Lamps on Lampstands - John 5:31-34

1:11If I alone testify about myself, my testimony is not true. There is another who testifies of me, and I know that the testimony which he gives about me is true. You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth. But the testimony is the truth. Which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. He was the lamp that was burning and was shining, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

1:43And while we were in Malawi, Africa, we had a number of candle-lit dinners, and we had a number of lamp-lit dinners. Not because we're a bunch of hopeless romantics, but because the power went out quite a lot. But one of the things that when the power goes out and the lamp goes on, or the candlelights go on, people come and gravitate around the table. It's not a bad way to live. Actually, people leave what they are doing. There isn't light to do anything else. You can't connect to anything, so you come in and connect with people around the table. Very relational.

2:25Well, that's what a lamp does: it gives light into the room. And Jesus says so much in Matthew chapter 5, his famous Sermon on the Mount in verse 14. He says, You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. The purpose of a lamp or light is very simple, right? It provides the necessary light to bring the objects in a room into. View. Darkness hides what's in the room. Light is that medium that brings the viewer in contact with the view.

3:10But Jesus in Sermon on the Mount is speaking not about actual lamps, though he is, he is using them metaphorically to speak about his people. His people provide spiritual light to those around them. And we do so by the things we say, by the things we value, the things we do, the places we go, the things we don't say, what esteems us, what drives us, all that communicates and points to the truth, namely a person, Jesus Christ, who has transformed us and who has lit us from above.

3:55Well, as we just read, Jesus refers to John the Baptist as just such a light, just such a lamp. Now, keep in mind, Jesus has just concluded his witness, his personal witness, telling those who want to kill him. He tells them, yes, I am equal with God. Things I say, things I do, things I know, but specifically, I am the judge of all. And that's what he says. I am the judge of all. Something only. Attributed to God. And as he's concluding his self-witness, he makes a very startling promise in verse 28. Look back. We looked at this last time, but let's go back and look at this again.

4:46He says, Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and will come forth. Now, that's a powerful voice. You can wake the dead. They will come forth, those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, to those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment. And then he says in verse 30, and my judgment is just. Well, Jesus's words stand in stark opposition to many popular notions of our times, don't they?

5:30We hear this notion all around us, especially if you're in academic circles or quasi-academic circles. There's this notion that the world is all there is, an atheistic worldview, the grave ends everything. It's the conclusion. However, Jesus' words testify that they are very mistaken. There is a resurrection and a life to come. Whose light are you going to listen to? There's also the notion that there is no future judgment, no hell, no condemnation for sinners. Universalism teaches that God is a God of love and he would never condemn anyone into hell. He's too merciful, way too compassionate to punish anyone. However, Jesus, the judge himself, testifies that there is a resurrection of condemnation. He says, I am the judge, and there is a resurrection of condemnation, and my judgment is absolutely spot on.

6:50Then there's another notion out there. There are those that teach that the resurrection of life, there's a resurrection of life for the saints, but only an annihilation for sinners. So there is a glorious life to come, but for sinners, there's just an extermination, an extinction. However, again, Jesus' plain words here testify that they are terribly mistaken. There is a resurrection of eternal life. And just like there's a resurrection of eternal life, there is a resurrection of eternal condemnation. He doesn't just raise them up to a Annihilate them. No, there is a raising up for the purpose of an eternal separation from God.

7:40You hear that with the Jehovah's Witnesses that will knock on your door and that and other groups becoming more and more popular. But then there are those who argue that a holy lifestyle is really of little importance. So long as a person just has faith in Christ alone, the way he lives or she lives really has no bearing on anything. However, Jesus again points out that they are terribly mistaken. Jesus, the judge himself, tells us it will be the doings of people, the deeds of people, that he will use to be the evidence that decides eternal condemnation, eternal life. Not that he is teaching at all that we are saved by our works, but he is saying that the kind of faith that saves inevitably produces evidence. And that evidence is going to be the very evidence that he uses to judge. So if the overall character and nature and fruit of your life is one of distance and growing distance from God, you do not know him.

