And what he hath seen and heard, that he testifieth; and no man receiveth his testimony.
John spoke to his own jealous disciples when crowds were leaving him to flock to Jesus for baptism, turning them away from himself to Jesus as the superior Promised One and Saviour whose success was his joy. What He had seen and heard was firsthand heavenly knowledge, for He who comes from heaven is above all earthly speakers and speaks God's words and divine truth with heavenly authority. That no one received His testimony meant men in general refused it, so few being ready to accept Him as Saviour from sin that John could say this even while all seemed to be coming to Him. His witness is light joining law and gospel in a perfect whole, the truth as it is in Jesus and justification by faith through His atoning blood, which must be sounded throughout the world so all turn from trusting man to looking to Jesus for eternal life. That light is received only by a soul emptied of self, discerning God's character and accepting Christ by faith in obedience, and all who do so share His glory and receive the Holy Spirit without measure.
Setting and Speaker
Jesus had come from Jerusalem to the region about the Jordan, and day by day the crowds about John lessened while the people flocked to hear Jesus. The number of His disciples increased daily, and many came for baptism, which Christ Himself did not administer but sanctioned through His disciples as His seal upon His forerunner's mission. The disciples of John looked with jealousy upon the growing popularity of Jesus and stood ready to criticize His work. They disputed with the Jews whether baptism avails to cleanse the soul from sin and maintained that the baptism of Jesus differs essentially from that of John, and they disputed with Christ's disciples over the form of words proper at baptism and over their right to baptize at all. They came to John complaining that the One beyond Jordan to whom he bore witness baptizes and all men come to Him, through which Satan brought temptation upon John to sympathize with himself and to hinder the work of Christ by sowing dissension, envy and jealousy, yet John steadfastly refused the bribe of ambition and directed the attention fixed upon himself to Another.
The speaker is John the Baptist defending Jesus as superior, the Promised One of Israel whose way John came to prepare. He identifies Jesus as the promised Messiah and Saviour of the world and as the great teacher, and teaches his own disciples to look to Him and follow Him. The testimony is spoken irrespective of personal interest and declining influence, with greatest joy in Christ's success and rising above all worldly considerations. In so doing John puts Christ's cause above his own.
The declaration is almost the counterpart of what Jesus told Nicodemus, corresponds with Jesus' own testimony in the same Spirit, and stands as a sermon to the Pharisees clearing the way for Christ's ministry. It belongs to the time when Christ, the light and life of the gospel made flesh, is serving people through acts of care.
Heavenly Testimony Rejected
What He has seen and heard is firsthand heavenly knowledge, for He who comes from heaven is above all earthly speakers and testifies of what He Himself has seen and heard in heaven. He speaks God's words and divine truth with heavenly authority, bearing witness from heaven to light that joins the law and the gospel in a complete and perfect whole, in contrast to the earthly speech of one who is of the earth. He comes from above and speaks what is true, and His testimony is grounded in what He has seen and heard from God. One presentation establishes His divine authority by stressing His heavenly origin and superiority and His speaking of God's words, and does not explain the statement that no one receives His testimony.
No man receiving His testimony means men in general refuse it, for so few are ready to accept Jesus as the Saviour from sin that it can be said no man receives His witness. This is stated over against the claim of the disciples that all men are coming to Christ, setting the general refusal beside their report of crowds flocking to Him. He clothed His divinity with humanity and came to His own in humility, but His own received Him not. The priests and rulers who claimed to be wise expositors of the law refused His light because they had lost the true sense of the Old Testament prophecies, so His great light was given to all, highest and most lowly, in the synagogues and in the streets, and the common people heard Him gladly.
People fail to receive truth because they do not study it for salvation and do not see and know Christ as the truth. Whoever receives His testimony affirms that God is true. Christ bore His own testimony concerning righteousness and truth, giving a wonderful lesson.
Sharing the Received Light
What He testifies of what He has seen and heard is light that men are called to discern and walk in, joining the law and the gospel in a complete and perfect whole. It is the truth as it is in Jesus, the message of the uplifted Saviour, justification by faith, and the efficacy of His atoning blood. It must be sounded by God's people throughout the length and breadth of the world in clear, distinct lines as the third angel's message, so that all may discern the light and walk in it. It turns souls from looking to and trusting in man to looking to Jesus in whom the hopes of eternal life are centered, and it will be impressed upon every heart that is opened to receive it.
John bears this witness from a soul emptied of self and filled with divine light, in words almost the same as Christ's own concerning Him who comes from heaven being above all. That witness belongs to the glory of Christ in which all His followers are to share by the same emptying of self. Heaven's light is received only as self is emptied, and the character of God is discerned and Christ is accepted by faith only as every thought is brought into captivity to obedience to Christ. To all who do this the Holy Spirit is given without measure, so that they are complete in Him in whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells.
The passage of John 3:22-36 is to be read carefully for thorough conviction and repentance. It teaches speaking kindly and earnestly in season to erring ones instead of trifling reproof, and guarding words and actions from rudeness. This is needed because by deception Satan seeks to overcome every soul, while angels of God are present in every workplace to protect every soul. The same principle that a witness testifies to what he has seen and heard applies to Brother Smith, whose long experience in the work equips him to bear such witness, which Satan will try to silence so that people will disregard the testimonies of the Spirit of God.
