The Four Witnesses - Pastor Daniel Banna

I want to, meditate today on a scripture from the gospel of John chapter five from verse 31 to 40. Jesus is speaking. If I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true. There is another who bears witness of me, and I know that the witness which he witnesses of me is true. You have sent to John, and he has born witness to the truth.

Yet, I do not receive testimony from men, but I see these things that you may be saved. He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. 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. And the father himself who sent me has testified of me.

You have neither heard his voice at any time nor seen his form, but you do not have his word abiding in you because whom he sent, him you do not believe. You search the scriptures for in them you think you have eternal life and these are they which testify of me, but you are not willing to come to me that you may have life. The words of the Lord Jesus Christ. Four witnesses. I want you to imagine yourself in a courtroom.

You are a defendant. You are being accused of very, very serious crime punishable by death. Yet you know very well you are innocent. You did not commit that crime. In the courtroom, there is a judge.

In the courtroom, there is a plaintiff who's accusing you of that crime. In the court, there are the juries. In the court, there is a defense lawyer. In the court, you are there with handcuffs. You are being accused of that serious crime and you are innocent.

You have great defense. You have a great alibi. Yet you have not committed that crime yet. Your your alibi alone is not enough for the court. You need something else.

You need witnesses to substantiate your case. What you are telling is true. Your alibi is true. What Jesus is telling us in this chapter, in these verses, the Jews are accusing him, the Jews are seeking to kill him and he's providing us with these witnesses just in for the sake to show us and to show them and show everyone that he's the the only one who's testifying of himself but there are also others. Early in the chapter, Christ healed the paralytic man.

And do you know when did he heal him? He healed him on the Sabbath. And I'm sure as you read the scripture, you see often Christ heals on the Sabbath. Seven miracles, Christ did on the Sabbath day. He was confronting the Jews by doing that.

It seems he wanted to pick up a fight with him. He was just doing the miracles on the Sabbath knowing that that was really not something you don't want to do. No, he was doing it. It was the right thing to do. And in verse 16 of the same chapter, it says, For this reason, healing on the Sabbath day.

The Jews persecuted Jesus and sought to kill him because he had done these things when? On the Sabbath. In verse 17, we see the response of Jesus to their persecution. But just answer them, my father has been working until now and I have been working. You know what Jesus is saying here?

He says, my father has been working until now. You're telling me I can't heal on the Sabbath? You know, God the father never takes a day off. He's been working till now. He never rests.

The only day God the father rested, do you know when? The seventh day of creation. That's the only time God rested and since then because of sin God is working. And yet it's telling them, my God, God the father is working till now, and I am working. Can you see what he is saying?

He's saying something the Jews could not even hear. Verse 18 clarifies that, therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill him because he not only broke the Sabbath, and by the way, Christ did not break the Sabbath. Can you say that? Christ did not break the Sabbath. Christ never broke the Sabbath.

He broke the Sabbath according to Jews' understanding. He broke the oral law. He never broke the written word. God never said you cannot heal on a Sabbath day. Christ never broke the Sabbath.

He was accused of something he did not do, but according to them, he broke the Sabbath. Again, it says because he not only broke Sabbath according to their understanding, but also said that God was his father making himself what? Equal, equal with God. Now go back to verse 31. Jesus is saying here, if I bear witness of myself, my witness is not true.

Did Jesus bear witness of himself? Because some might understand this as saying Jesus did not bear witness of himself. Yes. Jesus did. In fact, he just did in the verse we just read, verse 18.

He made himself equal with God in nature when he said, my father is working till now and I am working. And again, in verse 21, Jesus makes himself equal with God in power. He says, for as the father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the son gives life to whom he will. He makes himself equal with God, equal to God in nature. He makes himself equal to God in power.

