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"THAT YOU MAY BELIEVE"
The Human Testimony
INTRODUCTION
1. In our study so far we have considered claims...
a. Made by John about Jesus in his prologue - Jn 1:1-18
b. Made by Jesus concerning Himself throughout the gospel of John
1) In relation to God
2) In relation to the Messianic hope
3) In relation to human needs
2. The nature of these claims prevent Jesus from being simply a great
man...
a. He must be what He claimed to be (the Son of God)
b. Or He was either a deceiver (liar) or a deranged man (lunatic)
3. We now begin to consider the evidence presented to sustain the
claims...
a. Starting with the human testimony recorded by John
b. Being careful to properly define and declare the value of such
testimony
I. HUMAN TESTIMONY DEFINED AND EVALUATED
A. DEFINING HUMAN TESTIMONY...
1. "...the testimony of an impression made on the witnesses by
their contact with Jesus" - Homer Hailey, That You Might
Believe, p. 88
2. "The testimony of and within itself does not prove any claim
made by Jesus" (ibid.)
3. "The evidence is circumstantial and incidental, but it is
worthy of a candid and fair consideration" (ibid.)
B. EVALUATING HUMAN TESTIMONY...
1. "The force of human testimony depends upon three things..."
a. "First, the honesty of the witnesses"
b. "Second, their competency"
c. "Third, their number"
-- J. W. McGarvey, Evidences Of Christianity, Book II, p. 146
2. McGarvey goes on to explain:
a. "We ascertain whether they are honest, by considering their
general character and their motives in the particular
case..."
b. "Competency is determined by considering the opportunities
of the witness to obtain knowledge of that to which he
testifies, and his mental capacity to observe and remember
the facts."
c. "The requisite number varies with the degree of probability
attached to the facts." -- (ibid.)
[With this brief introduction to the meaning and value of human
testimony, let's now take a look at the...]
II. HUMAN TESTIMONY OFFERED BY JOHN
A. TESTIMONY OFFERED BY HIS FRIENDS...
1. John the Baptist - Jn 1:29-34
a. A cousin of Jesus
b. Had been told how to identify the Messiah
c. Declared Jesus to be:
1) The Lamb of God
2) The Son of God
2. The early disciples - Jn 1:40-49
a. Andrew declared Him to be the Messiah
b. Philip said He was the One of whom Moses and the prophets
wrote
c. Nathanael confessed him to be the Son of God, King of Israel
3. Peter - Jn 6:68-69
a. Believed Jesus to have the words of eternal life
b. Declared Jesus as the Holy One of God
4. Martha - Jn 11:27
a. Believed Jesus to be the Christ
b. Believed Jesus to be the Son of God
5. The disciples at the last supper - Jn 16:30
a. Believed that He knew all things
b. Believed that He came from God
6. Thomas - Jn 20:24-28
a. Skeptical of the other apostles' testimony
b. Convinced by empirical evidence that Jesus was Lord and God
-- Such testimony did not come without a price; one must wonder
what their motive was to lie (if such was the case)
B. TESTIMONY OFFERED BY THE MASSES...
1. Nicodemus - Jn 3:1-2
a. An official of the Sanhedrin council - cf. Jn 7:50-51
b. Confessed Jesus to be a teacher from God
2. The Samaritans - Jn 4:19,42
a. The woman at the well confessed Him to be a prophet
b. The villagers were convinced that He was the Christ, the
savior of the world
3. The multitude (offering a divided opinion)
a. "He is a good man" vs. "He leads the multitude away" - Jn
7:12
b. "The Prophet" or "the Christ" vs. doubt concerning Him - Jn
7:40-43
c. "The King of Israel" vs. "Crucify Him!" - cf. Jn 12:12-13;
19:15
4. The Jews (also divided) - Jn 10:19-21
a. "He has a demon and is mad!"
b. "Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"
5. The man born blind - Jn 9:17,25
a. "He is a prophet"
b. "One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see."
6. Pilate - Jn 18:38; 19:4,6
a. Roman governor who interrogated Jesus
b. Stated three times: "I find no fault in Him."
-- The testimony of these human witnesses varies, but is seems
that the closer one got to Jesus, the more convinced they
became
C. TESTIMONY BY HIS ENEMIES...
1. The officers, sent to arrest Him - Jn 7:45-46
a. Sent by the chief priests and Pharisees to arrest Jesus
b. So moved by Jesus, they could not arrest Him ("No man ever
spoke like this Man!")
2. The Pharisees - Jn 11:47-48
a. Acknowledged that Jesus worked many signs
b. Aware of His great influence
-- They may have tried to deny who He claimed to be, but they did
not try to deny what He did
CONCLUSION
1. Some thoughts concerning the human testimony recorded by John...
a. For one seeking to produce faith in Jesus, John demonstrates
remarkable objectivity
1) He does not gloss over the fact that many did not believe in
Jesus
2) He presents a fair representation of the human testimony
concerning Jesus
b. Some believed in Jesus, others did not; but note carefully...
1) Those who knew Him best, believed in Him
2) Those who were ignorant of the facts, were quick to deny Him
c. Even His enemies could not deny the force of His teachings and the
power of His miracles
1) They could only try to attribute His power to the devil
2) As a last resort, they felt they had to kill Him
2. What about us today? What will we do with Jesus?
a. Will we make the effort to learn more about Him?
b. Will we be like many who were quick to draw conclusions before
they had all the facts?
Jesus made a powerful impression upon those who saw and heard Him.
Those who knew Him best were even more impressed. Hopefully, their
testimony will encourage us to consider what further testimony John
presents in His gospel about Jesus, the Son of God...
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Executable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2009
