I. John testified concerning Yashua. V15-18
A. This word testify is interesting.
1. It not only means to just give a testimony:
a. This “testify”. (GK is mar-too-reh-o and it means to give testimony but it
means to bear testimony of something you have firsthand knowledge of)
b. The Hebrew word. (Heb. “ed” means the samething and means to repeat
again or to do again and it is a legal term used to establish a fact)
c. We see this is Ruth 4:9-11. (Boaz calls the elders together, so they can
witness first hand Boaz’s redemption of Ruth, Boaz is calling the elders
to be a legal witness of the facts)
d. So John isn’t just stating something. (John the Baptist has come as a legal
witness to give testimony of who Yashua is and what He is here for)
e. Notice, what he said. (This one that comes after me has surpassed me
because He existed before me)
1). Now that is an interesting statement. (According to birth John was 6
months older than Yashua)
a). Look at John 3:9-15. (Specifically V13 no one has ascended into heaven
into heaven except the one who descended “the Son of Man”)
b). Now look at Deut. 30:11-16. (Essentially the same thing is being said
here, only clarified, it was Him who brought in near to our hearts)
c). Look at Rom. 10:6-10. (Paul expounds on this and what is means so we
can take a look at how to apply this understanding)
2). Look at Matt. 3:11-12. (This is where John the Baptist gave this
testimony, the “one coming after me” is more powerful than I)
3). Now I want you to look closely at the contrast. (John the Baptist says, I
Baptize you with water, but the one coming will baptize with the Holy
Spirit and fire)
4). Now this is a quote from Is. 4:2-6. (Now this is known as Zion’s future
and notice in V4 the spirit of judgment and spirit of burning, these are
tied together with being cleansed)
5). Notice too. (After the judgment and fire there will be a cloud of smoke
by day and a glowing flame at night over the entire site of Mt. Zion)
6). Now I want you to see this. (We are cleansed through His judgment and
fire, this is so important for us to get here)
7). Look at John 1:16. (We have received grace after grace from His
fullness)
8). And we also see in V17. (The law was given to Moses, grace and truth
came through Yashua Messiah)
9). At first glance one would think there is a difference between the two. (But
this is not so, and we need to look closely at what is said here)
10). Let’s look at this word grace. (GK khar-ece and it means to find favor,
acceptance and goodness towards those who do not desire such favor)
a). But grace also means. (That there has been a Divine influence in ones
heart that causes them to reflect upon ones life)
b). In the Hebrew “grace”. (Hebrew “hen” and means to find favor in
Yahweh’s eye’s and to have His face turn towards you)
c). We see this in Gen. 6:8. (Noah found “hen” (grace) in Yahweh’s eye’s
and notice the other people did not, look at Gen. 6:12 every creature
had corrupted its way)
d). Now remember we went through this in Hebrews study. (“They had
corrupted its way, Hebrew meant they had stopped living their lives
according to the purpose they were created for)
e). Look at Gen. 6:13. (The earth was filled with wickedness because
every creature had stopped living their live according to the purpose
they were created to live)
f). We could say. (They had stopped listening to the Divine influence in
their lives, and they had stopped reflecting on their lives according to
that Devine influence)
g). So the Law was given to Moses. (Grace and truth came through
Yashua the Messiah, so Yashua Messiah came and gave Divine
influence according to the Truth which should cause us to reflect on
our lives, or our hearts)
h). So this whole idea of grace. (Is different than what is being taught, we
can’t receive “favor” if there is no judgment or Divine influence that
causes us to reflect on our lives and turn back to Him)
i). Look at John 17:7. (Sanctify them by the truth, Your word is the truth,
the word “sanctify” GK is hag-ee-ad-zo and means to make holy and
to cleanse)
j). Look at Ex. 29:42-46. (His presence and His Word are what sanctifies
us but we must respond to His Divine influence and measure our
hearts according to His word, or we will not find “grace” His favor)
11). Now look at John 1:18. (No one has ever seen Yahweh, but Yahweh is
revealed through the One and Only Son and it is the Father who
revealed the Son)
a). “The One and Only Son”. (GK is monogenes and means “only child”
and can mean “one of a kind” and can be translated as “alone” as in
Gen. 22:2, 12, 16 where Isaac is one of a kind and appears in the
section where Abraham is to sacrifice Isaac His One of a Kind son)
b). This makes Abraham & Isaac a picture. (Of the Father and the Son or
the Father and Yashua, but in the case of Abraham it was stopped)
c). Look at Gen. 22:7-8. (Yahweh Himself will provide the Lamb, and we
know this to be the Lamb of Yahweh)
d). Look at Gen. 22:16-17. (It was by Abraham following the Divine
influence in our lives that we were blessed, all of Israel came through
the seed of Abraham, including our Messiah)
e). Look closely at “Father’s side” or “bosom” KJV. (GK is kol-pos meaning
bay, but the Hebrew is khake and means to inclose or in this case it
could be in the inclosed parts of the Father)
f). We can see this use in Num. 11:10-12. (Moses asking Yahweh if He
(Moses) had been conceived or to be pregnant with them and carried
them in his bosom or were they inclosed in me)
1). Look at John 14:9. (If you have seen Me you have seen the Father)