And then look at verse 23, he makes himself equal with God in authority. For the father judges no one, verse 22, but has committed all judgment to the son. And listen to verse 23, that all should honor the son as just, just as they honor the father. The same reverence you give to God the father, you give to the Lord Jesus Christ, the son, because he is co equal with God. Christ has give witness of himself.

John eight thirteen, listen to what Christ himself has said. Verse 13, The Pharisees therefore said to him, said to Jesus, you bear witness of yourself. Your witness is not true. Christ answers and told them, Jesus answered and said to them, even if I bear witness of myself, my witness is true for I know where I came from and where I am going. And these are just few verses where Christ himself bear witness, bore witness of himself.

So how anyone could claim that God never Christ never claimed to be God. So what was really then Jesus is saying here? Jesus was saying here, listen, he was saying this, if my testimony about myself is the only testimony, there is nothing else then don't believe it. Because according to the law, a testimony if one person is not accepted. Not in court today and not in the law of Moses then.

But there is much more than me. Listen what the word of God says in Deuteronomy chapter 19 verse 15. It says this, One witness, Deuteronomy nineteen fifteen, One witness shall not rise against a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits, we'd be in trouble if one man can come and just testify against another and here you put him in jail, here you sent him to death. Continues and says, by the mouth of two or three witnesses, the matter must be established. And Paul the Apostle in second Corinthians thirteen one, he quotes the same verse.

He says, by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word shall be established. I guess the principle of God the principles of God what? They do not change. The Jews knew very well the law. They knew that no one can be convicted by one by one witness only, but in the testimony of one witness, they need what?

Two or three. And by the way, they practice this commandment at the trial of Jesus. Remember in Matthew 26? Here Jesus is the accused one. Here Christ was going to be put to death.

And here the Pharisees, here the elders, here the whole council of the Jews seeking to kill Jesus and seeking what? False witnesses. And none can be found, but then the word of God says, and then later, two false witnesses came. Two, not one. There was a need for two witnesses at at least, and these two false witnesses came and testify against Jesus.

You know, by doing this, the Jews they were convicting themselves. You know why? The law was giving to protect the innocent and now the Jews is using the same law. The law was was was given to protect the innocent and the Jews was using the law to convict the innocent and sent him to die. How did he do that?

By bringing false witnesses. Let's see what Deuteronomy nineteen sixteen through 19 says concerning a false witness, he says, you shall do to him, the false witness, as he thought to have done to his brother, so you shall put away the evil from among you. You shall do to him as he thought to do to his brother. Now all the Jews are guilty of that. The scribes are guilty of that.

The Pharisees are guilty of that. The elders are guilty of that, and the whole council of the Jews are guilty of that for seeking false witnesses. That law, that commandment that they used to convict Jesus convicts him all and put him all to death. As they thought to do, must be done to them. So Jesus here, as we go back to our verse, bringing forth some witnesses according to the law, two or three.

Two or three. And then he says in verse 32, there is another who bears witness of me. And I know that the witness which he witnesses of me is true. How is the word he in your bible? Is it a capital h or a small h?

Mine is capital. Is capital h? Anybody has small h? Small? Okay.

Alright. Alright. I mean, again, scholars, you know, some may think it's a small h refers to John because in verse three speaks about John or capital h which refers to God the Father. Probably it is God the Father. God the Father who testifies through different means of his son, Jesus Christ.

And Christ now he brings those witnesses. And the first witness he brings who? John. Verse 33. He said, You have sent to John, and he has born witness to the truth.

I love John the Baptist. You know that. Right? And I quoted him several times. In chapter one of the gospel of John, the Jews sent sent Pharisees the Pharisees sent some Jews, some Levites, to Christ, to to to John the Baptist to ask him, who was he?

He was doing great miracles. And John the Baptist says, I am not the Christ. I am not the Messiah that you are expecting. I'm not Elijah. Who then are you?

You remember his reply. Right? I'm just a voice. I'm just a voice crying in the wilderness. And then the next day, he sees Christ and he say he says, behold the lamb of God, then behold the lamb of God again.