8:57Or you have good reason to question him. Whether you know him or not. Such is the spiritual darkness of our times. It's theological, it's theoretical, it's philosophical, but it all does one thing: it puts out, it competes against the light. And God has put lamps in every generation to shine light so that those around can see clearly what the darkness hides. That's a need of our time. More lamps, more lampstands. This is the work of God in His people and in society. He raises up lamps, he lights them, and he puts them on lampstands.

9:57You see, we live in a dark world. People refuse to come to Christ, and they refuse to come to Christ not for lack of evidence. They refuse to come to Christ because they do not want the kind of Christ that Jesus is. That's why they don't come. You see, the seed of unbelief is the heart. It's not the intellect, it's the heart. This is the way it was in Jesus' time. So it is in ours. Jesus had performed an unmistakable, irrefutable miracle right in the presence of all these Jews, and they knew it. Theirs wasn't that they needed more evidence, they didn't want to believe the evidence that was there. That's the condition of the darkness. They didn't want to believe Jesus, and they found ways to excuse themselves from belief, even in the face of irrefutable evidence.

11:05And that happens today. And know what God does is that He lights lamps, He puts them in society, puts them in places so that they will give off light to counteract the darkness. And He does this in His mercy, and He does this in His grace, and He keeps setting His lamps on lampstands, even though people throughout the ages have sought to extinguish those lamps. He keeps doing it, He keeps doing it because He is a God of grace, a God of mercy, and a God that desires people to come to the truth.

11:53Well, we've looked at the miracle at Bethesda, we've looked at the controversy at Bethesda, we've started the witness discourse, we've heard Jesus. His public testimony about himself, and now he brings John the Baptist to the stand. One that, in fact, was one of the greatest lamps that ever shined on a lampstand. He comes to the witness stand. And so this morning, I want us to see three elements of John the Baptist's witness so that you will be a lamp on a lampstand in your world. Three elements of John the Baptist's witness. First, I want you to see John's testimony to his generation, the testimony that he made to his generation. Look at verse 31. We'll pick it up right there. If I alone testify about myself, my testimony is not true. And what Jesus is saying there is: if at the end of everything that I've just said, if I am the only one testifying to myself, my testimony is not valid.

13:04It's not substantial. It's not admissible as evidence. If this is the only thing you're going to hear is my own witness. I mean, Jesus could witness about himself, it would be true, but what he is saying, it is that it would not be valid. If Jesus is the only one, Scripture makes it very clear. A matter is confirmed on two or three witnesses, and so. He goes on. There is another who testifies of me, and I know that the testimony which he gives me gives about me is true. Notice he is capitalized. He's speaking about the Father. He's not speaking about John the Baptist here. And this is evident when you get down to 36. But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John. So he's speaking about the Father. He's going to call the Father to the stand.

14:01But in these few verses, in between, he calls John to the stand. Because I want to talk to you a little bit about John's testimony. Verse 33. You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth. That is, you have already sent for John. You wanted John's official testimony of me. You sent, you asked, he gave it to you, and now you have John the Baptist's official witness or testimony about my life. He said, you already have that. In fact, if we look back, what was John's testimony about Christ? Turn back to chapter 1 and verse 19. This is where the whole gospel really starts. After John, after in chapter 1, after verses 1 through 18, this prologue, then the gospel. Starts, the record really starts in verse 19. This is the testimony of John. When the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who are you? And he confessed and did not deny, I am not the Christ. They asked him, What then? Are you Elijah? And he said, I am not. Are you the prophet? He answered, No. So the first element of John's testimony to his generation was, I am not the Christ.

15:31Then they said, Well, then, who are you? Verse 22. Give us an answer so we can tell those who sent us. They want an official statement, who are you? And he says in verse 23, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Make straight the way of the Lord. In other words, he's saying, I am the one that is preparing the way for the Lord. There is a magnificent individual that is coming behind me, and he is right behind me. And I am testifying to his magnificence. Yes, he is the Christ. But he is more. He is Lamb of God. He is Son of God. He is the preeminent one. He is the true baptizer. All of this.

