(Chap. 5:6-21)
Confirmation of the Work of God in Believers Whereupon They Know They Have Life Eternal
The saints in John’s day were being bombarded by antichristian teachers who sought to shake their confidence in the truth they had received from the apostles and in the relationship that they had with the Father and the Son through life eternal. John is, therefore, led to close the epistle with a number of witnesses and proofs that confirm the reality of these things into which they had been brought. J. N. Darby said, “Seeing that there were seducers who endeavoured to turn them aside as deficient in something important, and presented themselves as possessing some superior light—he points out to them the marks of life eternal, in order to re-assure them; developing the excellence of that life, and of their position as enjoying it; and in order that they might understand that God had given it to them, that they be in no wise shaken in mind” (Synopsis of the Books of the Bible, Loizeaux edition, vol. 5, p. 536).
In the body of the epistle, John has given a number of proofs and counter-proofs to help the saints identify those who were real and those who were not. Now, before closing the epistle, he takes time to give them a number of witnesses that confirm the reality of the work of God in their own souls, and thus, gives them assurance as to their possession of life eternal.
The Threefold Witness of the Water, the Blood, and the Spirit
(Chap. 5:6-8)
John begins by pointing to the threefold witness of God’s work in the soul of every Christian. He says: “This is He that came by water and blood, Jesus the Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that bears witness, for the Spirit is the truth. For they that bear witness are three: the Spirit, and the water, and the blood; and the three agree in one” (vss. 6-8). (The 7th verse, which appears in the KJV, has very little Greek manuscript support and should not be in the text. It speaks of a witness in heaven, but those in heaven do not need a witness.)
Coming by “water” and by “blood” means that the Lord Jesus came to effect moral and judicial cleansing for men—of which the water and blood signify. These two things flowed from the side of the dead Christ, showing that cleansing for mankind could only be secured through what He accomplished in His death. The historical account in John 19:34 mentions the blood first, because it is viewing things from the perspective of what was required to put away sin before God. Only the blood (what it signifies) can do that. It, of necessity, must come first, for without it, the water could not be applied.
In this passage, John mentions the water first because he is speaking of the order in which we come into the blessedness of these things. In God’s work with men, cleansing by water occurs first. This is effected by new birth, wherein a person is washed from his unclean state and made “clean every whit” (John 3:5; 13:10; 15:3; 1 Cor. 6:11). Cleansing by blood is something more; it results when a person who has been born of God rests in faith on Christ’s finished work on the cross. The believer is thereby washed judicially from his sins (1 John 1:7; Rev. 1:5) and has his conscience purged of its guilt (Heb. 9:14). The “Spirit,” who “is the truth,” bears witness to these things in the believer by coming to dwell in him, and thus, he is “sealed” for the day of final redemption when the Lord comes (Eph. 1:13; 4:30; 2 Cor. 1:21-22). Hence, the water has to do with purification and the blood has to do with expiation. The consecration of the priests in the Old Testament illustrates this same order by way of type. They were first bathed in “water” (Ex. 29:4), then they were sprinkled with “blood” (Ex. 29:20), and lastly, they were anointed with “oil”—a type of the Holy Spirit (Ex. 29:21).
John then repeats these three things in verse 8, but the order is different; the Spirit is put before the water and the blood. This is because when it comes to knowing and enjoying these blessings, it is the Spirit of God (our Guide and Teacher) who leads us into the good of them, making them a living reality in our souls (John 16:13). Thus, with the Spirit of God dwelling in our hearts, we know that we are born of God because we have an interest in divine things which we never had in our unconverted days. Such a capacity can only result from having a new life and nature which is imparted through new birth. We also know that God has put our sins away. This is proved by the fact that we have peace in our souls regarding the question of our sins; this is something that used to trouble us before we were saved. Besides these two things, we now live in the enjoyment of these wonderful truths on a daily basis in fellowship with the Father and the Son. This could only be possible through the work of the Spirit of God who dwells in us (John 4:14). John says, “These three agree in one.”
Let the child of God who has these three witnesses be told that what he has believed is not true, and he will dismiss the idea straightway. He knows that he has been born again and knows that his sins have been put away. Moreover, he is genuinely happy in his relationship with the Lord, enjoying his blessings. These things prove that he has been converted, and no one can convince him otherwise.