And that's very interesting, by the way, because in the same chapter in the same chapter, it says the second day, he was John the the Baptist was with with with two of his disciples. One of them was Andrew and in most cases, the other was John. Now we know these two disciples, by the way, they became the disciples of who? Of the Lord Jesus Christ. So they were before they became the disciples of Jesus Christ, they were the disciples of John.

They were with John, and John saw Jesus, and he said, behold the lamb of God. And the bible says, the two disciples lift John and followed Jesus. What kind of a leader is this? I thought leaders wants to gather disciples of themselves. John the Baptist was just doing exactly the opposite.

Just the opposite. My ministry is almost over. This is the one. I have come. A voice crying in the wilderness to prepare the way of the Lord.

And now Christ is coming. I am what? Living. And you see slowly slowly, his ministry fades back, and Christ's ministry kicks in. By this time, John was already in prison.

Herod put him in prison because he did not like what he heard from him. He rebuked him. He told him, It's unlawful to you to have your brother's wife. He put him in prison. He wanted to kill him, but he could not kill him at that time because he feared the Jews.

And God allowed John the Baptist to be killed, that if there is any disciple still adhering to him, sticking to him, it's time for you to leave your master and follow the one whom John gave witness to, the Lord Jesus Christ. He told him about John. He say, he said, you have sent to John and he has born witness to the truth. Now John was not just any witness, he was a reliable witness. You don't accept a witness from a liar, but John was respected, was known a man of integrity among the Jews.

He was known as a prophet. Even John testified of me. Verse 34. Yes, he is. Yet, I do not receive testimony from from man.

And even though John was not just any man, he was the greatest man man born of women, and his testimony was so reliable. That he just says, I do not receive or I do not depend on a testimony of man. I have a greater testimony than testimony of John. But I'm just bringing him as an example because he was such a great man and he is so reliable. He's so reputable man.

I don't need man's testimony. He continues, verse 35. He says Christ says, he was, John, the burning and shining lamp. He was burning and shining lamp. He was not the light, he was a lamp.

He was a burning and shining lamp, are you? He was not the light. In John one six, tell us this word about John. This man came from for a witness to bear witness of the light that all through him might believe he was not the light, but he was sent to bear witness of the light. My son Tim has talked about the light.

He has himself, you know, he said more than once, I am the light of the world. You know, back on the fourth day of creation, God created the two greatest lights. And the word God says, and the greater light was what? Was the sun. And Christ when he says, I am the light, I think he bringing our thoughts to that sun that never stops shining.

Listen, you might not see the sun, but it did not stop shining. If it's not shining here, it's shining in The Middle East. It's not in The Middle East, it's shining in Australia, and it does not stop shining. It's always shining. A lamp is limited.

A lamp might shine a room, a house, a corner of a street, but the sun shines everywhere. A lamb needs fuel. The sun does not need fuel. Its source is in itself. Christ is saying, I am the light of the world.

John is a lamp to shine in a local place, in a local community, to the Jewish people in a specific time, for a specific period of time, and that it will dim. The sun never dims, the land does dim. And Christ continues and he tells them, And you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. You are willing for an hour also translated for an hour to rejoice in his light. You are so happy you came to him, you got baptized in the River Jordan confessing your sins, but then you were offended when you heard his words.

You brood of vipers. You offspring of snakes. You're not like that. You want somebody to tell you good words, nice stuff, promising you great stuff. You liked him.

You you you rejoiced in him. Oh, when you thought he is your messiah, but when he said I'm not your messiah, why are you baptizing them? Baptizing then, you ask. Why are you baptizing if you are not the messiah? If you are not Elijah, if you are not the one we are waiting for?

For an hour until that was the case. That was what's happening. Let's continue. The second witness, verse 36. But I have a greater witness than John's.

For the words which the father has given me to finish, the very works that I do bear witness of me that the father has sent me. Not just John the Baptist. What is the second witness is? The works that I do. You have seen them, haven't you?

