The Testimony of Jesus

What is the testimony of Jesus? Why do so few understand its true meaning and so many misunderstand its tremendous importance? In this age of religious division and confusion, do you understand what the testimony of Jesus is and why it should be so vitally important to every Christian?

The apostles and Christ's works testified about Jesus but they were not His testimony

This great enigma begins with a colossal, theological mistake. Nearly all theologians erroneously think the testimony of Jesus is a Christian’s own testimony for or about our Savior. In Acts 1:8 we read, "and you shall be witnesses of me throughout all the earth"; and Christians should do just that. The followers of Jesus Christ should give their own witness for or about Jesus anytime they have the opportunity, being careful of course not to offend others. But our own personal testimony for Jesus has absolutely nothing to do with the testimony of Jesus.

When President Clinton gave his testimony before the Grand Jury it was his very own personal testimony. That testimony consisted of what President Clinton had to say in his very own words and will be forever referred to as the testimony of President William J. Clinton. If you ever have to testify at a trial or a hearing or before a grand jury it will be known as your very own personal testimony. Similarly, the testimony of Jesus is His very own personal testimony; the very words spoken by Jesus, what he had to say. In Revelation 1:1-2; we read: "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: who bore record of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ and of all things that he saw."

So John was to "bare record" (to testify) about prophetic events to occur that were given to him by Jesus Christ, which originated with God the Father. The things or events John was directed to write down were called the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. Jesus’ own words, what he had to say, are written in red letters to stand out like a sore thumb.

"Why do you call me Lord, Lord and do not the things which I say?"

In John 3 we see Nicodemus, a ruler in Israel, coming to see Jesus secretly at night to gain information from him. Jesus explains to him a metaphor using the physical birth to highlight the spiritual rebirth. Nicodemus doesn’t understand and Jesus tells him in verse 11: "Truly, truly I say unto you, we speak of what we do know and testify of what we have seen and you don’t receive our witness or testimony."

Jesus told the people of his day in John 8:42 "If God were your Father you would love me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither did I come of myself, but he sent me". Notice where Jesus came from. He came directly from God and he didn’t come by accident. He didn’t’ just decide to come on his own; God the Father sent him for a purpose. Jesus said in John 13:16 "neither is he that is sent greater than he that sent him", and in John 14:28 "My Father is greater than I".

So, we understand that God the Father sent Jesus for a purpose and that overall purpose is outlined in John 6:38: "For I came down from Heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him that sent me."

Jesus sets us a perfect example here as he does in all things. In the model prayer of Matt. 6:10, he proclaims: "Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven"; and this should be every Christian’s commitment, to do the Father’s will.

Jesus said in Matt. 7:21: "Not everyone that says unto me ‘Lord, Lord’ shall enter into the kingdom of Heaven, but he that does the will of my Father which is in Heaven".

...who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ. Rev. 12:17

The overall purpose of Jesus being sent to this earth to do the Father’s will can be sub-divided into three main arenas.

 

• To die for the sins of the world and to save the world. John 3:17

   

• To destroy the works of Satan. I John 3:8

 

•  To give his people a message called the testimony of Jesus.       John 3:22

 

In Rev. 12:17 we see a church rising up just before the return of Jesus Christ called the remnant. This church is described as keeping the ten commandments of God (including the 4^th) and having the testimony of Jesus Christ. In Rom. 11:4 Paul indicates also that this remnant church won’t bow the knee to Baal or in other words won’t allow pagan ideas, days or idols to be introduced into her doctrine or liturgy.

Satan will war with this remnant church because she will be preaching the truth of God and Satan hates the truth. Also, because this church will expose him for what he is: a liar and a murderer (John 8:44), and a fraud who deceives the whole world (Rev. 12:9). Satan and his deceptions are the cause of all this world’s evils and problems and the remnant church is going to expose him for what he is and what he stands for. We of the remnant call him the greatest hornswoggler of all time.

Many theologians quote Rev. 19:10 as a definition of the testimony of Jesus. This scripture, instead of defining the testimony of Jesus, describes it as the spirit in which all prophecy is inspired. If you really know what the testimony of Jesus is, then the descriptive phrase "the spirit of prophecy" fits to a T.

The gospel account of John contains 42 references of Christ telling us that the Father sent him.

In Heb. 3:1 Paul calls Jesus an apostle of God. The word apostle comes from the Greek word "apostolos" and means one sent – (specifically with a message) and this describes Jesus Christ perfectly.

Now, let’s take all the guesswork and speculation away and understand right from Jesus’ own lips what the testimony of Jesus really is. Jesus should be the total and final authority on this vital subject; after all it is His testimony.

Turn in your bibles to John chapter three and let’s begin with verse 28 where John the Baptist tells us he is not the Christ or messiah. In verse 29 John relates a metaphor to tell us Christ is the bridegroom, the church is the bride (II Cor. 11:2), and John himself is the best man who stands up for the groom. In verse 31 John tells us: "he that is of the earth is earthly and speaks of earthly things" – meaning John himself. "He that comes from heaven is above all" – meaning Jesus Christ. Verse 32, "And what he (Christ) has seen and heard that he testifies and no one receives and accepts his testimony". This is the same thing Christ told Nicodemus in Verse 11 of this same chapter. Verse 33 tells us the one who does accept Jesus’ testimony believes that God and his word are true.

In John 6:63 Jesus proclaims: The words that I speak unto you they are spirit and they are life". The information given to us through Jesus’ testimony reveals spiritual concepts and truths that we otherwise could not know or understand. These spiritual concepts and truths given to us by Jesus Christ explain how God wants us to live our lives under the new covenant in relation to him and our fellow man. They also show us the way toward salvation and eternal life.

