John 3:31-34

Dr. Ronnie Wolfe

These verses give us a good description of Jesus Christ and his origin (if you can call eternity an origin). Verse 31 tells us that he "cometh from above." That means he was not born the normal human way but was sent here from God's spiritual realm (Heaven) where he dwelt as the eternal Son of God until the fullness of time (Gal. 4:4) when God sent his Son to earth to redeem His people.

As though necessary, the Holy Spirit mentions that he "cometh from heaven." This is a precious redundancy, which declares something of the worth of Jesus Christ, which deserves our eternal praise.

Verse 32 tells us that Jesus testifies of that which he had seen from heaven. These are eternal truths are the basis of "the faith," which the Bible encourages us to believe and follow; but no one receives these eternal things, that is, on their own, which is explained in the next verse.

Verse 33 mentions those who HAVE received his testimony. It is not customary that man receive these eternal truths, but they are given to men by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, which we learn from many other scriptures. Those who receive his testimony have "set to his seal" (or attested to the fact) that God is true. Salvation comes from God, salvation is beneficial in allowing us to receive Jesus' testimony, and salvation, then, is a seal of the truth of God. Jesus is that truth (John 14:6).

Verse 34 tells us that Jesus speaks the "words of God," because Jesus completely understands and can properly teach and disseminate the truth of God, for Jesus is the only man who has the mind of God without measure, thus the phrase "the Spirit without measure unto him."

People of the earth can and do receive this eternal and truthful testimony of Jesus, since it is from God, and the dissemination of it is from God. God has opened the hearts of many, as he did in Lydia long ago, to receive these truths, trust in Jesus, and receive eternal life.