John spoke to his own jealous disciples when crowds were leaving him to flock to Jesus for baptism, turning them away from himself to Jesus as the superior Promised One and Saviour whose success was his joy. What He had seen and heard was firsthand heavenly knowledge, for He who comes from heaven is above all earthly speakers and speaks God's words and divine truth with heavenly authority. That no one received His testimony meant men in general refused it, so few being ready to accept Him as Saviour from sin that John could say this even while all seemed to be coming to Him. His witness is light joining law and gospel in a perfect whole, the truth as it is in Jesus and justification by faith through His atoning blood, which must be sounded throughout the world so all turn from trusting man to looking to Jesus for eternal life. That light is received only by a soul emptied of self, discerning God's character and accepting Christ by faith in obedience, and all who do so share His glory and receive the Holy Spirit without measure.
Setting and Speaker
Jesus had come from Jerusalem to the region about the Jordan, and day by day the crowds about John lessened while the people flocked to hear Jesus. The number of His disciples increased daily, and many came for baptism, which Christ Himself did not administer but sanctioned through His disciples as His seal upon His forerunner's mission. The disciples of John looked with jealousy upon the growing popularity of Jesus and stood ready to criticize His work. They disputed with the Jews whether baptism avails to cleanse the soul from sin and maintained that the baptism of Jesus differs essentially from that of John, and they disputed with Christ's disciples over the form of words proper at baptism and over their right to baptize at all. They came to John complaining that the One beyond Jordan to whom he bore witness baptizes and all men come to Him, through which Satan brought temptation upon John to sympathize with himself and to hinder the work of Christ by sowing dissension, envy and jealousy, yet John steadfastly refused the bribe of ambition and directed the attention fixed upon himself to Another.
The speaker is John the Baptist defending Jesus as superior, the Promised One of Israel whose way John came to prepare. He identifies Jesus as the promised Messiah and Saviour of the world and as the great teacher, and teaches his own disciples to look to Him and follow Him. The testimony is spoken irrespective of personal interest and declining influence, with greatest joy in Christ's success and rising above all worldly considerations. In so doing John puts Christ's cause above his own.
The declaration is almost the counterpart of what Jesus told Nicodemus, corresponds with Jesus' own testimony in the same Spirit, and stands as a sermon to the Pharisees clearing the way for Christ's ministry. It belongs to the time when Christ, the light and life of the gospel made flesh, is serving people through acts of care.
Heavenly Testimony Rejected
What He has seen and heard is firsthand heavenly knowledge, for He who comes from heaven is above all earthly speakers and testifies of what He Himself has seen and heard in heaven. He speaks God's words and divine truth with heavenly authority, bearing witness from heaven to light that joins the law and the gospel in a complete and perfect whole, in contrast to the earthly speech of one who is of the earth. He comes from above and speaks what is true, and His testimony is grounded in what He has seen and heard from God. One presentation establishes His divine authority by stressing His heavenly origin and superiority and His speaking of God's words, and does not explain the statement that no one receives His testimony.
No man receiving His testimony means men in general refuse it, for so few are ready to accept Jesus as the Saviour from sin that it can be said no man receives His witness. This is stated over against the claim of the disciples that all men are coming to Christ, setting the general refusal beside their report of crowds flocking to Him. He clothed His divinity with humanity and came to His own in humility, but His own received Him not. The priests and rulers who claimed to be wise expositors of the law refused His light because they had lost the true sense of the Old Testament prophecies, so His great light was given to all, highest and most lowly, in the synagogues and in the streets, and the common people heard Him gladly.
People fail to receive truth because they do not study it for salvation and do not see and know Christ as the truth. Whoever receives His testimony affirms that God is true. Christ bore His own testimony concerning righteousness and truth, giving a wonderful lesson.
Sharing the Received Light
What He testifies of what He has seen and heard is light that men are called to discern and walk in, joining the law and the gospel in a complete and perfect whole. It is the truth as it is in Jesus, the message of the uplifted Saviour, justification by faith, and the efficacy of His atoning blood. It must be sounded by God's people throughout the length and breadth of the world in clear, distinct lines as the third angel's message, so that all may discern the light and walk in it. It turns souls from looking to and trusting in man to looking to Jesus in whom the hopes of eternal life are centered, and it will be impressed upon every heart that is opened to receive it.
John bears this witness from a soul emptied of self and filled with divine light, in words almost the same as Christ's own concerning Him who comes from heaven being above all. That witness belongs to the glory of Christ in which all His followers are to share by the same emptying of self. Heaven's light is received only as self is emptied, and the character of God is discerned and Christ is accepted by faith only as every thought is brought into captivity to obedience to Christ. To all who do this the Holy Spirit is given without measure, so that they are complete in Him in whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells.
The passage of John 3:22-36 is to be read carefully for thorough conviction and repentance. It teaches speaking kindly and earnestly in season to erring ones instead of trifling reproof, and guarding words and actions from rudeness. This is needed because by deception Satan seeks to overcome every soul, while angels of God are present in every workplace to protect every soul. The same principle that a witness testifies to what he has seen and heard applies to Brother Smith, whose long experience in the work equips him to bear such witness, which Satan will try to silence so that people will disregard the testimonies of the Spirit of God.