16:21Verse 31, he says, I came, I did not recognize him, but so that he might be manifested to Israel. Israel, I came baptizing in water. The whole reason I came baptizing in water was to call attention to this one who is the true baptizer, this Christ, this marvelous one. So, John's testimony, I am not the Christ. I am announcing his arrival. That's what I'm doing. I'm announcing his arrival and preparing hearts to receive him. Third element of John's testimony is that Jesus is the Lamb of God. Look at verse 29. The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. You see, this is the problem with man, right? Sin.

17:10It's our divorce from God that causes every kind of relational strife on planet Earth, small and large. And he's testifying that we need a Savior. We need one to take our sin and deal with our sin. That is what Earth needs. That's what you and I need. This is your problem. This is my problem. And we need somebody to remove it. And he does. Fourth element of John's testimony, John the Baptist's testimony, is that Jesus is greater than I am. Verse 27, he says, there's one coming after me, and I'm not even worthy to lose his sandal.

17:53Verse 30, he says, after me comes a man who is a higher rank than I am. I mean, what a testimony for us today, right? To remember, we're not to promote ourselves. We're people, we're lamps, we come, we go. We are to shine for the one who is greater, he is preeminent. John confesses as his fifth element of his testimony: Jesus is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. He says so in verse 33: The one upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon him, this is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit. John's sixth testament of who Jesus was, official testimony, verse 34: I have seen, I myself have seen and testified that this is the Son of God. This is the favored one, this is the unique one, this is the one that is from God, of God, and given to us. So, John was a very spectacular figure in his time, yet the vast majority of his people, of the people, missed everything he was saying. They missed the main point.

19:18They missed the fact that he says he's not the Christ, that he was preparing the way for the Christ to immediately come, that the Christ is also the Lamb of God, that he is also the greater one. He is the one who baptizes in the Holy Spirit. That is what they need, a clean spirit. The problem's not the intellect. The problem's the heart. And that they need to want to believe. He's the Son of God. They missed the vast, the vast majority missed everything he said, and especially those who were at this moment challenging Jesus. They're wanting to kill Jesus for this great miracle that he did on the Sabbath.

20:04Staggering. Well, that was John's testimony to his generation. And Jesus said, You've sent for it, and you have it. You know what he says. So let's move on. Second element of John the Baptist's testimony: I want you to see Jesus' purpose for using John's testimony. Jesus has a reason for inserting John's testimony at this juncture. He says, You have the official record of John's testimony. You know what he says. You sent people. You know what he says. I want to call this to your mind because I have a purpose for doing so. The question is: why does Jesus use John the Baptist's testimony? Well, he makes it very clear that it's not for validation. Jesus isn't looking for John the Baptist to validate his ministry. Back. Verse 34, but the testimony which I receive is not from man. It's not from man. Jesus does not use man's testimony to validate himself, even a good man, such as John the Baptist.

21:16And the idea of receive there, he says, but the testimony which I receive is not from man. That is, the testimony that I'm grasping, I'm holding on to, in the sense as validating myself. It's not the sense that, yes, he accepts our testimony for sure. But what he is saying is, I am not being validated by John the Baptist or any other man. My validation is from another. And he's going to go on to speak who this other is. It's the Father.

21:48You see, man's testimony is inferior, and he does not depend on any man's testimony. So why? But the testimony, if he doesn't use John the Baptist's testimony to validate himself, why does he use it? Look back at the text. But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. Profound thought there. What Jesus is saying is, I am using John's testimony in order that you will be saved, or with the hopes that you will be saved.

22:30Those that are wanting to kill him really needed to be saved, right? They were in deep darkness, though they had all the external religious showings of their day. You would walk by and think they were holy men, and yet they were in deep darkness. See, the problem is they wouldn't listen to Jesus. And in order to be saved, they would first have to listen to Jesus, and then they'd have to come to him. See, they'd have to listen to him to come to him. And if they will not hear him, they will not come to him.

