Sermon: The Case for Christ

Text: John 5:19–47

Last week-

Pool of Bethsaida

John 5:18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

The Big Idea: In response to the religious leaders who sought to kill Him for making Himself equal with God, Jesus unveils His supreme, divine authority as the Son of God.

He is the divine Creator, Life-Giver, and Final Judge.

Supported by four undeniable witnesses, Christ confronts human unbelief not as an intellectual problem, but as a moral unwillingness to submit to the Sovereign King.

1. Introduction: The Supreme Claim and the Trial of Christ

"Last week, as we walked through verse 18, we saw the Jewish authorities escalating their hostility toward Jesus.

John recorded that they were seeking all the more to kill Him because He was not only breaking their Sabbath traditions, but was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

In the ancient world, to claim that you shared the exact same nature as the Father was an absolute claim to deity.

The religious elite knew exactly what Jesus was saying.

They viewed it as blasphemy worthy of death.

Now, starting in verse 19, Jesus does not back down. He does not clarify or say, 'You misunderstood me; I'm just a prophet.'

Instead, He steps forward and doubles down on His absolute equality with God the Father.

Today, as we study John 5:19–47, from an almost courtroom like perspective, I want you to hear the argument that Jesus lays out.

We will see the supreme authority of the Son, and hear from the four witnesses He calls to testify to the truth,

Then we will hear the tragic verdict of the human heart that refuses to receive the truth.

1) The Unity and Authority of the Son (v. 19–24)

¹⁹ Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. 

²⁰ For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel. 

²¹ For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. ²² For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 

²³ so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

²⁴ “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

Functional Distinction, Essential Equality – That is the essence of the nature of the Trinity that is God. Father / Son / Holy Spirit

Within the Trinity the Father is not the Son nor is the Holy Spirit the Father à Yet each one is fully God

à And while expressed with perfect unity and equality – each has functional distinction.

In this passage we see a declaration of Trinitarian Harmony:

In verse 19, Jesus states that the Son can do nothing of Himself.

• This is not a confession of weakness; it is a declaration of absolute, divine unity in will and purpose with the Father.

• The Father and the Son operate with one will, one power, and one purpose. Whatever the Father does, the Son does in like manner.

Jesus demonstrates this by declaring to the Jews what they already knew about the nature of God from the Sacred Writings.

In the Old Testament, only Yahweh has the authority to grant life and execute ultimate judgment

• 1 Samuel 2:6: "The LORD kills and makes alive; He brings down to Sheol and raises up."

• Deuteronomy 32:39 “'See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god beside me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal; and there is none that can deliver out of my hand.”

Jesus explicitly claims Himself to have authority over BOTH

• Giver of Life (v. 21): The Son grants spiritual and physical life to "whom He wishes"—highlighting His sovereign grace.

• Executor of Judgment (v. 22): The Father has handed all judgment over matters of life and death to the Son.

• Equal Honor (v. 23): Jesus therefore demands the exact same religious worship and honor as God the Father.

Why believing in the Trinity matters-

• To refuse to worship Jesus as God is to dishonor the Father who sent Him.

Colossians 1:15-17 ¹⁵ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. ¹⁶ For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. ¹⁷ And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

The Lie of Religious Pluralism: Our secular culture loves to say,

"We all worship the same God; we just take different paths."

Verse 23 completely dismantles that myth: "He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him."

And verse 24 declares why the distinction matters

²⁴ “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

Islam, Mormonism, Judaism, Jehovah's Witnesses, or any worldview that rejects the full deity of Jesus Christ does not worship the true God.

2) The Two Resurrections—Now and Then (v. 25–29)

²⁵ Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. ²⁶ For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; ²⁷ and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. ²⁸ Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, ²⁹ and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

Then, Now & Later- Realized and Eschatological Resurrection

• The Immediate Spiritual Resurrection (v. 25–26): Jesus says the hour "is coming and now is." This refers to the present age of gospel regeneration.

• Spiritually dead sinners (Ephesians 2:1) hear the call of the Son through the preaching of the Word, and their dead souls are regenerated to eternal life.

Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

• The Future Physical Resurrection (v. 28–29): Jesus then shifts to the future end of history: "an hour is coming" (omitting "and now is").

• Every human being who has ever lived—both the saved and the un-saved—will one day be physically resurrected by the voice of Christ.

There will be a Resurrection of Life and another of Judgment:

• Those who are in Christ step into eternal glory;

• Those who reject Him are raised bodily to face eternal condemnation.

