February 10, 2016
Scripture Reading: 1 John 5:5-8
5Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
6This is the one who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ. He did not come by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth. 7For there are three that testify: 8theSpirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
Questions for Reflection:
When we study the Bible, it is essential that we remember the importance of understanding the context into which the original text was written. At the beginning of the week as you read through the chapter, we try and ask questions that will remind you of the situation into which the letter was written. The verses we read today demand that we remember that John’s letters were written into a community that was in the midst of a bitter and divisive struggle rooted in theology. The struggle comes to the forefront in today’s passage.
Sometimes when we’re reading biblical texts, we’ll encounter passages that may be awkward for modern readers. In today’s passage, the words “water” and “blood” appear quite a bit. What was John discussing when he wrote of “water and blood”? Without fulling understanding what John was alluding to, it can make interpreting and applying this passage into our lives difficult. Those terms no doubt were playing a central role in the problems of Jon’s church. New Testament scholar Colin Kruse suggests that the term “water” refers to Jesus’ ministry, specifically the fact that he baptized others. The other term, “blood,” most likely references the death of Jesus Christ on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Most likely, those withdrawing from John’s church were questioning the validity and the purpose of Jesus’ death on the cross.
Why is it important for John that they understood the importance of Jesus’ death on the cross? Why does he seem to make such a big deal out of it? Gary Burge offers some insight in his commentary. He writes:
“In the framework of this schism, he argues that it is not possible to claim the inspiration of the Spirit, to say one speaks for God, and at the same time deny the incarnational reality of Jesus. To do this is to undercut one’s claim to possess the Spirit in the first place. For John, one cannot claim intimacy with God and contradict God’s premier revelation of himself.”
In the Hebrew court, you needed the testimony of two people for something to be proven true. Who/what does John says testifies to the fact that Jesus is the Christ? Why does John stress that “the three are in agreement”? Not only does the Spirit affirm within the believer, but Jesus’ ministry and his death on the cross serve as a witness to the love God has for us. How can you share this with others?
For Further Study:
Several months ago, our church offered an Alpha Course within all our groups and teams. One of the talks that they discussed was: Why did Jesus die on the cross? If you have time today, listen to Nicky Gumbel’s explanation from a recent Alpha course in England: