Victory by: #1 of 3 - the Testimony of God

The Testimony Concerning the Son of God

(1 John 5:6-12, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, February 26, 2017)

[6] This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. [7] For there are three that testify: [8] the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree. [9] 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. [10] Whoever believes in the Son of God has the testimony in himself. Whoever does not believe God has made him a liar, because he has not believed in the testimony that God has borne concerning his Son. [11] And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. [12] Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.

Last Sunday we heard that we have a victory that overcomes the world. How do we win this victory?

Today and for the next two Sundays we are going to explore three answers:

First, We win by the testimony of God.

Second, we win by confident, God-directed, God-empowered, God-received prayer.

Third, we win by the worship of the true and living God.

In short, we overcome by God. God wins through us. This is the victory of faith.

It still may sound confusing—it should since we are talking about God's heavenly power working through regular people. The way to lift the confusion is not necessarily just through more study, but through more living it out over the course of a life.

The Testimony of Water and Blood

Today, what is this testimony of God that is the first powerful tool that God uses in us and through us to win victory over the world system that is so far from godly doctrine, ethics, and communion? John says this tool is all about Jesus Christ, “who came by water and blood.” John insists on this, “not by the water only, but by the water and the blood.” He then talks about three, and we will get to “the Spirit” in one second, but the three that testify are “the Spirit and the water and the blood.” And John says the three agree. Whatever the water is and whatever the blood is, they have a testimony or a truth claim that they speak, and they agree with each other, and they also agree with the Spirit of God.

In John 19:34 the same apostle says that there was a striking display of water and blood immediately after the death of Jesus as the soldier's spear went into our Lord's side. This was testimony of His real death, and people have thought about that and said many things about it. But here, John says something else, since he talks about Jesus' coming and not necessarily His death. “This is He came by water and blood.” Some people have said that the water is a reference to Jesus's baptism by John when there was a voice from heaven that spoke about Him. The same people usually connect the blood to the testimony of His death. That is all good, but the most obvious “coming” of Jesus Christ was His birth, and in every human birth there is water and blood. The birth of Jesus was messy and wonderful, like the safe delivery of any child born of a woman. Jesus was and is a real human being. When water and blood gave a testimony at his real human death, they were repeating a testimony from His birth.

But why even talk about water and blood at all? The symbolic system of cleansing that God established in the Bible for the Jews was full of verses that tell us about an unusual purification from sin and uncleanness that came by water and the blood. Now we must go to the death of the Christ who Himself came by water and blood for humanity, and sing with “Rock of Ages” these powerful words, “let the water and the blood from Thy riven side which flowed be of sin the double cure, cleanse me from its guilt and power.” This is amplified by what John said in 1 John 1:7, “if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.”

The Testimony of the Spirit

More briefly, the testimony of the Spirit is the testimony of God, which comes to us most certainly through the Word of the Scriptures. This is “the testimony of God” and thus greater than the testimony of men. It tells us with certainty the facts of our Savior. Who better to testify concerning the Son of God? People may say all sorts of things about Jesus. What we want to hear about is this: What does God say in the Scriptures? That's the best answer for us.

The Bible agrees with the real birth of Jesus and the real death of Jesus. It not only tells us the plain facts, but it assures us of what it all means for us. This is the testimony of God concerning His Son, and we who believe have this testimony living within our souls. Those who do not believe, that is another story. But for all who do believe, true faith in Jesus Christ as the Son of God is a sign of the testimony of the Spirit in us.

The Testimony: God Gave Us Eternal Life in His Son

What is the content of this testimony?

1 John 5:11 tells us very clearly: “God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.”

Not only was Jesus Christ a real man, not only was He also the Son of God, not only did He die to cleanse us from all sin, Jesus had victory over death for us. He rose from the dead. This is the most important fact that anyone can know. But don't just know the fact, know what it means for you: eternal life. That life is “in His Son,” the Son of God from before the world began, the Son of God who came by water and blood, the Son of God who died and rose again, the Son of God who reigns in heaven and who lives in us now by the Holy Spirit.

With this testimony of God, you have the Son, and you have eternal life. Without this testimony, you do not have the Son, and therefore you do not have Christian life, and you do not have eternal life. Nothing could be more serious.

It is our privilege to receive, live, and proclaim the testimony regarding Jesus and the church: God has given us eternal life in His Son.

Old Testament Reading—Psalm 3 – Many Foes

Gospel Reading—Matthew 6:5-6 – [5] And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. [6] But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.