L esson 6 *November 2–8
More Testimonies About
Jesus
Sabbath Afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study: John 3:25–36, John 1:32–
36, Dan. 7:18, John 6:51–71, John 5:36–38, John 7:37–53.
Memory Text: “ ‘And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw
all peoples to Myself’ ” (John 12:32, NKJV).
J
esus doesn’t merely say astonishing things about Himself or about
who He is or about who sent Him or about where He came from.
He also showed who He is by the miracles and signs that He per-
formed. As some openly testify of Jesus: “ ‘When the Christ comes,
will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?’ ” (John
7:31, NKJV).
He backed up His words with actions that proved the truth of His
words.
But as the drama continues, a division begins among the people. The
healing of the man by the pool of Bethesda attracts the ire of some lead-
ers. The discussion in Capernaum following the feeding of the 5,000
results in the rejection of Jesus by the multitudes. The resurrection of
Lazarus creates faith in some but triggers in others a hostility that will
lead to the trial and execution of Jesus.
This week’s lesson looks at some of those who witnessed and testi-
fied about Jesus. In each of these incidents, some aspects of who Jesus
really is are revealed, and together they create a deeper vision of Jesus,
the Messiah.
* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, November 9.
46
S unday November 3
Humility of Soul: John the Baptist
Testifies Again
Lesson 2 described how the witness of John the Baptist brought the
first disciples—Andrew and John, Peter, Philip, and Nathaniel—to Jesus.
One would expect that the Baptist, having given his witness, would move
off the scene. But he reappears several times in the Gospel of John.
Read John 3:25–36. How does John the Baptist compare himself to
Jesus?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
A dispute arose between John the Baptist’s disciples and an unnamed
Jew about purification, likely a question over the efficacy of baptism
(compare with Mark 1:4, 5). Interestingly, when his disciples come to
John, no doubt to resolve the question, they bring up Jesus, saying, “ ‘He
is baptizing, and all are going to him’ ” (John 3:26, ESV). It is not hard to
read between the lines: they are jealous of Jesus—jealous for their master
and jealous for themselves, as well.
It would be all too easy for John to indulge in the jealousy, but he
does not because he knows what his mission is. Instead, he reminds his
disciples that he never claimed to be the Christ. On the contrary: he
came to point toward Him, to prepare the way for Him, to be a witness
about Him (John 1:6–8).
Using the illustration of a wedding, he calls himself the friend of
the bridegroom, with Jesus as the bridegroom. The bride would be the
people of God (compare with Hos. 2:16–23 and Isa. 62:1–5). Then, in
words that show John’s true greatness, he says, “He must increase, but
I must decrease” (John 3:30).
John 3:31–36 continues the comparison between Jesus and John,
showing the superiority of the Messiah over His forerunner. With John’s
testimony pointing toward Jesus, the idea of witness is again emphasized.
Those who receive that testimony and believe in Jesus have eternal life.
Those who do not receive Him remain under the wrath of God. That’s
what the text says. God loves the world and sent His Son to redeem the
world (John 3:16, 17). But those who refuse the gift offered them will
have to pay the penalty for their own sins—eternal death.
How can we learn the lesson of humility before both God and
humanity? What can we learn from the example of John here
about humility of the soul?
47
M onday November 4
A New Understanding of the Messiah
Read John 1:32–36. What does John the Baptist say here about Jesus
that the people were not expecting about the long-awaited Messiah?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
The Jews looked for a Messiah to come who would deliver them
from the rule of Rome. Long under oppression, the Jews believed
that the Messiah would not only overthrow Rome but would establish
them as a great and powerful nation. John’s words, however, calling
Jesus “the Lamb of God,” although directly pointing to His atoning
sacrifice, were probably misunderstood by the majority of people.
They might have not known what he was talking about at all.