23:14And even here, and this is profound, you've got to see this, and this is very important that you understand what's happening here and what Jesus is saying. And we're going to take the plain meaning of the text here. Even here, as they seek to kill him, Jesus displays an intense desire that the Jews would be saved. And this kind of challenges some theological systems, even good ones. And he's being genuine, by the way. He really has an honest effort. And we see the heart of God here towards the unregenerate. He wants them to be saved. The whole reason he is using John's testimony is that they may be saved. Now, he's already said just before this that the resurrection they need is to hear the voice of God and come forth. He's going to go on in John chapter 6 and talk of great lengths at the sovereignty of God in salvation, and that all who the Father gives will come. But here he is expressing real truth about the desire of God that men would be saved.

24:45And I want to make sure that I'm clear on something, that everyone here understands. I hear sometimes people think I teach something or hold to a position that I don't. But I want to be very clear so that you can hear it from me. I do not teach or believe that the cause of man's condemnation is somehow in his unelect status. No, the reason for his condemnation has already been very expressly stated by Jesus himself. In John chapter 3, he says it very clearly. This is the judgment, 3.19. The judge. This is the judgment. The light has come into the world, and men love the darkness rather than the light, for their deeds were evil. That's the basis for man's condemnation. That is what I hold. That is what my systematic prof taught me at the master seminary. I am not a double predestinarian. I am a single predestinarian. I'm not a supralapsarian. I'm a sublapsarian. It's okay if you are the others. That's fine. I get it, and I understand how you get that. I just want to make sure you understand that there is a mystery here. And I feel like it needs to be underscored so that you understand where I am on this.

26:15Because what is being communicated here is that God and Jesus, this is legitimate, desires that these men come to the truth and be saved. And I know there's mystery there. And I'm a little boat in deep waters. I know that. But this parallels with what Ezekiel 18, 23 says, Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord, rather that he should turn from his ways and live? 1 Timothy 2, verses 3 and 4, Paul exhorts us to pray for men, for all men. And why does he do that? Verse 3 says, This is good and accept. In the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. So we see in Christ this desire, even as these men want to kill him. You see this desire that he is using John the Baptist's testimony. It's saying you won't pay attention to the miracles, you're not listening to anything else, but you really appreciated John the Baptist, so at least listen to him.

27:29And if you will listen to him, maybe you'll start listening to me. It's an expression. It's an expression of Christ and the Father's desire and love for the unregenerate. Well, that's the purpose. The reason he inserts John the Baptist's testimony here is so that people would be saved. He put this lamp on a lampstand. This lampstand shined the light in his generation so that people would be saved. And that's why Jesus uses his testimony, even though he isn't trying to validate himself. But there's a third element of John the Baptist's testimony here that I want you to see, and that's Jesus' tribute to John's testimony. Jesus' tribute to John's testimony and really to John the Baptist himself. Verse 35, he was the lamp that was burning. Burning and was shining, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. I want you to make three observations here. First of all, notice the past tense. He was the lamp that was burning and was shining, and you were willing to rejoice for a while. All this points to the reality or the implication that John's dead at this point. John's dead by this time. Past tense. Second observation I want you to notice is the way John, or the way Jesus described John. He was a lamp. A lamp.

29:14He was a lamp. That's what he was, a lamp. A lamp gives off light so that people can see what the darkness hides. He was a lamp for his generation to remove the darkness from the spiritual realities all around them. Second, he was a burning lamp. He was burning, a lamp that was lit up. This is the very same verb that Jesus uses in Matthew 5:15 when he says, no one lights a lamp and hides it. Same verb. Jesus lit him, no one lights a lamp. And this is what he's saying. He is a burning. He was lit up. He was a burning lamp. Burning up? And burning out. I have a little lamp in there from my Israel trip to from Nazareth, a little bitty lamp. And it is clay and it's got a little wick, and they put oil in it and they burn it and they set it on a lampstand in the house and it gives light. And those things run out of oil.

