THURSDAY
The next part of these passages that John emphasizes is the declaration of that which he has seen and perceived.
1 John 1:1–4 (HCSB) 1 What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have observed and have touched with our hands, concerning the Word of life— 2 that life was revealed, and we have seen it and we testify and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us — 3 what we have seen and heard we also declare to you,
So far this week we have noted that John was an eyewitness to the life that was revealed. He not only saw the life revealed but he perceived the true spiritual meaning of the life revealed. This he testifies and declares.
To see and testify were court terms in the first century. They are also court terms today, so the translators of the HCSB did a good job with this translation. Testimony has become such a churchy term that we often miss the literal meaning of it. An eye witness is called to the stand to give testimony of the truth they have seen or experienced. In the same way, John is assuring his readers that he is a credible witness to the truth of Jesus’ life, and also the spiritual truths regarding the meaning of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection.
This idea of testimony or witness is a major theme in John’s writings. He considers himself a credible witness to the life of Jesus.
John 19:35 35 The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe.
John 21:24 24 This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.
He includes others in this as well. John the Baptist was a witness to the light of Jesus (John 1:7, 34). God himself testifies about Jesus (John 5:37; 8:18). Jesus is a witness to the Father (John 12:49; 17:18).
What’s at stake here is the truth. This was the challenge in the 1st century just as it is today. How do we discern the truth of that which is being declared? The testimony of genuine eyewitness must hold more weight in determining truth. The apostolic witness to the gospel is a credible source that has been proven time and time again. For more on this I strongly recommend Lee Strobel’s book The Case for Christ. He was a journalist who set out to prove that the gospels were unreliable as a source regarding the life of Jesus. He discovered exactly the opposite to be true. The apostles all went to their grave as martyrs, or in John’s case an exile, for declaring the truth of the gospel. This is incredibly strong evidence that they did indeed see the resurrected Jesus as has famously been said, “Liars make poor martyrs.”
There are a few important applications here:
First, the life of Jesus, and the apostolic witness about Jesus, has been declared to us by reliable sources so that we can know the truth. We can rest assured that the gospel is true because of the credibility of the witnesses who first declared it and whose declarations we still have in the New Testament.
Secondly, just as the apostles were credible witnesses to the truth of the gospel, we need to be credible witnesses pointing others to the truth of the gospel as well.
John 18:37-38 37 “You are a king, then!” said Pilate. Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.” 38 “What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him.
It seems to me that many in our culture are like Pilate in this text. They walk away asking, “What is truth?”, when the truth is right in front of them. The gospel of Jesus is the truth. As Christians we are stewards of that truth. To declare that truth with any credibility, we must be faithful stewards not only of that truth but all truth.
Thirdly, if the gospel is the life revealed then it is the truth. Christian, we have the truth to build our life upon. We have the truth of salvation, how our sin can be done away with and we can be made right with God. We have the truth of morality, how we ought to live. We have the truth of our destiny, where it is all headed. We have the truth of our origin and our identity. We have the truth of our purpose and meaning. The gospel gives us truth and in this truth is our life.
This is the truth to ultimately build your life on. Don’t build your life on your ideas of medicine. Don’t build your life on your political ideas. Don’t build your life on your ideas of parenting. Don’t build your life on your ideas of success.
Build your life on the truth of the life revealed.
Additional Content
Reflection
What are some of the other truths that you are tempted to built your life upon?