{"id":14258,"date":"2021-02-14T21:00:01","date_gmt":"2021-02-15T04:00:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/john_5_19-30-copy\/"},"modified":"2021-02-14T17:47:50","modified_gmt":"2021-02-15T00:47:50","slug":"john_5_31-40","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/john_5_31-40\/","title":{"rendered":"Four Witnesses"},"content":{"rendered":"

John 5:31-40\u00a0 \u00a0 Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is John 5:31-40.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

John 5:31-34 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n31\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“If I testify about myself, my testimony is not valid.
\n32\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is valid.
\n33\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth.
\n34\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 31-34:\u00a0\u00a0The Jewish law provided that claims that people in court should be established by two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15; Matthew 18:16).\u00a0\u00a0Knowing this, to back up his claims about him being the Son of God, he cites John the Baptist as one of his witnesses.\u00a0\u00a0He does this not because he personally feels any need for a human witness (\u201cNot that I accept human testimony\u201d \u2013 v34a) but to address questions people may have about Jesus\u2019 credibility (\u201cbut I mention it that you may be saved\u201d \u2013 v34b).\u00a0\u00a0John the Baptist was one of Israel\u2019s most respected leaders and thus his testimony about Jesus gave weight to Jesus\u2019 claims.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0When, like John the Baptist, you live a life that others can admire and respect, your good reputation lends credibility to your words.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0People will be more open to what you have to say.\u00a0\u00a0Conversely, if you have a bad reputation, people will have trouble believing you, even if you are right.<\/p>\n

John 5:35-36 (NIV)\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>
\n35\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light.
\n36\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing, testifies that the Father has sent me.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 35-36:\u00a0\u00a0A second \u201cwitness\u201d that Jesus cites to back up his claim that he is the Son of God is the miraculous works Jesus was doing.\u00a0\u00a0The body of miracles that Jesus was performing \u2013 \u201cthe very work that the Father has given me to finish, and which I am doing\u201d \u2013 \u201ctestifies that the Father has sent\u201d (v36) Jesus.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Jesus\u2019 own actions supported his claims as the Son of God.\u00a0\u00a0Similarly, may your actions \u2013 not just your words \u2013 speak to others about who Jesus is.<\/strong><\/p>\n

John 5:37-38 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n37\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form,
\n38\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 37-38:\u00a0\u00a0A third witness Jesus cites to back up his claims as the Son of God is God the Father.\u00a0\u00a0In verse 37 Jesus says, \u201cthe Father who has sent me has himself testified concerning me\u201d (v37).\u00a0However, Jesus acknowledges that the people\u2019s ability to hear the Father\u2019s testimony about Jesus is blocked by their unbelief.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As verses 37-38 say, \u201cYou have never heard his voice nor seen his form, nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0This suggests to me that\u00a0if you want to see God and hear God\u2019s voice, it begins with having faith, believing in Jesus.<\/strong><\/p>\n

John 5:39-40 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n39\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me,
\n40\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0yet you refuse to come to me to have life.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 39-40:\u00a0\u00a0Jesus cites a fourth witness that testifies about Jesus being the Son of God.\u00a0\u00a0That fourth witness is the Scriptures.\u00a0\u00a0Jesus says that the Scriptures \u201ctestify about me\u201d (v39).\u00a0\u00a0One of the big themes in John is that the Old Testament points to Jesus the Messiah and the Son of God. These verses also show us that studying the Bible by itself does not give you eternal life.\u00a0\u00a0As Jesus says in verse 39, \u201cyou diligently study the Scriptures because you think by them you possess eternal life\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0Rather,\u00a0while the Scriptures help us to know who Jesus is, it\u2019s in coming to Jesus with faith that we receive life\u00a0<\/strong>(\u201cyet you refuse to come to me to have life\u201d \u2013 v40).<\/p>\n

Lord Jesus, thank You that John the Baptist, your powerful works, God the Father, and Scripture all testify about who You are: the Son of God.\u00a0\u00a0May I join this quartet of witnesses and be a witness who, through my actions and words, testifies to others of who you are and the difference you make.\u00a0\u00a0In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is John 5:31-40.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

John 5:31-34 (NIV)\u00a0
\n31\u00a0\u00a0“If I testify about myself, my testimony is not valid.\u00a0
\n32\u00a0\u00a0There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is valid.\u00a0
\n33\u00a0\u00a0“You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth.\u00a0
\n34\u00a0\u00a0Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved.<\/p>\n

On verses 31-34:\u00a0\u00a0The Jewish law provided that claims that people in court should be established by two or three witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15; Matthew 18:16).\u00a0\u00a0Knowing this, to back up his claims about him being the Son of God, he cites John the Baptist as one of his witnesses.\u00a0\u00a0He does this not because he personally feels any need for a human witness (\u201cNot that I accept human testimony\u201d \u2013 v34a) but to address questions people may have about Jesus\u2019 credibility (\u201cbut I mention it that you may be saved\u201d \u2013 v34b).\u00a0\u00a0John the Baptist was one of Israel\u2019s most respected leaders and thus his testimony about Jesus gave weight to Jesus\u2019 claims.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14260,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14258","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14258"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14258\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14259,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14258\/revisions\/14259"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14260"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}