” – it is the Word of God that the Spirit of God uses… Even Jesus Christ, not by water only, but by water and blood. Thus for salvation, one needs the above coupled with the cross… the substitutionary death of Christ.

Vs 8: “For there are three that bear witness, the Spirit and the Water and the Blood”

What is the Agreement between these three?ONE PURPOSE: That is, the purpose of

presenting Jesus Christ as the Saviour of the world who shed His blood upon Calvary and paid the penalty for our sins. The Holy Spirit will take the Word of God and apply it to your heart. His witnesses are present that you might come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ.

How are you going to come to that knowledge? Through the Word of God.

1 Peter 1: 23

“Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the WORD of GOD, which liveth and abideth for ever”

Not only can He save you, but the Word of God can also keep you clean while you are down here.

John Mitchell (Multinomah School of the Bible) says” Word of God speaks of our “Judicial Cleansing” (salv.) Word of God speaks of our “Moral Cleansing” (daily)

VS 7: “And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is the truth”

It is the Spirit who can make these truths live.

Remember between the Resurrection and the day of Pentecost… our Lord instructed his disciples… THEY WERE TO TARRY IN JERUSALEM AND DO NOTHING… THEY WERE NOT TO WITNESS. WHY?

THEY COULD NOT WITNESS EFFECTUALLY WITHOUT THE HOLY SPIRIT.

Vs 9: “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for the

witness of God is this, that He has borne witness concerning His Son.”

All you have to do is watch TV.. And you realize most “news shows” are just “spin”… and what is scary … most people in this nation, believe them… (I am not sure I believe any of them.)

Same with press and magazines….BUT MOST DO NOT BELIEVE GOD’S WORD.Eventually they will stand in judgment.

Vs 10: The one who believes in the Son of God has the witness in

himself; the one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the witness that God has borne concerning His Son.

The one who believes has within him/her the Holy Spirit … confirming the truth of the Word of GOD.

Very scary for those who have made God a liar.

Vs 11: And the witness is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son..

What is the witness? Eternal Life is to have CHRIST. (McGee: “Gospel in a nutshell”)

Do you have Christ?

Vs 12: “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of

God hath not life”

He that belongs to Grace Baptist has life…NOHe that belongs to the Catholic Church has

life.. NOHe that belongs to …Your church membership has NO BEARING…ITS ALL ABOUT HAVE YOU REPENTED

AND BELIEVED IN THE WORK AND PERSON OF CHRIST?