The Testimony of John

by: Bruce Fiol

Near the end of his Gospel, John tells us his reason for writing. This beloved disciple recorded seven statements in which Christ declared his deity. Then he chronicled seven signs, miracles that confirm Jesus’ claim to deity. Finally, he called upon seven witnesses to testify to what they knew about Jesus. There are no inconsistencies in their testimonies: Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. In fact, that’s word for word the testimony of the seventh witness—John himself (v. 30). John tells us he wrote his Gospel “so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.”

Why is it so critical that we believe this? John tells us: “that by believing you may have life in his name” (v. 31). The offer of “life in his name” can only be made with any credibility about one who is alive, never to die again. And that’s exactly who Jesus is. This is his promise: to give eternal life to any who place their trust in him. In all of history no other could make that offer.

“That,” says John, “is why I wrote this gospel—to show you Jesus and what he came to do, so that by believing him you may live eternally.”

So, do you believe?