Ephesians 2:1, 4–5  

¹"And you were dead in your trespasses and sins...

⁴ But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, ⁵ even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

Two Resurrections- Daniel 12:2: "Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt."

3) The Bridge—Trinitarian Alignment in Judgment (v. 30)

³⁰ “I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

The Perfect Unity of God and Justice of Christ

• Verse 30 acts as a theological bridge connecting the resurrection and judgment back to the Trinity.

• Human judges are corruptible because they judge by outward appearances, personal bias, or self-interest.

• When Jesus judges, it is flawless - because His will is in perfect alignment with the Father's holy standards.

• His judgment is personal and inescapable because it directly exposes how every individual responds to the Word of God.

John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

4) The Four Witnesses Called to the Stand (v. 31–39)

³¹ “If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true. ³² There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.

Jesus acknowledges the Old Testament legal standard.

According to Deuteronomy 19:15, no charge or claim could be established on the testimony of a single individual—there had to be two or three witnesses.

In verse 31, Jesus says, "If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true"—not that He is capable of lying,

But that under the legal standards of the Law of Moses, self-attestation was insufficient.

So, Jesus adhered to the Law of Moses they so haughtily clung to – to demonstrate by many witnesses the veracity of His claim.  

He steps to the witness stand and calls four undeniable, unassailable witnesses into the courtroom to establish His identity as the Son of God.

1. 1.  The Witness of John the Baptist (v. 33–35):

³³ You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth. ³⁴ But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. ³⁵ He was the lamp that was burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

• The Role of the Herald:

John the Baptist was a great prophet - sent specifically to prepare the way of the Lord (Malachi 3:1, Isaiah 40:3). A voice in the wilderness.

When the religious leaders sent a delegation to interview John in John 1:19–27, John plainly denied being the Christ.

Instead, he pointed his finger directly at Jesus and declared, "Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"

(John 1:29).

• The Metaphor of the Lamp

Jesus calls John a "lamp"—In the Greek – the word used here describes a “crafted, temporary lamp that burns fuel.” John was a temporary vessel, to guide people’s path – to lead them to Jesus, who is the True Light (John 1:9).

John’s message testified that people should repent and be baptized, for the Kingdom of Heaven was at hand.

1. 2.  The Witness of The Works/Miracles of Christ (v. 36):

³⁶ But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.

• Beyond the words – were the works which proclaimed Him

In John's Gospel, miracles are never raw displays of power intended to entertain a crowd.

They are signposts pointing to a divine reality.

The healing of the paralytic in John 5:1–9 was not just an act of mercy; it was a physical demonstration that Jesus possesses the authority to forgive sins and grant life.

The water turned to wine, the signs during the festival in Jerusalem, the healing of the official’s son – all were works only the authority of God could manifest.

Jesus' "works" include His entire earthly ministry—His miraculous healings, His authoritative teaching, His sinless life, and ultimately His obedience unto death.

These works were designed by the Father as a divine seal of approval of the Son.

Nicodemus understood this back in John 3:2 when he admitted, "No one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."

1. 3.  The Witness of God the Father Himself (v. 37–38):

³⁷ And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. ³⁸ You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.

The Father’s Verbal and Internal Witness: How does the Father testify of the Son?

• Audibly: At Jesus' baptism, the voice from heaven declared, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17).

• Internally: Through the illuminating work of the Holy Spirit, who draws chosen sinners to recognize the Son (John 6:44).

Jesus proclaimed to the Jews an Indictment of Blindness:

Jesus delivers a devastating rebuke to the Pharisees.

They boasted of being the guardians of God's holy presence, yet Jesus tells them, "You have neither heard His voice... nor seen His form."

They possessed all the outward trappings of religion, but they had zero experiential knowledge of God.

They had plenty of religion – but no relationship

Because they rejected the Son, they proved that God's Word was not abiding in their hearts.

It is a solid warning for us all-

You can be an expert in religious activity and completely void of the Holy Spirit.

If you do not love and trust Jesus Christ,

You do not know God the Father,

No matter how religious you claim to be.

1. 4.  The Witness of The Scriptures (v. 39):

³⁹ You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; 

The Pharisees were meticulous scholars of the Old Testament.

They counted every letter, debated every commandment, and memorized vast portions of the text.

They believed that the physical possession and study of the Scriptures guaranteed them a place in the kingdom.

But Jesus exposes their tragic error: The Bible is not the end goal; it is the signpost.

The Scriptures exist to lead sinners to the truth – And the truth is that Jesus is our Lord and Savior – Jesus is Christ, Messiah.

