John 5:31-36

The Fourfold Witness

³¹ “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not 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. 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.

John’s burning for Christ, the brightness of his passionate preaching, had prepared the people for the Messiah to come, but He came in a way they did not expect, doing what they did not expect.

A king was not born in poverty to obscure parents. A king did not associate with harlots, tax collectors, lepers, Samaritans, and sinners. A king did not go about having to tell people that he was a king.

So while they rejoiced for a time in John’s light as he prepared the way for the Messiah, the coming of the actual Messiah was anti-climactic in the unfolding of its events, and the works that Jesus did, to the point where even John had to ask if He was the one they sought, or was there another. (Matthew 11:3)

As prophecy predicts what, but not when, John’s words spoke to the second coming, but we must also remember that the teaching methods of Christ also produced division, and Jesus said He did not come to bring peace, but a sword, to divide the faithful from the unfaithful even within the same house. (Matthew 10:34-36)

It was also not the kind of war they were used to seeing, because it takes place in the spiritual realm, and we are not designed to see them with our eyes, and Satan goes about the work of blinding our hearts, stopping our ears, and planting tares among the vulnerable fields of churches whose foundations are not built on the Gospel’s rock, and don’t have Christ as their capstone. (Psalm 118:22)

 When He returns, it will not be as the Lamb of G-d, but the Lion of Judah, and He will cleanse the world of His Father’s enemies for all eternity. The first will be last, the least will be greatest, the humble exalted, the merciful forgiven, and the repentant heart redeemed.

Let us be careful then, that we are not rejoicing just for a time in the greater witness and brighter light of our Lord. The novelty of John’s ministry probably appealed to many, and they came to hear him; while his words were convicting enough to see many baptized to repentance, it’s Jesus’ ministry that is the core of our souls’ redemption. It began with Him revealing the Father to us when we called, and sending us the Holy Spirit, and it will end with Him at the judgment, where our works will be tested, we give account, and our souls weighed to enter forever into our Father’s rest, or the outer darkness.

Let us choose then, today, to rejoice for eternity.

Therefore I pray:

Lord Jesus,

      As we enter into Your presence today, let us be mindful to not only offer thanks for our blessings, however few, and praise to the Father for You giving us eternal life, but to get our spiritual houses in order, reaffirming our love of all things holy.

      We ask that the Spirit purge from us all earthly chains of doubt, temptation, and rebellion against that which we know to do, for we would not have a greater darkness in us. (Matthew 6:21-23)

      As we honor You, and give over the ways of our earthly affairs to Your wisdom and guidance, let our fellowship continue beyond the hours of assembly today into all that we do, mindful that You are with us, watching over us, and that none of the accuser’s minions may take us from Your hand.

     Let us rejoice that You see us, wherever we are, gathered in twos and threes, agreeing with You as we walk, as You set our hearts burning within us with the fire of the Father’s Word, all of which points to You, our living Redeemer.

     Creation is groaning, governments are falling, believers are persecuted, people are dying in their sins,  and the prophecies You spoke are coming to pass. We are fearful, though we do not have a spirit of fear. We are saddened, though You tell us to rejoice. As much as we would like to stop the end from coming, we can’t, so strengthen and embolden us as go about doing the work You have given us to save the souls of mankind.

    Let us, like Paul, become all things to all, that whoever hears the call may be saved.

    Let our lives reflect John’s as bright and burning lamps on the hillside, doing works that glorify, and give greater witness to, our Heavenly Father.

     In righteousness, peace, and joy may we honor You. 

     Amen.