In John 15:22 Jesus said, "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not sin, but now they have no cloak for their sins." Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was sent to this earth by the Father with a message for his elect. That message is contained in the four gospel accounts and the book of Revelation and is highlighted in red letters for everyone to read. Just as Jesus said in John 15:22, very few who have ever lived have any excuse for not reading this message.

Although only the red letters in the bible are really the testimony of Jesus, the epistles of Paul, Peter, James, John, and Jude are extremely important as well for they reiterate, corroborate, and support what Jesus teaches us through his testimony.

If the information we’ve given you in this booklet so far seems important, read on and see why the testimony of Jesus (the words he spoke) constitute the greatest doctrine of all time.

In Matthew 7:21 Jesus said: Not everyone that says unto me ‘Lord, Lord’, shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he that does the will of my Father which is in Heaven". Many pastors teach that all you have to do is believe in or on Jesus Christ to be saved, but nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus himself tells us that many would call him Lord, preach in his name, cast out demons, and do many wonderful works all in his name and still not receive salvation. In verse 23 he tells such people they work iniquity or they reject God’s laws. I John 3:4 tells us that sin is the breaking of God’s law, the Ten Commandments. So these people look good on the outside but they haven’t changed on the inside at all. Jesus calls these people hypocrites in Matt. 15:7-9 and categorizes them as people who practice lip service Christianity, teaching the commandments of men as religious doctrine. The remnant church teaches the commandments of God and the testimony of Jesus as religious doctrine - Rev. 12:17

Christ's testimony is not just His testimony, but is the same as God the Father's!

The will of God the Father has always been to believe on the Son of God and do what he says. Jesus posed this question for all Christians for all time in Luke 6:46: "Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not the things which I say". Jesus is not asking a question here. He isn’t searching for an answer. This is more of an accusation or an admonition; why in the world would you call me your Lord and Master, the Messiah, the Son of God and yet not obey me; or how dare you call me Lord, Lord and yet do not the things I say.

It’s not enough just to hear or read the testimony of Jesus; we must live by what the Son of God tells us. Notice Matt. 7:24, Jesus said: "Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine and does them, I will liken unto a wise man who built his house upon a rock." Verse 28 tells us: "when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine". The testimony of Jesus is a doctrine, but notice what Jesus has to say about it in John 7:16. "My doctrine is not Mine; but His that sent Me."

Now we can understand why the testimony of Jesus should be so important to us; in reality it’s not Jesus’ doctrine or his testimony but the testimony of the one who sent him – God the Father. Notice John 3:34 "For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives not the spirit by measure unto him". In John 14:10 Jesus said: "The words that I speak to you I speak not of my self, but the Father that lives in me, he does the works". In John 14:24 Jesus said: "He that loves me not keeps not my sayings and the word which you hear is not mine but the Father’s which sent me."

In verse 26 Jesus explains: "the holy spirit… will teach you all things and bring all things to your remembrance whatsoever I have said unto you". Verse 26 is the only reason the remnant church understands the testimony of Jesus. If the Holy Spirit hadn’t revealed it to us we would have missed it just like everyone else.

John 12:48-50 are the verses which sum up the testimony of Jesus and reveal why the words that our Lord and savior spoke constitute the greatest doctrine (or teaching) of all time.

Verse 48 Jesus said: "He that rejects me and receives not my words has one that judges him - the word that I have spoken the same shall judge him in the last day." Every man, woman and child who has ever lived will be judged by the words spoken by our savior. Every human being, black, white, red or yellow; Jew, Christian, Muslim or atheist; all will be judged by the testimony of Jesus; the red letters in your bible and here is the reason why. Verse 49 "For I have not spoken of myself, but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say and what I should speak." Verse 50, "And I know that his commandment is life everlasting; whatsoever I speak therefore even as the Father said unto me, so I speak."

The testimony of Jesus is the most important doctrine you could ever hear.

If the testimony of Jesus were Jesus’ own words it would be important enough but they’re not; the testimony of Jesus consists of the words of God Almighty, the greatest entity of all.

God the Father sent his son Jesus Christ with a message for his followers, for His elect. It consists of the Father’s own words and is called the testimony of Jesus. It reveals to us the new covenant and how the Father expects us to live under that new covenant in relation to him and our fellow man. It reveals to us the good news of the Kingdom of God and how to enter into that Kingdom. It reveals to us how to be reconciled to the Father, how to receive salvation and eternal life. It reveals future events to us through the spirit of prophecy. It reveals to us the secret of the two resurrections from the dead and other mysteries hidden for eons of time. And finally, it reveals to us the mercy, love, and compassion that the Father has for his children.

In John 17:8 Jesus said in praying to the Father: "I have given them the words which you gave me and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from you and they have believed that you did send me."

The remnant believes this – do you?

Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

In Matt 13 Jesus spoke to the people of his day in parables. In verse 9, he said, "He who has ears to hear let him hear". His disciples in verse 10 asked him why he spoke to them in parables (or hard to understand illustrations) – (from the original Greek). Jesus answered in verse 11: "Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, but to them it is not given". The reason – verse 15: "Now this people’s heart is waxed gross and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed." Many of Jesus’ followers are like that today and won’t understand or will reject Jesus’ testimony, but for those who do understand verse 16: "Blessed are your eyes for they see and your ears for they hear." Verse 17: "Now many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which you see and have not seen them and to hear those things which you have heard and have not heard them."

Always remember Jesus’ words in Matt. 24:35, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away."

We of the Remnant hope and pray that you understand the testimony of Jesus, the word of God; the greatest doctrine of all time; believe it and live it!!!

 

 

|  Home  |  About Us  |  Beliefs  |  God's Holy Days  |  Remnant Speaks  |
|  Testimony of Jesus  |  Sermon Tapes  |  News Links  |  Contact Us  |

 

© 2001 Remnant Church of God