Pam Padgett ... teacher
The Pharisees accused Jesus of not giving a true record of Himself. Jesus told them that
the Father had sent Him and also gave witness of Him.
John 8:12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am
the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in
darkness, but shall have the light of life. 13 The Pharisees therefore
said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true.
14 Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of myself,
yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but
ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go. 15 Ye judge after the
flesh; I judge no man. 16 And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I
am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me. 17 It is also written
in your law, that the testimony of two men is true. 18 I am one that
bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of
me.
We are told of several times the Father bare witness of Jesus, including:
An angel was sent by God to tell Mary she would conceive a son of the Holy Ghost to be named Jesus and that He would be the Son of God and would reign for ever ...
Luke 1:26 And in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee, named Nazareth, 27 To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. 28 And the angel came in unto her, and said, Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women. 29 And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and cast in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. 30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou
hast found favour with God. 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy
womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. 32 He shall
be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God
shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall
reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall
be no end.
When Jesus was born, an angel appeared to shepherds watching over flocks
in a field, announcing that Christ the Lord had been born ...
Luke 2:8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in
the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel
of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about
them: and they were sore afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear
not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be
to all people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a
Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And this shall be a sign unto you;
Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly
host praising God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on
earth peace, good will toward men.
The Spirit of God descended like a dove on Jesus, showing John the Baptist that Jesus is the Son of God ...
John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and
saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred
before me: for he was before me. 31 And I knew him not: but that he
should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with
water. 32 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from
heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 33 And I knew him not: but
he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom
thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is
he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. 34 And I saw, and bare record
that this is the Son of God.
When John the Baptist baptized Jesus, the heavens opened, the Spirit of God descended on Jesus, and a voice from heaven said This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Matthew 3:16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway
out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw
the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 And
lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am
well pleased.
When Jesus met with Moses and Elias on the mount and was transfigured
before Peter, James and John, a bright cloud overshadowed them and a
voice said This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
Matthew 17:1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and
John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, 2
And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and
his raiment was white as the light. 3 And, behold, there appeared unto
them Moses and Elias talking with him. 4 Then answered Peter, and said
unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us
make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one
for Elias. 5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed
them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.
The works that Jesus did, healing those with physical afflictions,
raising from the dead, and preaching the gospel, testified that He was
of God ...
Luke 7:19 And John calling unto him two of his disciples
sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we
for another? 20 When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist
hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look
we for another? 21 And in that same hour he cured many of their
infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were
blind he gave sight. 22 Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your
way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the
blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the
dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached. 23 And blessed is
he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.
John 10:37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 38
But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may
know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
When Jesus was crucified and all things were accomplished according to the will of God, mighty events happened, things that could only be
done by God: the veil of the temple was torn (Jesus obtaining eternal redemption for us and bringing the
new covenant into effect by His blood (Hebrews 9-10)), there was an earthquake,
rocks were broken, graves were opened and bodies of those called by God
but had died before were raised. The ones who saw these things feared
and believed that Jesus truly is
the Son of God ...
Matthew 27:50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice,
yielded up the ghost. 51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in
twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the
rocks rent; 52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints
which slept arose, 53 And came out of the graves after his
resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many. 54
Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw
the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly,
saying, Truly this was the Son of God.
With great power and in ways that could not be explained away, the Father gave witness that Jesus is the Son of God and the Saviour of the world.