The whole of the Word of God is Christ-Centered

Every covenant, every shadow, every sacrifice, and every prophecy in the Old Testament points directly to Jesus Christ:

• He is the Seed of the woman in Genesis 3:15.
• He is the blessing promised through Abraham in Genesis 12:3
• He is the King on the Throne in the Everlasting Kingdom in 2 Samuel 7
• He is the true Passover Lamb in Exodus 12.
• He is the Prophet greater than Moses in Deuteronomy 18.
• He is the Suffering Servant of Isaiah 53.

Luke 24:27: "Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures."

5) Mankind’s Verdict—An Act of the Effective Will of Man (v. 40–47)

The Verdict of Men and the Judgement of God

⁴⁰ and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. 

⁴¹ I do not receive glory from men; ⁴² but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves. ⁴³ I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 

⁴⁴ How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? 

⁴⁵ Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. 

⁴⁶ For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. ⁴⁷ But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

The Moral Root of Unbelief

• “Unwilling to Come” (v. 40): Here is the ultimate indictment. Unbelief is not primarily an intellectual problem; it is a moral problem.

• Sinners do not reject Christ because there is a lack of evidence;

They reject Him because they will not bow their hearts to His authority.

Their wills are hostile to God.

John 3:19: "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil."

• The Idolatry of Human Approval (v. 44): Why couldn't these religious leaders believe?

• à Because they were addicted to the applause of men ("receiving glory from one another") rather than seeking the approval of God.

• Moses as the Accuser (v. 45–47): They boasted in Moses, but Jesus reveals that the word of Moses they held high would be the very word by which they would be judged in the resurrection to come.

Deuteronomy 18:15: Moses prophesying of Christ: "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you... to him you shall listen."

The Promised Prophet (JESUS) came – but they did not listen-

Because He did not tell them what they wanted hear.

. ⁴³ I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him

This is why your work and mine as Disciples of Jesus – Students of the Truth – and Ambassadors of Christ is so important!

People have, are, and will continue to seek out, promote, and listen to the lies that tell them what they want to hear.

As we look at the Pharisees, and all the other religions that have refused to submit to the authority of the sovereign God, His Word, and His Christ, we see this theme played out again and again –

The self-deception of the religious heart as it focusses on the idolatry of human praise and the glory of self OVER the glory of God.

Again, this why your work and mine is so important, TODAY!

2 Timothy 4:1-5

 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: ² preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction. ³ For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, ⁴ and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. ⁵ But you, be sober in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

IN CLOSING -- APPLICATION

1. The Death of Intellectual Neutrality

• Many people in our community will claim, "I'm just open-minded, waiting for more evidence before I commit to a religion."

• Jesus exposes this lie in verse 40.
  • The issue isn't a lack of light; it's a love for darkness.

• Unbelief is a stubborn refusal of mankind’s’ effective will to surrender its pride and to accept by faith the Word of God.

2. Searching the Scriptures Without Finding Christ

• It is possible to be highly educated in scripture and present at every church service yet completely miss Jesus.

• If your Bible study does not lead you to deeper worship, repentance, and love for Jesus Christ...

• Then you are treating the Bible the same way the Pharisees did—as a textbook for self-righteousness rather than a witness to the Savior and a guide for your life.

3. The Danger of Seeking Human Glory and Self-righteousness

• The major barriers to saving faith are-

• The pride of life
• The fear of man
• And the desire for social status

• If you care more about what your culture, your coworkers, or your peer group thinks of you than what God thinks, you will never walk in genuine discipleship.

The Final Pulpit Charge- The courtroom is closed, the case has been made.  The evidence has been laid before you.

• John the Baptist has pointed the way.

• The miracles stand as undeniable proof.

• The Father has spoken.

• Every page of the Scriptures declares His glory.  

Jesus is the Son of God, the Lord of Life, and the Judge of the living and the dead.

The question today is not whether there is enough evidence.

The questions are these:

1)

If you HAVE NOT believed that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God – the author and perfector of your salvation from the judgement of God-

Will you continue in your denial, or will you drop your pride, repent of your self-righteousness, and come to Him today that you may have life?"

2)

If you HAVE believed that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God – the author and perfector of your salvation from the judgement of God-

Will you live your life as a witness of that faith and salvation – and will you share these truths with others?

The courtroom is adjourned – but the judgment is coming

As God declared to His people Israel so long ago in Deuteronomy 30:19

“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,”

Let us Pray