30:22The wick burns down and eventually they break. That's what happens to lamps. They're temporal, they're here. But a lamp burns, and while it's being burned, it shines. It shines. He was a burning and shining lamp. He was shining. That's Jesus' description of him. Wow. Isn't that a great description? Wouldn't you like Jesus to describe you that way? Let me tell you about so-and-so, a lamp, burning, being consumed, and yet shining light. What a testimony. What a tribute to be called such. Well, John was a shining lamp, giving off plentiful light and bright light for his generation. He served his generation well and those that would come after him.

31:18And he even served the Jews well. Even those who opposed him, they rejoiced in John's light. They rejoiced in his light. He was. Quite a spectacular figure, this John the Baptist. Another observation, third observation, notice the expression for a while. Expression is literally for an hour, for a time. See, John's ministry was transitory, as are all lamps. Transitory, here, today, burn up, burn out, gone tomorrow. But these words not only speak about John's temporal ministry, but they speak about the temporary impression that John the Baptist's ministry left on his generation. There was a temporary impression left upon the Jews. And what Jesus was doing by bringing John's testimony forward was to say, it is inconsistent for you to say John was a baptism, to say that John was a prophet and then failed to see where he was pointing. And see what Jesus is doing? He says, it's totally inconsistent. You rejoiced in John the Baptist and his light, but you've totally dismissed everything he said and the purpose of his ministry and to what he was pointing to. He was pointing to me.

32:54So at least pay attention to that. And you won't be suppressing the truth in the underscore. Unmistakable, irrefutable evidence that I healed this paralytic man right in your midst. You know, one of my lingering thoughts from my Reformation tour this last spring, we went to several cities in Germany and Switzerland and saw all kinds of wonderful things and went to wonderful places. But the impression that seems to stay with me the most was when I learned that the little, that Martin Luther, they made this Playmobile figure out of Martin Luther. So the Playmobile is this little thing for kids, and my kids collect all these things. But the number one figurine that has ever been made in the history of planet Earth in the whole life of Playmobile is Martin Luther.

33:57More kids have Martin Luther in their Playmobile collection than any other figurine. Now that's impressive. I don't know why that stuck in my mind, but it did. You know, that just points to the fact that Martin Luther was a hero. He is a hero in Germany today. And yet Germany has no interest in what lit Martin Luther up. To be that popular and totally missed the point. That's exactly. What was happening, what happened in John the Baptist's day. People were willing to rejoice in John the Baptist's witness for a time, and when he was gone, they didn't remember what he was all about, may have thought of him as a hero, but they completely missed his message. But here's the tribute. Here's the tribute, and this really blessed me. Not only is it this vivid and honorable description that Jesus gives, I mean, a lamp burning. I love that, shining. Look back at verse 35. He was the lamp that was burning and shining, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. What a great description. But there's something else here that really touched me. John the Baptist wasn't forgotten. He wasn't forgotten. The majority of his generation totally missed his message. The politicians killed him. Society moved on. However, John the Baptist wasn't forgotten. He was remembered, at least by two parties. Number one, he was remembered by those he touched. Those he touched remembered him. It's clear from this gospel that John the Apostle fondly remembered and appreciated John the Baptist. He keeps showing up. Why does John the Apostle keep bringing up Jesus? John the Baptist, he shows up in chapter 1. He shows up in chapter 3. He shows up in chapter 4. He shows up in chapter 5. We've been through five chapters, and John the Baptist shows his head in all of them except for chapter 2. Why? Because John the Apostle remembered him, was touched by him, appreciated him.

