Monday, March 23, 2015

Who Is Jesus? Here Are Some Witnesses

The decision is yours but don't neglect to look at the evidence that Jesus really is God.



John 5:31-40  "If I were to testify on My own behalf, My testimony would not be valid.  32  But Someone else is also testifying about Me, and I assure you that everything He says about Me is true. 33  In fact, you sent investigators to listen to John the Baptist, and his testimony about Me was true.  34  Of course, I have no need of human witnesses, but I say these things so you might be saved.  35  John was like a burning and shining lamp, and you were excited for a while about his message.

36  But I have a greater witness than John--My teachings and My miracles. The Father gave Me these works to accomplish, and they prove that He sent Me.  37  And the Father who sent Me has testified about Me Himself. You have never heard His voice or seen Him face to face,  38  and you do not have His message in your hearts, because you do not believe Me--the One He sent to you.

39  "You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to Me!  40  Yet you refuse to come to Me to receive this life.

Who is Jesus? Jesus stated in the previous post that he is God and that he does the work of God. In today's scripture Jesus continues his response to the interrogation that takes place after he healed a man on the Sabbath.

Jesus isn't standing in a courtroom but there are plenty of people standing there judging him, they are deciding who he is, they are trying to answer a question that we all need to deal with.

Who is Jesus? Are there any credible witnesses? As the interrogation continues we see Jesus calling on the prosecution to consider the testimony from a diverse list of witnesses.

John the Baptist

John 1:29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
John was a great man sent as God's messenger and he made it clear that Jesus is God's Son. His entire life focused on the mission that he was given. The response to John was very good for a while but by the this time in Jesus ministry he is already in prison. (Isaiah 40:3; Malachi 3:1, Matthew 11:11)

Jesus Teaching And His Miracles

John 10:37-38 Don't believe Me unless I carry out My Father's work. But if I do His work, believe in the evidence of the miraculous works I have done, even if you don't believe Me. Then you will know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father."
The authority that Jesus had when he spoke and the things that he said made the people around him realize that he wasn't an ordinary man. His teaching at the age of twelve was already making people take notice. (Luke 2:47, John 7:15,46)

But Jesus wasn't just a teacher he was also a healer, he took control of nature and the demonic. His miracles were great in number, they were great in size and they were done out in front of everybody so that there wasn't anyway to deny that he had accomplished the impossible.

God the Father

1 John 5:9 Since we believe human testimony, surely we can believe the greater testimony that comes from God. And God has testified about His Son.
Scripture points to Jesus, God has given us plenty of clues throughout the entire Bible, the number of prophecies that were fulfilled through his birth validate his identity. Their Bible Study time didn't accomplish much, Jesus told them that he knows that they spend plenty of time studying but they still don't have a clue who he is.

Besides giving us the Bible, God also testified about Jesus identity at his baptism and at the transfiguration. (Matthew 3:17, 17:5)

Eyewitness Testimony

I have read through the gospels many times and I have marked my Bible each time someone makes a statement about who Jesus is. Here are just a few:
John 6:68-69 Simon Peter replied, "Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. We believe, and we know You are the Holy One of God. "

Luke 8:28 As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and fell down in front of Him. Then he screamed, "Why are You interfering with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Please, I beg You, don't torture me!"

Luke 9:35 Then a voice from the cloud said, "This is My Son, My Chosen One. Listen to Him."

Mark 15:39 When the Roman officer who stood facing Him [heard His cry and] saw how He had died, he exclaimed, "This man truly was the Son of God!"

John 11:25-27 Jesus told her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in Me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in Me and believes in Me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?" "Yes, Lord," she told Him. "I have always believed You are the Messiah, the Son of God, the One who has come into the world from God."

John 20:27-28 Then He said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and look at My hands. Put your hand into the wound in My side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe!" "My Lord and my God!" Thomas exclaimed.
Over and over again the people that spent time with Jesus came to realize that they were in the presence of God himself. From ordinary people, to the disciples, to demons and Roman guards people from all walks of life and every social status realized the same truth.

Who is Jesus? That is the most important question that you need to answer. There are answers to this question in many different books. Most of these books have a single author who claims to have a revelation that wasn't given to anybody else. (The Quran, the Jehovah's Witness Bible, the Book of Mormon)

The Bible is the only one that has multiple authors with divine inspiration, it is the only historical reference to who Jesus is that was written by the men that lived each day with Jesus during his ministry.

We need to spend time digging the word so that we can believe. The greatest tragedy is that the Bible is so accessible, it has so much evidence to answer this important question yet the evidence is being ignored.
Deuteronomy 29:29 "The LORD our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that He has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.
Why so many witnesses? Jesus said "I say these things so you might be saved."  John told us that he wrote this book for the benefit of his reader that they would believe what he believes about Jesus. God has given us so many witnesses so that we can believe without a doubt that Jesus is his Son and that through him alone we have the ability to spend eternity with him.

Thank you Lord for the overwhelming amount of evidence that Jesus is your son, that he is equal to you and because he is he has the ability to forgive.