Thus, John with his Gospel wanted to change their understanding
of the Messiah so that they could recognize in Jesus the fulfillment of
the prophecies regarding the coming King and what He would do. He
was not coming as a political and military leader but to offer Himself
as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. That was His purpose. Only
after that, when all is finished, will the final kingdom come (see Dan.
7:18).
“When at the baptism of Jesus, John pointed to Him as the
Lamb of God, a new light was shed upon the Messiah’s work. The
prophet’s mind was directed to the words of Isaiah, ‘He is brought
as a lamb to the slaughter.’ Isa. 53:7.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire
of Ages, p. 136.
In John 1:31, John says “ ‘I did not know Him’ ” (NKJV). So, how
then did John come to know Jesus as the Messiah? The answer is that
the Lord who sent John had previously said to him, “ ‘ “Upon whom
you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who
baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” And I have seen and testified that this
is the Son of God’ ” (John 1:33, 34, NKJV). In other words, God
revealed to John that Jesus was the Messiah.
“Christ [is] the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24,
NKJV). Knowledge that Jesus is the Christ comes from God Himself
through the convicting power of His Spirit. This theme appears fre-
quently in John. Salvation does not come from worldly philosophy,
science, or higher learning. It comes only from God to a heart sur-
rendered in faith and obedience to Jesus.
How would we know the truth about Jesus as our atoning sacri-
fice unless it were revealed to us? Why, then, is knowing the Bible
and what it teaches about Jesus so crucial?
_______________________________________________________
48
T uesday November 5
Acceptance and Rejection
Lesson 2 described the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6 but did not
cover the final section of that story, which is studied here.
Read John 6:51–71. What did Jesus say that people had trouble
accepting?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Having just been fed, miraculously, by Jesus, the people were ready
to crown Him king (John 6:1–15). But in talking with them later at the
Capernaum synagogue, He explains the spiritual meaning of the miracle,
saying, “I am the bread of life,” (John 6:35). He expounds in more detail that
this bread is His flesh, which He gives for the life of the world (John 6:51).
This saying opened the eyes of the multitude to the fact that Jesus
would not be their earthly king. He did not fit the mold produced by
earthly thinking. They refused conversion, which would transform the
way they thought so that they could recognize and accept Jesus as the
Messiah. Many of His disciples left Him at this point (John 6:66).
From a human sense, this must have been hard for Jesus. The appro-
bation of the crowd is pleasing. Who doesn’t want to be liked? But see-
ing many people draw back and question one’s principles is naturally
discouraging, as well. Seeing the multitude depart, Jesus asks his inner
circle, the Twelve, if they want to leave, too.
This is when Peter makes his amazing confession, another witness as
to both what Jesus has and who He is. “ ‘You have the words of eternal
life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the
Holy One of God’ ” (John 6:68, 69, ESV).
The disciples had been with Jesus for a couple of years, traveling
with Him, seeing His miracles, hearing His sermons. They knew from
experience that there was no one comparable to Him. The conviction
settled upon them that, however unusual some situations might be, this
man was the Messiah—regardless of how much they still didn't under-
stand about His purpose for coming. Only after His death and resurrec-
tion did they start to understand why Jesus came.
What can we learn from this story about the fact that the
majority is usually wrong? Why must we remember this, espe-
cially with the aspects of our faith that are unpopular with the
majority—even the majority of Christians?
_______________________________________________________
49
W ednesday November 6
The Witness of the Father
The Gospel of John begins by talking about the Word (logos) as being
with God; that is, being with God the Father (John 1:1). When the Word
became flesh, the Spirit testified about Jesus by resting on Him at His
baptism (John 1:32–34). But the Father also testifies about Jesus during
His earthly ministry.
Read John 5:36–38. What does Jesus say here about the Father?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Jesus links the Father to the works and miracles that He had per-
formed. He is very clear that the Father had sent Him and also had
testified about Him.
Read Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5, Mark 1:11, and Luke 3:22 (see
also 2 Pet. 1:17, 18). What does the Father say about Jesus?
