1 John 5:6–12

5:6 As John turns to witnesses to bolster the confession called for in 5:5, he identifies Jesus as the one “who came by water and blood.” Although this phrase is not immediately clear to modern readers, and there has been some debate about its meaning, it almost certainly refers to Jesus’ baptism and death.¹ Since false teachers were disputing Jesus’ incarnation (4:2–3), this verse identifies Jesus in terms of his earthly ministry, which began publicly with water at his baptism and concluded in blood at his death.

By saying “not by the water only but by the water and the blood,” John stresses Jesus’ death, perhaps suggesting that the false teachers granted the baptism but disputed the death. We cannot be certain as to the exact teachings of these specific false teachers, but we do know that a false teaching did arise in the early church that claimed the divine Christ came upon a merely human Jesus at his baptism and then left him before his death.² In any case, John stresses the importance of belief in the historical death of the God-man, Jesus. The term “blood” also evokes the atoning nature of his death, a point testified to across the NT (e.g., Matt. 26:28; Acts 20:28; Rom. 3:25; 5:9; Eph. 1:7; Heb. 13:12).

The lynchpin for John, though, is that the Spirit testifies to these truths. John’s witness, as eyewitness and member of the apostolic band, is significant (1:1–4), but these truths do not rest on his witness alone. Rather, the Spirit of God himself bears witness. Since the Spirit is truth, his testimony settles the question. One might ask, though, how, when, and where the Spirit testifies. First, the Spirit testified to these truths in the ministry of Jesus (e.g., at his baptism; John 1:32–34), in the inspiration of OT authors who foretold him, and in bringing to remembrance for the NT authors all that Jesus said (John 14:26). Secondly, the Spirit testifies to the truth of Jesus as the Word is proclaimed (1 Cor. 2:9–16). Third, the Spirit confirms the veracity of gospel truths internally to believers (Rom. 8:16).

5:7 OT law required that the truth of a matter be established by two or three witnesses (Deut. 19:15). John seems to appeal to this requirement, as did Jesus (Matt. 18:16) and Paul (2 Cor. 13:1). The witnesses that John presents, even though two of them reference past events (Jesus’ baptism and death), presently testify to Jesus as the Son of God. In the work of the Spirit, the historical becomes homiletical as the import of that which truly occurred in the past is pressed into our hearts.³

5:8 The three witnesses are the Spirit, the water, and the blood, all of which have just been discussed. These represent the earthly ministry of Jesus (its beginning and conclusion) and the present work of God through his Spirit. These three witnesses agree in their testimony.⁴ The water and blood testify that he came to us; the Spirit testifies that he came for us.⁵ One provides historical attestation, the other personal appropriation.

5:9 John drives home the necessity of believing this orthodox view of Jesus with an argument from the lesser to the greater. We accept the testimony of mere humans when confirmed by two or more witnesses. How much more, then, should we accept the testimony of God himself, since it is the Spirit of God who bears this witness. Rhetorically, this is similar to the repeated OT phrase “Thus says the Lord.” John makes it clear that God has spoken on this issue: Jesus is the divine Son of God who came in the flesh and died, and to refuse to believe this truth is to refuse to believe God.

5:10 There are only two possible responses to this testimony—belief or unbelief—and they have very different results. Belief in this message leads to the indwelling of the Spirit, so that this testimony is now within the believer as the Spirit bears witness. Unbelief is rejection of God. The one who “does not believe God has made him a liar.” These are stark words, but they fit John’s language throughout the letter. John is not being dramatic or ungracious. Rather, he is earnest about the eternal fate of men’s souls. In light of the clear testimony of God, substantiated by the historical ministry of Jesus, the apostolic witness, and the testimony of the Spirit, John wants us to know there is no way to be neutral. God has spoken. We either trust him and believe or else we refuse to believe, which is tantamount to claiming that his testimony is untrue. We cannot, like these false teachers, claim to believe God while rejecting his testimony about his Son. Rudolf Schnackenburg puts it well: “To reject [the testimony of God] is therefore a serious evil, and to oppose it a futile project.”⁶

5:11 “And” here does not add a new or different idea but rather draws out an implication of the previous verse. Verses 9–10 stated that God has borne witness to the person and work of Jesus. This witness points to God’s gift of eternal life in his Son. Again, John’s point has not been merely abstract theology; rather, as a godly pastor he has been contending for the life of his people, reminding them that eternal life is available only through the Son.

5:12 This verse concludes and draws together what has been said in this section. Since eternal life is found only in the Son, whoever has him has life, while whoever does not have him does not have life. To “have” the Son means to believe in him. Since such faith results in abiding in him and his abiding in the believer, it makes sense to refer to this as “having” the Son.⁷