The Second Witness is John
Scripture: John 5:30-35
In the previous section, Jesus claimed to be the Son of God and that his testimony was true. We open this section with this lesson with Jesus saying: Jn 5:30 “I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me.” We learned in the previous section, that God the Father and God the Son are working together in the restoration process. The Son’s assignment was to come to earth and take on a body of flesh and teach about the way of salvation that he was to purchase on the cross. When finishing his assignment on earth he will return to his Father, who will send the Holy Spirit to take the place of Jesus. Jesus will then prepare a place for us and intervene on our behalf when accused by the devil.
I mentioned above that the testimony of Jesus was true, but according to Old Testament that requires at least two witnesses. For example: “A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offense that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses shall a charge be established” (Deuteronomy 19:15 ESV). Jesus knows this and said, Jn 5:31 “If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true.”
Jesus then speaks of another witness: Jn 5:32 “There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. 33 You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.” That one who bore witness was John the Baptist who spoke of Jesus during his ministry as a forerunner. This truth that John spoke of was the teachings found in the Old Testament that have been fulfilled in Jesus.
Of John, Jesus said that Jn 5:35 “He was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.” This is pointing back to Psalm 132:17 where God said that he has prepared a lamp for his anointed. John the Baptist was that lamp but not the light. Jn 1:7 “[John] came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light but came to bear witness about the light. 9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.” That true light is Jesus. John was that lamp for a while. His witness was small and temporary but served its purpose and was important.
About John’s testimony, Jesus said, Jn 5:34 “Not that the testimony that I receive is from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved.” John was not speaking on his own but was speaking that which God gave him. The things Jesus is saying, are being said that they would hear, believe and be saved.
Conclusion
From this lesson we see the importance of John the Baptist as the second witness in testifying who Jesus is; “the Lamb of God.” John points to Jesus from references about Jesus found in the Old Testament. Father, the more I study this journey through the gospels, the more I realize how little the western Christian knows about the relationship between events that they hear about from Bible studies and sermons. A verse is covered here and another there, but little time is spent in serious verse to verse study.
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