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
At the baptism of Jesus, the Father and the Spirit joined the Son in
marking this important occasion: the commencement of Jesus’ minis-
try. The Father states that Jesus is His beloved Son in whom He is well
pleased. But, at a crucial time in Christ’s ministry, the Father speaks
yet again, this time as recorded in the Gospel of John.
Things were reaching a climax in the final days of that ministry. The
religious leaders, unable to stop Him (see John 12:19), wanted Him
dead, now more than ever. The crowds were exuberant over Him, espe-
cially as more and more people, hearing the testimony of those who
saw Him raise Lazarus from the dead (John 12:17, 18), were starting
to follow Jesus. Even Greeks, there for the festival, wanted to see Jesus.
At this point, in response to Jesus’ words in John 12:28, “ ‘Father,
glorify Your name’ ” (NKJV), the Father again speaks from heaven, “ ‘I
have glorified it, and I will glorify it again’ ” (John 12:28, ESV).
As we have already seen, Jesus’ hour of glory is the cross. Thus,
the Father’s testimony about Jesus points to the great sacrifice of the
Lamb of God for the sins of the world. It is the culmination of His
earthly ministry. His death in our behalf paid the full penalty for all
our sins, and in Him, by faith, we never have to face that penalty
ourselves.
50
T hursday November 7
The Witness of the Crowd
“On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried
out, saying, ‘If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who
believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers
of living water’ ” (John 7:37, 38, NKJV).
John recorded, numerous times, Jesus making bold statements about
Himself, about who He was and what He came to do.
The lines quoted above from John 7:37, 38 are another example of
what Jesus claimed about Himself and about what He would do to all
who come to Him. These were astonishing claims, as well.
When Jesus spoke to the Jews attending the Feast of Tabernacles, what
was the response of many in the crowd? (See John 7:37–53.)
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________
Some said He was the Prophet like Moses predicted long ago
(see Deut. 18:15–19). Others thought Jesus was the Christ. But this
brought the argument that the Messiah would not come from Galilee,
that He had to be of the Davidic line, and that He had to be born in
Bethlehem—all of which were true about Jesus (compare with Matthew
1–2), though many did not seem to know this!
Even the arresting officers were stymied by Him and the eloquence of
His words. The Pharisees responded to the officers with another ques-
tion. “ ‘Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him?’ ” (John
7:48, NKJV). This question from the Pharisees gave John the opportunity
again to bring in Nicodemus, who, after having had his meeting with
Jesus, was seeking to protect Jesus from their machinations. “ ‘Does
our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?’ ”
(John 7:51, NKJV).
Did Nicodemus ever accept Jesus as the Messiah? Though this scene
does not prove that he had, between this act and what he did after
Jesus died (see John 19:39, 40), the Bible gives us solid evidence that
Nicodemus did in fact come to believe in Him.
And so, the answer to their question was, yes, in fact, one of the
Pharisees did believe in Him, after all.
Read John 7:49. What were the leaders saying that showed their
disdain for the masses who followed after Jesus? What lesson
might be here for us?
_______________________________________________________
51
F riday November 8
Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The Crisis in Galilee,”
pp. 383–394; “In the Outer Court,” pp. 621–626, in The Desire of Ages.
“ ‘To whom shall we go?’ The teachers of Israel were slaves to for-
malism. The Pharisees and Sadducees were in constant contention. To
leave Jesus was to fall among sticklers for rites and ceremonies, and
ambitious men who sought their own glory. The disciples had found
more peace and joy since they had accepted Christ than in all their
previous lives. How could they go back to those who had scorned and
persecuted the Friend of sinners? They had long been looking for the
Messiah; now He had come, and they could not turn from His pres-
ence to those who were hunting His life, and had persecuted them for
becoming His followers.
“ ‘To whom shall we go?’ Not from the teaching of Christ, His les-
sons of love and mercy, to the darkness of unbelief, the wickedness of
the world. While the Saviour was forsaken by many who had witnessed
His wonderful works, Peter expressed the faith of the disciples,—‘Thou
art that Christ.’ The very thought of losing this anchor of their souls
filled them with fear and pain. To be destitute of a Saviour was to be
adrift on a dark and stormy sea.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages,
p. 393.