He's telling the news, you've seen my works. You've seen the blind see. Have you ever in chapter nine, remember the story of the blind man? He told the Jews. He say, we never heard of anybody blind ever seeing a thing.

We never heard somebody is healing somebody who's blind. Never happened before. Only Christ did it. You've seen the blind see, the lame walk, the deaf hear, the dumb speak. Spirits, demon spirits are he's casting out demon spirits.

You've seen that. The dead rise. My works bear witness of me. But some might argue in the crowd and say, oh, our great prophet Elisha raised the dead. Let me remind you of the prophet Elisha.

Let me remind you of the son of the Shunammite woman who died. Oh, prophet Elisha rushed to her home. He went to the room. He closed the door and what did he do? The first thing he did what?

He prayed. He prayed then he went. He laid himself upon the body of the dead man. He touched nose with nose, his eyes to his eyes, his hands with his hands. He stretched himself up on the body.

He went back and walked in the room back and forth. He went back and he laid again on the body until the body became warm and the sun what? He was raised to life. This never happened with the Lord Jesus Christ. He never prayed for for healing, never.

Lazarus, come forth. He never prayed for healing for anybody. Never. His own word, either with a touch or with a word, be healed. Cast the demons with the word, healing with the word, the blind eye with the word, the lame with the word, raise the dead with the word, calming the storm with the word.

My works testify of me. 35 miracles by name mentioned in scripture. In addition to hundreds more not mentioned in scripture. Listen to Matthew eight sixteen. It says this, when evening had come, they brought to him many who were demons possessed and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.

How many? All who were sick. Matthew nine thirty five, Then he just went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every sickness and every disease. He has power. He had power over every sickness.

He had power over nature. He had power over the beast of the fields. Remember? One day, it's very interesting. He tells Peter, go throw your, whatever, for fishing.

And the first fish you catch, open its mouth and there's a little coin there. Christ has ordered, the son of God who's God himself, has ordered, has commanded this fish to bite, to swallow a coin, and then at that moment to go and take that bait of Peter. Wow. Before his resurrection No, before his ascension, the disciples were fishing, could not catch anything and just tells Peter, put your net to the right side of the boat. Right side?

Yeah. To the right side of the boat. Just do just do it. And he commands the fish to go there 150. He commanded 153 fish to go in that net.

Not 154, not one fifty two. One fifty three exactly. My works bear witness of me. John the Baptist, my works. Now we pray for healing sometime and sometime heal God heals and sometimes does not heal.

Even the disciples sometime could not heal, could not cast out the demon. This never happened with Jesus. Never, ever. My works bear witness of me. The third witness, let's go to verse 37.

And the father himself who sent me has testified of me. John the Baptist, my works, and then now we have what? The Father. The Father testify of me. How does the the father testifies of the lord Jesus Christ?

Oh, he does in so many ways. But me let me just remind you of couple of examples in the scripture at his baptism. Matthew three sixteen, When he had been baptized, the Lord Jesus Christ, Jesus came up immediately from the water and behold, the heavens were opened. What a scene. In book of Revelation chapter four, John is there, the disciple John, and he sees a door opened in heaven.

Here, we don't have a a door open in heaven. We have what? It says the heavens. I I don't know what the just just imagine yourself. The heavens, I don't know how.

I don't know what that really means. The heavens were opened for him, for the son of God, the only begotten one of the father. The heavens were opened to him and he saw the spirit of God descending like a dove coming down on him. In verse 17, and suddenly a voice come from heaven saying, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. God the father spoke of his son the only time in history and would never be repeated again.

I'm well pleased who can convict me of sin, Jesus said, then who never sent, who always did the will of the father at the Mount Of Transfiguration. Now this incident did not take place at that time. We just was saying these things, it happened later, but now we have all of the scripture. We can we can mention this instance, Matthew seventeen five, while he was speaking, that is Peter. Remember the story?

