#52: The Apologetics of Jesus: His Testimony
Hello thinker,
In last month’s note I asked, did Jesus endorse and practice apologetics? I answered, he most definitely did! He reasoned with his disciples, the Pharisees, and others . . . and provided evidence as to who he was. And I closed by saying that we would examine examples of Christ’s apologetics with respect to his use of testimony, miracles, reason, parables, etc. This month we briefly look at his apologetic use of testimony – that is, the testimony and witness he used to prove his true identity – the Son of God. [1]
John 5 provides one of the clearest examples of Jesus’ use of apologetics regarding his divine nature. He makes a “formal, systematic, orderly, regular statement of His own unity with the Father, His divine commission and authority, and the proofs of His Messiahship . . ..” In this passage, Jesus heals a paralytic and others beside the pool of Bethesda. Jewish leaders confront him for violating a Jewish tradition – that is, healing on the Sabbath. I encourage you to take a moment to read John 5 but, for brevity purposes, I will not include it here.
Jesus’ response to the Jewish challenge can be divided into three parts. In John 5:16-18, Jesus states he is Lord over the Sabbath. He claims “God [as] his own Father, making himself equal with God” (John 5:18b). While the Jews know the God of Scripture is their Father, they could not accept Jesus’ claim. “This is why the Jews were seeking . . . to kill him” (v. 18a).
In verses 19-24, Jesus replies, “Truly, truly, I say to you . . . for as the Father [does] . . . the Son gives life to whom he will” (vv. 19a, 21). He adds that he will judge humankind, grant eternal life, and be honored like His Father. Since the Jews will not accept his testimony, he decides to reason with them; he speaks to them on their own terms. All Jews knew that Old Testament law states “a single witness shall not suffice . . .. Only on the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses” (Deut 19:15) will Jesus be able to show them the fallacy of their objection in terms they understand. Jesus says, “If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true” (John 5:31).
In verses 32-47, “Jesus presents an apologetic defense using the testimony of [five] key witnesses.” He cites:
John the Baptist (vv. 33, 35) - the Jews recognized him as a prophet;
His own works (v. 36) – i.e., his miracles;
The Father (vv. 37 . . . which is later recorded in Matt 3:17; Mark 1:11; and Luke 3:22);
Scripture (John 5:39, 43) – Old Testament prophecies pointing to Christ and their claims that he came to fulfill the Law and Prophets (Matt 5:17); and
Moses (John 5:45-47), the author of Old Testament law who witnesses to Christ through his writings. Jesus knows the Jews revere Moses but not in the one about whom he wrote.
Geisler and Zukeran conclude:
In the Judiastic context, Jesus provides the greatest possible witnesses, the greatest prophet (John the Baptist), the greatest works (miracles), the greatest being (God), the greatest book (the Torah), and the greatest lawgiver (Moses). Any unbiased Jewish jury would have been overwhelmed by the evidence.
John 5 is a clear example of Jesus’ use of apologetics – specifically, testimony of his divine nature. First, John tells us that Jesus provided reasons and evidence for his claims; that is, his listeners were given a rational, evidential basis to believe what he said. Second, the evidence was firsthand (from the Father and Son), and based on eyewitnesses (John the Baptist and Moses) as well as supernatural events (miracles witnessed by many). Third, all the testimony was based on the integrity and credibility of his undisputed witnesses. No Jew could reasonably reject his supporting evidence. [2]
Jesus’s apologetic approach is what we apologists call the evidential method. [3] This method argues for the existence of God and the person of Christ using primarily historical evidence. John 5 shows Jesus practiced evidential apologetics as opposed to fideism – the view which holds that faith must be held without the use of reason. [4] Jesus was clearly an evidentialist, not a fideist.
Did Jesus endorse and practice apologetics? He most certainly did! He reasoned with his disciples, the Pharisees, and others . . . and provided rational evidence as to who he was. Next month we will examine Jesus’ apologetic use of miracles.
In Christ,
Doug
[1] Most of this short essay is drawn from chapter 1 (pp. 15-25) of the book, The Apologetics of Jesus by Norman L. Geisler and Patrick Zukeran. All quotes are from this chapter and are not separately cited. I encourage you to read the book in its entirety! (paperback, 207 pages, $16.59 on Amazon)
[2] John 8 is another example of Jesus’ apologetic approach. He calls on his own testimony, the testimony of the Father, the testimony of Abraham, and the testimony of his own sinless life as witness to his divinity. Geisler and Zukeran briefly discuss this passage in chapter 1 as well.
[3] For a further explanation of the evidential approach see: https://carm.org/defending-the-faith/evidential-apologetics/
[4] For a further explanation of fideism see: https://apologeticspress.org/reasoning-about-fideism-2235/