Discussion Questions:
Ê In class, talk about the difficult question of why some people,
when given evidence for Jesus as the Messiah and for the truth
of Christianity, gladly accept it, and why others, when given that
same evidence, reject it?
Ë What more important truth could there be than that Jesus
Christ died for our sins? Yet, how did we ever come to know this
crucial truth? By science, natural law, natural theology, logic, and
reason? While these things could, in fact, lead us to believe in a
Creator God, a First Cause, an Unmoved Mover, or something
else, none of these disciplines, either alone or even together, could
teach us the most important truth that we need to know: Christ
died for our sins. What should this fact—that all these disciplines,
even in principle, could not lead us to the one thing that we really
need to know—teach us about how crucial it is to make the Bible
our final and ultimate authority on matters of faith?
Ì Why is it so important for someone’s own faith to recount the
things God has done in his or her life?
52
i n s i d e
Story
“We Didn’t Send Anyone”
By Andrew McChesney
For four years, Donaldo Velasquez visited a Colombian prison every Friday
to preach about Jesus. But one Friday, he couldn’t go. He worked as a carpenter,
and a client urgently needed his help. Moreover, Donaldo needed the money.
Only four Seventh-day Adventists—Donaldo, two other church members,
and their pastor—had permission to visit the prison in Acacias, and Donaldo
called them for help. “No, I’m too busy,” Ranses said. Pedro also said he
couldn’t go. The pastor apologized, saying he was out of town.
Donaldo wept and prayed. When his wife, Jesusita, asked what was wrong,
he explained that he didn’t want to skip the meeting with the inmates but he
needed to work. “Go, do your job,” Jesusita said. “God will provide.”
The next time Donaldo visited the prison, 38 inmates came to hear him
preach. He was accompanied by another church member, Pedro.
“Where is the man who came last time?” an inmate asked.
“We didn’t send anyone,” Donaldo replied.
“Yes, you did,” said another inmate. “A man preached to us.”
“No, we didn’t send anyone,” Donaldo said, and he suggested that perhaps
the preacher had belonged to another denomination.
“No, no,” the inmates said. “We know everyone who has permission to visit.
This man has never visited before, and he wasn’t from another church.”
Donaldo asked about the man’s sermon, hoping for a clue to his identity.
The inmates said he had spoken about the seventh-day Sabbath.
Amazed, Donaldo asked, “What did he look like?”
The inmates described him as a tall, well-dressed man wearing a white shirt.
They said he knew the Bible so well that he probably was a teacher.
Pedro touched Donaldo’s arm. “An angel must have come and preached to
them,” he said. “That’s the only explanation.”
Donaldo, however, wasn’t convinced. He went to the prison guard who reg-
istered visitors. The guard, a friend of Donaldo’s, looked through the computer
log and shook his head. “No one came that day,” he said.
Astonished, Donaldo exclaimed, “Now I have no doubt that the angel of the
Lord came to teach the Bible in my place!”
Returning to the inmates, he informed them that they must have seen an
angel.
Six years have passed, and nearly all 38 inmates have
given their hearts to Jesus in baptism. Donaldo said he
won’t ever forget that day.
“Even though it is an incredible story, I believe God
sent His heavenly messenger,” he said.
Thank you for your Thirteenth Sabbath Offering that helped two
mission projects in Colombia last quarter.
Provided by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission, which uses Sabbath School
mission offerings to spread the gospel worldwide. Read new stories daily at [Link]. 53
Help us reach the
of the world’s population who are
still waiting to experience the
refreshing news about Jesus.
Your ongoing support of Mission
Offerings will help change lives.
To ensure the mission river never runs dry,
please write in “World Mission Offering”
on your tithe envelope or visit
[Link].