36:26He was his disciple. Well, the same is true. Same is true for us. Those we touch, as we burn up, burn out, communicate the truth, those we touch that God touches through our ministry, they will remember. They will remember. But there's another person that remembered him. It's the very one he served remembered him. It wasn't just John the Apostle that remembered John the Baptist so fondly, but Jesus Himself fondly remembered and appreciated John the Baptist. What a statement he makes here. He remembered the Baptist's labor of love. He remembered his joy. He was there in all his anguish, perplexities, and loneliness. He saw all, he knew John's sacrifices, both big and small, and the whole scope of it. He was my. Mindful of it all. And Jesus doesn't forget. He doesn't forget the labors of his servants. And I don't care how small, how large, how seemingly insignificant, every stand you take in your school, in your church, in your home, wherever it may be, in your work, whatever it may be, your labors of love, he remembers.

37:56He remembers. He doesn't forget. As David well remarked, Psalm 56:8, you have taken account of my wanderings. Put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? He remembers all, and he is good. God is good. Christ is good to his servants, and he will not forget. Even if the world shuts you out, even if the world moves to exterminate your light, diminish your light, as they did to John the Baptist, there's one who remembers. And that should motivate us to let the truth transform us and then not be ashamed to be a lamp on that lampstand and declaring the truth because it is truth.

38:59And it Shines so that the things the darkness hides can be seen. What a great way to live. Well, how do we respond to this principle of lamps on lampstands? There's a couple of elements, a couple responses. First of all, be thankful. Be thankful for the lights in your life. In the wonderful providence of God, He places people in your path that will speak into your life. They will speak truth into your life and they will point the way to Christ. Be thankful for them. Be thankful.

39:41They burn for a while and they'll be gone at some point. Be thankful for them. Enjoy them. They are loving. They are kind. They are good. They are not perfect, but they do point the truth to one who is perfect. Enjoy them. Maybe it's a mother. Maybe it's a father. Maybe it's a grandmother or a brother or a sister or a co-worker. Maybe it's your boss. Maybe it's your employee. Maybe it's a friend. Maybe it's a fellow student. Maybe it's somebody in this room.

40:18Whoever it is. Treasure them. Thank God for them. But don't miss the object to which they point. Don't miss it. So, first of all, be thankful for the lights in your life. Second, be a light. Be a light. How do we respond to lamps on a lampstand? What a testimony of John the Baptist's life. He was transformed by the truth of God, and he was willing to be a lamp that was set up on a lampstand and let God consume it however he chose.

41:01We should do the same, right? We should ask God and let God transform us by his truth. Don't be afraid where the truth takes us, don't be afraid of what the truth does in you. Don't be afraid to give up the things it calls you to give up. Don't be afraid to be what it calls you to be. Be transformed by the truth. And then let him set you on a lampstand and use you however he chooses.

41:41Three elements of John the Baptist's testimony. Wanted you to see the testimony to his generation. Wanted you to see Jesus' purpose for using John's testimony. And then I wanted you to see Jesus' tribute to John's testimony and to John Himself. And I wanted us to think on these this morning. That we will desire to be a burning lamp shining on a lampstand in our world today. So let us always be being transformed and always displaying the truth in word and deed. Let me conclude again with Jesus's words in Matthew 5: You are a light. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand. And it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Let's pray.

42:51Lord, what a high calling. What a joy to be transformed by your truth. That alone is enough. And yet, Father, in your providence, in your goodness, you have purposed that we not only be transformed by the truth, but that we have the awesome and wonderful privilege to display the truth in our generation, to see and to know you, to make you known. Father, forgive us for all of our shortcomings. Forgive us for being ashamed. Father, the very occupation you've called us to is to be a lamp on a lampstand. That's our occupation. Forgive us, Father, where we have minimized this or even been ashamed of it. It is the privilege of the ages.

43:55It is the privilege of one such as John the Baptist to have been able to have had the privilege of spending his life in such a way blazing and testifying to your goodness. For you truly are good. You truly are the light. And your salvation is perfect. It is good. It is holy. And it is wonderful. Father, and we desire to be those vessels transformed and communicating truth. Father, again, strengthen this body. Help us to grow in likeness to you, to your Son, and in love towards one another. This we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.