JOHN 3:31-36 PODCAST
31 The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33 Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them. John 3:31-36
John the Baptist continues with his appraisal of the Lord Jesus. He concludes the Lord Jesus operates out of an authentic relationship with God the Father and He must have the preeminence in all things. According to John the Baptist, the Lord Jesus has seen and heard God, thus He knows Him like none other. The Lord Jesus is, Himself, the Word of God, speaking into existence everything that exists.
The Apostle John wrote, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. . . . And from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.”
This truth, the fullness of Christ, is unfolding in every text throughout John's Gospel. John presents the Lord Jesus as being full of grace and truth. This is key, in light of the fact that mankind is empty apart from a personal relationship with God. The Lord Jesus came from God, full of all things good, seeking to fill the inner longings of all who would call on His name.
In v.31 a contrast is being penned, the contrast is between the Lord Jesus and mankind. The point here is the same as in John 3:6 where Jesus said to Nicodemus, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” The point? Fallen man is in need of new birth through the Holy Spirit of God.
In v.32, it is insinuated that the religious community, that Nicodemus comes from, does not represent the God of the Bible. The fact that they didn't recognize the Lord Jesus for who He was proves that they didn't have the relationship with God the Father. If they had a personal and authentic relationship with God, they would not have resisted the One and Only Son of God.
The point of v.32-35 is the Lord Jesus is from heaven, and He has come into the world, without sin, on a mission to rescue sinners. It is His goal not just to deliver us from sin, but to deliver us to a personal relationship with God the Father. The Lord Jesus came to enable us to have the same kind of relationship as the Lord Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, with the Father.
Note John's words in v.34 ... "for God gives the Spirit without limit." The giving of the Holy Spirit is synonymous with the giving of the kind of life that is influenced by the eternal. And, the sky is the limit when it comes to the capacity the believer has for an intimate relationship with the Father. The Holy Spirit aids us in our personal and potentially intimate relationship with the Father. The key is: will we act on the truth and promises of the word of God? Will our faith in the God of the Bible raise us to levels offered by Him in His word.
The bottom line is what do I do with the Lord Jesus? Do I receive Him and believe in His daily active involvement in my life? Or, do I reject Him? Of course, the only thing that enables any of us to have a relationship with Him is His performance on our behalf. But, now that we have a personal relationship with Him, how intimate, how deep in that relationship will we go? By the way, expect people to criticize this kind of faith. Due to the fact that they do not go deep with God, they will be unnerved by your willingness to go deep with Him.
The model of this kind of intimacy is the Trinity. The Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, are all three found here in John 3. Our intimacy with God (and with each other) is ultimately a reflection of Gods intimacy within the members of the Trinity. This means that intimacy is an essential part of the very nature of God and because we are made in His image, it is natural to us as well. This is why we are capable of intimacy with others and with God. It is in now our nature, now that we have come into a personal relationship with Him.
Augustine said it well so many years ago when he said, "To fall in love with God is the greatest romance; to seek him the greatest adventure; to find him, the greatest human achievement."
To help BYM, click here