The Witness of Men and the Witness of God
(Chap. 5:9-12)
John brings in something more; he says, “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which He hath testified of His Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made Him a liar; because he believeth not the record [witness] that God gave of His Son.” John points to two more witnesses: “the witness of men” and “the witness of God.” The witness of men is the objective testimony that has come to us through the gospel concerning Jesus, the Son of God (Luke 24:48; Acts 1:8; 3:15; 5:32; 10:39). Men have announced the glad tidings to us and have told us that in receiving Christ as our Saviour we would have eternal salvation. Having received their witness and believed on Christ, we have proved it to be true, because it has been confirmed in our souls by an even greater witness—the witness of God. God has borne witness of His saving grace in His Son by giving the believer a profound and undeniable sense in his soul that he has passed from death unto life (John 5:24; 1 John 3:14). This is what John means by saying that the believer has this witness “in himself.” It is a subjective testimony confirmed in our souls by our enjoyment of life eternal—which is to have conscious fellowship with the Father and the Son (John 17:3). Hence, John says: “This is the witness that God gave to us life eternal, and this life is in His Son” (W. Kelly Translation). Thus, life eternal enjoyed in the soul is a practical proof of the salvation of our souls.
Again, let the believer living in happy fellowship with the Father and the Son be told that what he is experiencing is not real, and the opposer’s suggestion will be rejected immediately. Every believer who walks in the Spirit in communion with God knows from practical experience that it is false; he has the living proof in himself.
On the other hand, the person who merely professes to be a child of God will not have this witness in him, because he has not truly believed “the record [witness]” that God gave of His Son (vs. 10). In keeping with John’s abstract style, he gives the simple conclusion: “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life” (vs. 12).
Three Cardinal Truths Concerning Life Eternal
• It is a gift; it is not something earned (vs. 11a).
• It is only found in the Son (vs. 11b).
• It is a present possession of the believer (vs. 12).
The Witness of the Divinely Inspired Epistle of John
(Chap. 5:13)
John brings in another witness to the reality of the work of God in our souls by which we know we have life eternal—what he had written under divine inspiration. He says, “These things have I written to you that ye may know that ye that believe on the name of the Son of God have life eternal” (W. Kelly Translation). In the clearest terms he states why he wrote the epistle; it was so that the saints would have a written document, inspired by God, to which they could refer and be assured of their possession of life eternal. This is an even greater witness than what God works in our hearts subjectively, for the divinely inspired Word of God is greater than personal feelings and experiences, even if those feelings and experiences have been produced by God Himself.
The Word of God gives the believer a solid foundation on which to rest in faith. What God has written by the Spirit in His Word can be trusted implicitly because it is impossible for God to lie (Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18). The writer of the epistle to the Hebrews calls this the Spirit’s “witness to us.” (Heb. 10:15-17). He quotes Jeremiah 31:33-34 to show that when God brings people into blessing, He puts away their sins and their iniquities, and will not remember them anymore. What the Spirit has written concerning the believer’s sins can be consulted wherever a Bible is found. When opened, and passages regarding the believer’s salvation and security are read, we get the witness of the Spirit to us concerning our eternal relationship in Christ. All we have to do is believe the witness! This the true child of God will do, for he not only believes in God, but he believes His Word. This is illustrated in Abraham; he “believed God” and it was counted unto him for righteousness (Rom. 4:3). Thus, we have in God’s infallible Word the greatest proof of all, for He has “magnified” His “Word” above His “Name” (Psa. 138:2).
At this point, John introduces a different word for “know,” from that which he has been using in chapter 4. He had been using “ginosko” (chaps. 4:2, 6 twice, 7, 8, 13, 15, 5:2), which is objective knowledge derived from facts about someone or something. But now he switches to “oida” (chap. 5:13, 15 twice, 18, 19, 20a). This word (also translated “know”) refers to an inward conscious knowledge of something or someone that is acquired through intimate, personal acquaintance and communion. Using “oida” as John does here, indicates that he wanted them to know the truth of these things not just by what he had written, but from personal experience with the Lord.
Again, if a believer is challenged as to how he knows that he has life eternal, he could point to various passages of Scripture that state emphatically that he indeed has life from God and salvation in Christ (John 3:14-16, 36, etc.).
Boldness in Prayer
(Chap. 5:14-17)
John brings in yet another proof of the blessedness of life eternal. Having intimate communion with the Father and the Son through that life results in knowing the mind and will of God. This produces confidence in God which translates into a bold prayer life that receives the things for which one asks. John says: “This is the confidence [boldness] that we have in Him, that, if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us: and if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.” The Apostle Paul tells us that this boldness of access into the presence of God is the result of having received “the Spirit of adoption.” It gives us liberty to cry, “Abba, Father” (Rom. 8:15), which denotes intimacy and intelligent communion with God. He also says that when entering God’s presence with such holy boldness, the Spirit of God “bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God” (Rom. 8:16). It is a living proof that we are His children because only those who are His children can approach Him with such liberty and receive the petitions for which they ask.
