JOHN 3:31-36 TAKE THE LEAP

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 The man who 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 him.”

Testimony by a witness is necessarily secondary and incomplete, while the truth of a confession by the perpetrator is only limited by the amount of information he is willing to give. A witness can only share what she has perceived and her understanding of how everything fits together. In contrast, in a truthful confession, the perpetrator can speak of motives, plans, emotions and knowledge that are inaccessible to others. In both cases the power of their statements is based on the believability of the speaker.

If someone is trapped on the ledge of a burning building and people on the ground are urging him to jump into a net they are holding, even if he does not believe the firemen, he will certainly be persuaded by the one who was moments earlier standing with him on the ledge. He has “been there and done that,” and is standing below as proof of his confession.

The Letter to the Hebrews begins with this statement:

1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. (1:1-3a)

You may not trust the prophets for they are men sharing what they have been told. But Jesus is God Incarnate. His confession is revealed truth and we only reject his testimony at the peril of our eternal well being.

Lord Jesus, you came from the Father and have gone before me to show me the way to the Father. Help me to stop clinging to this burning building for security and empower me to make the leap of faith into your loving arms. Amen.