God’s saints and churches were being assaulted by false doctrine as early as the end of the first century. The doctrines taught by the apostles of Christ were being attacked very early on. Heresies were creeping into Christ’s churches, and even festering within those churches. Some of them, like Gnosticism, were coming from the heathen and hedonistic society surrounding them. But some of heretics, like the Ephesian, Cerinthus, may have for a time been members of the churches the apostles and their immediate successors were pastoring.
Along with Cerinthianism, another growing heresy of the day was Docetism. The first appearance of the term was by a preacher named Serapian of Antioch. Was he a part of the home church of Paul and Barnabas? The word “Docetism” comes from another Greek term like “gnosko.” “Dokeo” or “dokesis” is sometimes translated “I think” or “it seems.” The idea is: sometimes things are not what they seem to be.
And that is was the Docetics said about the physical body of the Lord Jesus. They foolishly decided that what people saw when they looked at Jesus was an illusion, a phantom. They, too, differentiated between the man Jesus and the Son of God Christ. To them, Jesus’ suffering and death were not real events. A modern version of Docetism is Mary Baker Eddy Paterson Glover’s “Christian Science” cult. The doctrine of the Docetics completely negated the truths of the gospel. I should probably have brought this heresy up when we looked at I John 4. It helps to explain the first verses of that chapter: “Beloved believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God; because many false prophets are gone out into the world. Hereby know ye the Spirt of God; Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God; and every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is cometh in the flesh is not of God…” John was directly condemning the root doctrine of the Decetics.
Now, in this part of chapter 5 he ties together several truths which condemn both heresies. He speaks of three groups of three witnesses: three triads. There is the Heavenly trinity; an earthly trinity and a very practical trinity. These three threes testify to both the humanity and deity of the Lord Jesus.
I need to tell you up front that there is a great deal of controversy, debate and denial about these verses.
The first triad involves WATER, BLOOD, and the HOLY SPIRIT.
“This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ, not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth.” What is this water and blood which envelopes the Lord Jesus? It could refer to the physical birth of Jesus, but I don’t think so. When a baby is born, there is blood and amniotic fluid, which is much like water. Some commentators say that John is defending the doctrine of the incarnation. And while he certainly does, I don’t think he is doing so here. There are others who point to Jesus’ death on the cross when the Roman spear was thrust into His side. What came out? Blood and an over abundance of pericardial fluid – essentially water. While that is true, I can’t see how this fits into what John is telling us. You see, one of the problems with these explanations is the statement that Jesus “came by water and blood.” What is this “coming?”
The most common explanation among the conservative scholars is that the “water” refers to Jesus’ baptism and the “blood” speaks of Christ’s death on the cross. This explanation brings together Christ’s incarnation and crucifixion. “Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God” (verse 5). Christ Jesus is the incarnate Son of God. And verse 6 reminds us that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. And how do we know these things? We are told about these in the Word of God. Matthew 3:16: “Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he (John) saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: and lo a voice from heaven saying This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” The Bible tells us that Christ began His physical life in Bethlehem, but His anointed ministry began with His baptism. And it reached its climax in His blood covered death on the cross. The centurion, which stood over against him… said, “Truly this man was the Son of God.” And God Himself ripped open the veil which separated the His people from the Holy of Holies, declaring in an illustration that there is salvation and access to Him through the death of His Son.
Furthermore, the Spirit of Truth has testified to these things. Verse 6 stomps on both those major heresies of John’s day: Docetism and Cherinthianism. Jesus didn’t “seem” to be human or “seem” to be God: He is both; He is the theanthropic person. And even though His ministry began with His baptism, He was born and died as God’s Son.
John’s second triad of witnesses, should more accurately be called the TRIUNE TESTIMONY.
“Triune” is a word which should never be applied to anyone or anything beyond the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is a compound word tying together “tri” and “unus” – “three” and “one.” This triune testimony is not simply a triad of witnesses, but the witness of the divine three in one.
In John’s first triad there was the water, the blood and the Spirit. In this triune witness there is the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit. “There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost and these three are one.” We know who the Father and Spirit are, and John has made sure we understand who is “the Word.” “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” “The Word of life was manifested and we have seen it…and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.” John’s second set of witnesses is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. How is anyone going to justify their denial of these divine witnesses?
I John 5:6-8 has become one of the first scriptures of the New Testament to be viciously attacked and denied. It was hated, and still is, particularly by those who hate the doctrine of the deity of Christ. And it is denied by many who want to appear more scholarly than the Bible itself. Many modern and semi-modern versions of the Bible deny or eliminate the message of theses verses. Look at your Bible and listen to how the Revised Standard Version reads: Verse 6: “This is he who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ, not with the water only, but with the water and the blood” (end of verse). Keep your eye on verse 6 and listen to their verse 7: “And the Spirit is the witness, because the Spirit is truth.” Verse 8: “There are three witnesses, the Spirit, the water, and the blood; and these three agree.” Notice that the RSV completely eliminates verse 7 as we have it in our Bibles. And it also refuses to say, “These three agree in one.” The ASV and NIV essentially agree, as does today’s popular English Standard Version. But for over two hundred fifty years, between 1611 and about 1881, the Bible which English-speaking Christians used unites the Father, the Word (ie. the Lord Jesus Christ) and the Holy Ghost in verse 7. But these three are not just united in their witness; they are one in their essential essence. They have a triune witness to the Person of the Christ, the Son of God. “And these three are one.” Most modern versions of the Bible come from the corrupt manuscript which was put together by two troublemakers named Brooke Foss Westcott and Fenton John Anthony Hort. And clearly, their manuscript here and in other verses, is an attack on the deity of Christ.
John was saying to the Christ-deniers in his day that there are multiple witnesses to Christ’s humanity, deity and sacrifice for our sins.
Besides these heavenly witnesses, there is ANOTHER TRIAD on this EARTH.
“There are three that bear witness in earth… If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.” There is a witness to the truth which comes from men. This might be that saintly grandmother who is sharing the gospel with her daughter’s children. This might be the co-worker or that Christian employer, trying to share his faith in Christ. And it certainly includes the minister of God who preaches week after week. We are going to assume, since all of these are Christians, they are honest and dependable. They don’t have to put their hand on the Bible and swear that they are telling the truth.
Nevertheless, the witness of God is greater than a hundred excellent human witnesses. But what is the witness of God? It is not in the clouds or the mountains and rivers. It is not in the leaves at the bottom of the empty tea cup. And it is not in some secret code hidden in the Hebrew letters of Psalm 14 or some apocryphal book. The testimony of the Lord is found in the easy to understand pages of the Word of God. And what does the Bible, in our common language, tell us about the Person of the Messiah? Do we have to have a psychic, or priest, or some sort of medium to reinterpret the message of God? The Bible tells us that He who has always been the Son of God became incarnate, taking upon Himself human flesh but without sin. Then that Son of God, the Messiah, went to the cross where in His human body He died in the most excruciating way. But in His deity the Son of God did not die; deity cannot die. Then in His physical body Christ rose from the grave and ascended back to Heaven. And there He is King of kings and Judge of all judges, ready to condemn those who reject His grace.
Then, in addition to the evangelist’s witness and the Word of God which he shares with the world… Every child of God has a special witness residing in his own heart. “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself” (verse 10). “Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he that given us of his Spirit” (I John 4:13). I John 3:24: “And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us.”
Let’s remember John’s general purpose for this letter. He is providing us with tests to examine our relationship to Christ. One of them is that we can be victorious over the world. And another is that we can be victorious over heresy, because we have three, three-fold witnesses for the truth.