Jesus now turns His attention to proving that He is the Son of God. He begins by saying that His judgment is not based upon His own will or testimony. Anyone can say anything about themselves and it does not make it true. Therefore, He gives three witnesses to His divinity. He is showing proof that He is God’s Son, but He is also challenging the Jews to prove that they are right with God. Each witness testifies to His deity, but each witness also testifies that the Jews are not right with God. Jesus’ three witnesses are:
John the Baptist
Jesus is here calling the greatest man that has ever lived to testify on His behalf. We have read previously that John the Baptist declared Jesus to be God’s chosen Messiah, the Lamb of God, and the Son of God.
However, John the Baptist had already condemned the Jews for their sins and demanded that they repent and show fruit from their repentance. John’s testimony confirmed Jesus’ declaration to be God and contradicted the Jews’ testimony that they were right with God.
His works
Jesus next draws attention to the works that He has done. His holy life and miraculous deeds prove that He is the Son of God.
The Jews’ works show that they are not right with God. Their lives are filled with hypocrisy and religious moralism to cover their sin. Works prove Jesus to be God’s Son and prove that the Jews are not right with God.
The Word of God
The Jews held tightly to the Word of God, or so they said. The plain teaching of God’s Word showed that Jesus was God’s Son and the Messiah.
The Word of God showed that the Jews had twisted God’s Word and completely ignored large portions of it. The Word of God confirmed that Jesus was the Son of God and condemned the Jews as sinners.
Application
What does John’s preaching, your works, and the Word of God say about you?
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