John is not saying that every prayer request that we make will be granted. It’s quite possible for a believer to request something that would only minister to his flesh, and of course, such a request would not be granted (James 4:3). John, therefore, qualifies his remark by saying that our prayer requests must be “according to the will of God.” He gives us what we ask for only when “the Father” is “glorified in the Son” in the thing that He grants (John 14:13-14). In keeping with John’s abstract style of absolutes, he does not take into consideration a believer asking for anything other than what would be the will of God, for he views the believer as living in an ideal state of soul. Hence, he says: “Whatsoever we ask, we know (“oida”) that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.”
(Chap. 5:16)
While on the topic of prayer, John adds that we need to have discernment when interceding for others. He says: “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and He shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.” The circumstance that John has in mind is when one of God’s children has sinned, and as a consequence, God has stricken him in His disciplinary ways with sickness. Under normal circumstances, John says that we should pray for his spiritual restoration and physical healing. Divine love will do that. However, if the nature of the failure is a course of things that publicly dishonours the Lord’s name in a marked way, their sin may be what John calls “a sin unto death.” That is, it may be that the Lord is going to take the person away from the earth through death (John 15:2; 1 Cor. 5:2; 11:30; James 5:20; Eccl. 7:17). In such cases, we should have discernment not to pray for his healing, but to leave him in the hands of the Lord. Ananias and Sapphira are an example of believers sinning unto death, except that their case did not involve sickness (Acts 5:1-11).
Being taken away from the earth in such a way does not mean that the believer has lost his salvation, but rather, that he is being called home to heaven from his place of testimony on earth. The privilege of representing Christ on earth is being taken away from him because he has behaved so poorly while bearing the name of Christ before the world. As Christians, we are here on earth as “ambassadors for Christ” (2 Cor. 5:20). Our lives are to commend Him to the world, but if we behave in such a way that it seriously compromises the testimony of the Lord, we may be called home to heaven through death.
To illustrate the point here, suppose the children of a family go out to play in their yard after supper, and one of them gets into a fight with the others, and a great fuss develops. The mother calls the child at fault to the door, and warns him that if he doesn’t behave properly, he’ll have to come in. The child accepts the warning and goes back to play with the others. Not long afterward, a fuss breaks out again, and the mother calls the same child to the door and gives him another warning. But after he goes back to play again, he is found to be in the middle of another fuss. The mother calls him to the door again, and this time she tells him to come in and get his pajamas on, because he is done playing for the evening.
Having spoken of God’s governmental ways in judgment with His children (1 Peter 1:16-17), we mustn’t think that every sickness that the children of God incur is a stroke of governmental judgment from God on account of sin in their lives. Lazarus is an example; his sickness was for the glory of God, not because he was living carelessly in a sinful way (John 11:4). John also allows for the possibility of God’s hand in discipline not being unto death, stating: “All unrighteousness is sin: and there is a sin not unto death” (vs. 17). That is, all unrighteousness is sin and carries its governmental consequences, but those consequences may not always be unto death.
Summary of the Witnesses to Life Eternal
• The witness of the “water”—The cleansing effect of the water resulting from new birth has produced in us a capacity for divine things through having a new life. Being genuinely interested in the things of God bears witness to the fact that we have a new life and nature.
• The witness of the “blood”—The cleansing effect of the blood (a token of the finished work of Christ) is witnessed in the fact that we have peace with God and peace in our souls regarding our sins—and thus, that we possess life eternal.
• The witness of the indwelling “Spirit”—The fact that we live in the happy enjoyment of our blessings in Christ is a proof of the Spirit’s witness that we have life eternal.
• The witness of “men”—The servants of God who have gone forth announcing the gospel have told us that in believing we have life eternal, and we have proved their witness to be true.
• The witness of “God”—God Himself confirms the witness of men by giving believers the enjoyment of life eternal—which is to have conscious fellowship with the Father and the Son.
• The witness of the Word of God “to” us—The Scriptures testify of the fact that believers have life eternal.
• The Spirit of adoption bears witness “with” our spirit that we are the children of God. Our liberty in His presence and power in prayer bears witness to the fact that we have life eternal.