Wednesday: The Witness of the Father
Daily Lesson for Wednesday 6th of November 2024
The Gospel of John begins by talking about the Word (logos) as being with God; that is, being with God the Father (John 1:1). When the Word became flesh, the Spirit testified about Jesus by resting on Him at His baptism (John 1:32-34). But the Father also testifies about Jesus during His earthly ministry.
Read John 5:36-38. What does Jesus say here about the Father?
Jesus links the Father to the works and miracles that He had performed. He is very clear that the Father had sent Him and also had testified about Him.
Read Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5, Mark 1:11, and Luke 3:22 (see also 2 Peter 1:17-18). What does the Father say about Jesus?
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At the baptism of Jesus, the Father and the Spirit joined the Son in marking this important occasion: the commencement of Jesus’ ministry. The Father states that Jesus is His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. But, at a crucial time in Christ’s ministry, the Father speaks yet again, this time as recorded in the Gospel of John.
Things were reaching a climax in the final days of that ministry. The religious leaders, unable to stop Him (see John 12:19), wanted Him dead, now more than ever. The crowds were exuberant over Him, especially as more and more people, hearing the testimony of those who saw Him raise Lazarus from the dead (John 12:17-18), were starting to follow Jesus. Even Greeks, there for the festival, wanted to see Jesus.
At this point, in response to Jesus’ words in John 12:28, “ ‘Father, glorify Your name’ ” (NKJV), the Father again speaks from heaven, “ ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again’ ” (John 12:28, ESV).
As we have already seen, Jesus’ hour of glory is the cross. Thus, the Father’s testimony about Jesus points to the great sacrifice of the Lamb of God for the sins of the world. It is the culmination of His earthly ministry. His death in our behalf paid the full penalty for all our sins, and in Him, by faith, we never have to face that penalty ourselves.
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The big picture of God we get from John is the individuals of the Godhead work together as a team. We sometimes become engrossed with what each entity does to the extent we sometimes forget the unity.
"The whole is greater than the parts" attributed to Aristotle. Something to remember when discussing the relationships within the Godhead.