What is the meaning of 1 John 5:11? And this is that testimony John has just written, “If we accept human testimony, the testimony of God is greater” (1 John 5:9). Here he tells us what God is actually testifying to. • Testimony means a sworn witness, so God Himself is standing in the court of human hearts declaring what is true. • Jesus echoed this in John 5:32, 37 when He said the Father bears witness about Him. • Because the witness is divine, doubting it is calling God a liar (1 John 5:10). That raises the stakes higher than any human argument ever could. The point: the statement that follows is not opinion or theory; it is the reliable, unchangeable word of God. God has given us Notice the verb tense—“has given.” The gift is already offered, not merely promised for the future. • Romans 6:23 reminds us that “the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” • Ephesians 2:8-9 underscores that salvation is “by grace… not by works,” so our effort never earns it. • John 10:28 records Jesus saying, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.” The giving is present, personal, and permanent. Salvation, then, rests on what God has done, not on what we might do. Our role is to receive what He freely gives. Eternal life Eternal life is more than endless existence; it is shared life with God Himself. • Jesus defined it: “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3). • John 3:16 ties eternal life to believing in the Son. • Paul celebrated that “Christ Jesus… displayed His patience as an example to those who would believe in Him for eternal life” (1 Timothy 1:16). So eternal life is both qualitative (knowing God now) and quantitative (lasting forever). It begins the moment someone believes and stretches unbroken into eternity. And this life is in His Son The gift is located “in His Son.” Outside of Christ, there is no eternal life. • Verse 12 drives it home: “Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:12). • Jesus said, “I am the way… No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). • Acts 4:12 affirms, “There is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” Practical take-aways: - Possessing Christ equals possessing life; rejecting Christ equals forfeiting life. - Assurance flows from relationship, not from religious performance. - Evangelism is urgent because eternal life is found nowhere else. summary God Himself testifies that He has already granted eternal life, and that life comes exclusively through His Son. Because the witness is divine, the gift is certain. Because the life is eternal, the blessing is immeasurable. And because the life is found only in Jesus, trusting Him is mankind’s single greatest need. |
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