Who are the witnesses who back Christ’s claim to be equal with God? Part 3

“But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.” John 5:36

After calling upon the witness of God the Father (John 5:31-32, 37-38) and John the Baptist (John 5:33-35) to back up His claim to be equal with God, Jesus now calls upon the witness of HIS WORKS. “But I have a greater witness than John’s; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish—the very works that I do—bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.” (John 5:36). Jesus is referring to the miracles He had performed – changing water into wine (John 2:1-11), healing both the nobleman’s son in Capernaum (John 4:46-54) and now the lame man at the pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem (John 5:1-15). In fact, the people listening to Jesus saw this lame man rise out of paralysis into strength and walking again. He was standing before them so that they could not deny the miracle.

Christ’s works were superior to John’s words. Only a supernatural Person could perform supernatural works. “But,” you say, “that was 2,000 years ago. If God would only witness like that again today I could believe in Him.” Well, God does witness like that today. Jesus still performs miracles today. He heals people of cancer, blindness, deafness, and broken relationships. We have watched Christ liberate people from various addictions. With Christ, all things are possible (Philippians 4:13). Christ uses miracles in our lives to help people realize He is more than a mere man – He is God. Yet, some people still miss the point.

This reminds me of a man and his dog who were walking along the beach when they came upon another visitor to the beach. The owner of the dog was proud of his dog’s newly mastered feat, so he said to the visitor, “Watch this!” whereupon he tossed a piece of driftwood far out into the sea and the dog immediately ran on top of the ocean, fetched the wood, and ran back. The visitor just shook his head in disbelief. Whereupon the owner repeated the procedure twice. Finally, he asked the visitor, “Did you notice anything unusual?” The visitor responded, “Your dog can’t swim, can he?”

Isn’t it amazing that some people miss the obvious? That’s how it can be with the miracles of Jesus. Some people see Jesus’s power to do great miracles in our lives, but they miss the point. The miracles identify Jesus as the Son of God, the Savior of the world, the promised Christ or Messiah-God. John recorded Jesus’s miracles to persuade his readers to “believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31). But many refuse to come to this conclusion.

Prayer: Lord God, Your supernatural works point to You as the Christ, the Son of God, so people may transfer all their trust on to You for Your gift of everlasting life. Thank You for Your gift of salvation which I believe is the greatest of all Your miracles whereby You transform a filthy sinner into a forgiven saint the moment he or she believes in You. Please draw the unsaved to Yourself through Your miraculous works in the lives of ordinary people like me. In Jesus’s name. Amen.