Four of Four

John 5:^45-47 “Yet it isn’t I who will accuse you before the Father. Moses will accuse you! Yes, Moses, in whom you put your hopes. If you really believed Moses, you would believe me, because he wrote about me. But since you don’t believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?”

Yesterday we looked at the first two of the four-fold witness; Self-testimony and Testimony of Another. However, Jesus chose that these first two are insufficient simply since they are human testimony because He is superior. John 5:⁴¹ “Your approval means nothing to me.” I pray again for you that you will get to a place [even now], where the approval of men means nothing to you. When you get to that place, your life will be so beautiful. People can say what they want to say, it is what God says about you that matters. John 5:⁴⁴ “No wonder you can’t believe! For you gladly honour each other, but you don’t care about the honour that comes from the one who alone is God.” We should only care about honour from God not honour from men. When God honours you, men will have no choice. When a man honours you, a man can dishonour you. When a man lifts you up, a man can pull you down. When God lifts you up, no man can pull you down.

#3. God’s Work Through Me [through Jesus]: John 5:³⁶ “But I have a greater witness than John—my teachings and my miracles…”(emphasis added). Jesus was pointing out to them that the Word of God, He was speaking to them and the work that God was doing through Him were witnesses to them. John 5:^36-37 “The Father gave me these works to accomplish, and they prove that he sent me. And the Father who sent me has testified about me himself…” So, Jesus can go to the tomb of Lazarus who had been dead for four days and had already begun to stink and everybody is crying. Jesus instructs them to roll away the stone and Jesus can confidently say, “Father, I know You hear me but because of them I am saying this, Lazarus come forth!” And he that was dead came back to life. Jesus could say that confidently because the Father confirms it. John 5:⁴³ “For I have come to you in my Father’s name, and you have rejected me. Yet if others come in their own name, you gladly welcome them.”

Jesus gave them the Self-testimony, the Testimony of another, and a witness of God’s work through Him and they still did not accept. So, He gave them the fourth.

#4. The Scriptures: John 5:^39-40 “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.” Jesus was saying to them, ‘The scriptures you are reading, from Genesis to Malachi, point to Me.’ That is not just a huge claim, it is a bold claim also. Guess who Jesus’ audience was? The religious leaders, scholars of the Bible. John 5:^46-47 “If you really believed Moses, you would believe me because he wrote about me. But since you don’t believe what he wrote, how will you believe what I say?” Jesus reeled out the four-fold witness and these people still did not believe. Every time we do not believe God’s Word, we must be careful that we are not becoming Pharisees.

Prayer [song]: I believe in Jesus. I believe He is the Son of God. I believe He died and rose again. I believe He paid for us all. I believe He’s here now, standing in our midst… Amen!