Blood and Water

May 26

Read: 1 John 5:6-12

Does God Have Favorites?

“For there are three that testify: the Spirit and the water and the blood; and these three agree.” (v.7,8)

God does not ask us to trust Jesus as The Son without reason. This is not a “blind faith”, it is an informed faith. There are two pivotal moments in the life of Jesus that bear witness to who he is: his baptism and his crucifixion… this is “the water and the blood”. We are called, as God’s people, into these same things. They bear witness for us as God’s children to the truth that is in us. Take a look:

Jesus and “the water”…

Jesus’ baptism came with the Lord’s audible voice and a manifestation of the Spirit of God. God declares, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matt 3:17) It was at this moment that the Holy Spirit came and rested upon Jesus in the form of a dove. Jesus had been growing in stature and in “favor” with God. (cf. Luke 2:40,52) The Son - Jesus - is God’s favorite. His favor rests upon Jesus. He is pleased with Jesus. And guess what - Jesus dwells IN YOU… and you dwell IN CHRIST. ( cf. Col. 3:3, et al.) So what does that mean? God is pleased with you! You are God’s favorite. This comes with accepting Christ. The Lord speaks these same words to you that he spoke to Jesus at his baptism: “you are my son or daughter, and I am pleased with you. You have found favor in my eyes… my favor rests upon you.” Jesus didn’t go into the water because he “needed” a baptism, I mean look at how he argues with John The Baptist about it! (cf. Matt 3:14,15) Jesus did this so that we would know that he is the Son of God and so that we would know exactly how God the Father feels about him and us! The water has always represented a cleansing from sin. We have been cleansed by Christ. (cf. 1 John 1:9) God is pleased with you… let that sink on for a moment. (If you have not been baptized as a believer in Christ, I would encourage you to do so! It will be an amazing channel marker for you and a way you can identify with Christ and draw even closer to him.)

Jesus and “the blood”…

The blood of Christ was shed at the cross. It is the payment for our sins. (cf.1 John 2:2, 4:10) In those final moments of his life, the earth shook… the temple veil was torn… it was a dramatic moment. It also led to the resurrection! Death had to precede new life. We are called to join with Christ at the cross… it is a death to our old selves… our old ways… our old sins. Galatians declares that as believers our old selves have been “crucified with Christ” and that we now walk anew in Christ. (Gal. 2:20) Romans declares: “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” (Rom. 6:3,4) We walk in a “newness of life” because of the “blood and the water”.

The Spirit…

The same spirit that is in Jesus is in us. The Spirit of God which testifies to the “truth”. (v.6,10) Listen to the Spirit as he tells you that you have been made new and that God is actually pleased with you in Christ. And what more could we ask for? Well, the Spirit affirms this truth in us: we have “ETERNAL LIFE”; “And this is the testimony, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.” (v.11,12)

Only those who have the Son will live forever. Only those who have the Son have eternal life. You have eternal life in you. This goes along with yesterday’s Devo - you will not be overcome by the world! Not everyone has eternal life. Not everyone lives forever. You have been given a gift in Christ. You have been given “water, blood, and The Spirit”. You are God’s favorite. He has set you free from sin and death. He has brought you to life. You will never live into this truth until you believe it. This is your new identity in Christ. Jesus truly is the Son of God. Love you guys. - JDP