The outer transfiguration, Peter, John, James, and Jesus, and Peter speaking some nonsense there. You remember the story? While he was speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud saying, this is my beloved son whom, in whom I am well pleased here him. God the father, bearing testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. But as the father, testify of his son through his works, through John, and now also through the church.

And he continues. He continues, You have neither heard his voice at any time nor seen his form. What Jesus is trying to say here, he's he's trying to say, but I did. You can put there between in in parenthesis, you have never heard his voice neither seen his form, but I did. I was there with the father since eternity, but I did.

Verse 38, but you do not have his word abiding in you. Oh, you might have it in your hands. You might read it, but it's not abiding in you. What a great difference between having the word abiding in us and being just with us. Why?

Because whom he sent, him you do not believe. You see, according to the law, you need two to three or three witnesses and I have given you the three. Not two, but I have given you the three. You have John, you have my works, and you have the father. But you know, let me add another one.

Let me add another witness. What about that? The court of law does not need it. The law of Moses does not need it. Your sin had dream does not need it, but I'll bring you another one.

Number four, verse 39, you search the scriptures or in other translation, go ahead and search the scriptures. For in them you think you have eternal life and these are they which testify of me. Your Torah, your Tanakh, Torah, which means book of Moses, the Torah, your prophets, all the other writings testify of me. Enoch spoke of me. Moses spoke of me.

Go search the scriptures. David spoke of me. Isaiah spoke of me. Ezekiel spoke of me. Daniel, Jeremiah spoke of me.

All the minor of the prophet spoke of me. All of the scripture speak of me. Spoke of my birth. Spoke of my life, spoke of my death, spoke of my resurrection, spoke of my ascension, spoke of my coming back again as a king of my kingdom, spoke of me as the messiah, spoke of me as the lamb who will be led to the slaughter, spoke of me as the son of God and as a creator. You want to search the scripture?

Go search the scripture. All of it speak of me. You have the testimony of John. You have the testimony of my works. You have the testimony of the father himself.

You have the testimony of the scripture. What else do you need? I have proved my case. I have proved my case. The only remaining question is, what about me and you?

What about me and you? How do we bear witness of him? How do we bear witness of him? Let's look back very briefly at John. What did John do?

He pointed to Christ. So one way to to to to bear witness of Christ, to point to Christ, the as the lamb of God, as the only way. Speak the truth. Don't hesitate. Don't be afraid.

Oh, yes. The pie the people might rejoice in your testimony just for an hour, like in John's testimony. They might receive you for an hour. They might accept it for an hour until you tell them you are a sinner. And you need a savior.

Oh, they want to hear only that you are good, God loves you, until you speak the full truth. But doesn't matter. John spoke the truth. So one way to do it, speak the truth. There's another way.

There's another way. Look at Jesus. What was his testimony? What's his life and his works? His life and his works.

Who can convict me of sin? Is our life's testimony? Is our life show the love of God and the transformation that he did in our lives? Is there before and after? Can people see that?

How about my words? How about my works, what I do? Are these all, all of them, bear witness of Jesus Christ? I pray today that God will continue to work in your lives, each one of you, to give even greater testimony of him who not just saved you, but even giving you their authority. He has given you position with him in heaven.

You have eternal life. You are a child of God. You're going to reign with him forever. What position in Christ you have? I pray that you'll continue to grow in knowledge, to be more and more imitator of him who loved you and died for you and still even now interceding for you with the father there in heaven.

Tell him, god, I want you to reshape me to be today more like your son, Jesus, that my testimony will be through my words, through my life. Indeed, I want you to be my example in everything. I want to follow your steps. I want to love as you have loved. I want to have compassion as you had compassion, but I want also to point sin as you have done also.

Renew my mind today, Lord. Help me not be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Give me courage and boldness to do it with love. In Jesus' name I pray, amen.