Transferring Loyalty

He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. What He has seen and heard, of that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. He who has received His testimony has set his seal to this, that God is true. (John 3:31-33)

I want to explore further something that just came to my notice in these verses. I have been wondering about this phrase he who is of the earth. Who is this referring to here?

I have looked at it a little before and explored that it might refer to Jesus. Jesus did mention earlier in the chapter that He talked about things of earth and of heaven. But now I am starting to perceive that quite possibly John the writer is laying down some solid material for people who had become so caught up as disciples of John the Baptist that they were having great difficulty accepting the superiority of Jesus and His mission over that of John's.

John the Baptist had attracted some people to him that had become fiercely loyal to him. Not that that was ever his intention though. John made it very clear that his purpose and ministry was to prepare his listeners to transfer their loyalty and affections to the Messiah that was to come after him. But that is very difficult for humans to accept, especially after they have latched onto a charismatic leader with their hearts at a very deep level. To move their attention and loyalties to another feels too much like betrayal and disgrace, like an admission of having made a mistake which would then bring too much shame on themselves and their leader.

Very few people who have become wildly popular ever have the strength of humility to instruct and encourage their followers to transfer their allegiance to another leader, especially if that other person seems to not be nearly so attractive or charismatic as themselves. This is what makes John the Baptist stand out in history as one of the greatest prophets ever to be used of God. It was not because of any spectacular miracles he performed or climactic events that he was able to pull off like Elijah or Moses or some of the other prophets of old; but it was because of his stunning humility and devotion to God that made him the subject of highly honorable mention by Jesus later on in His ministry. It was John's willingness to disappear out of sight from the affections and attentions of those who had responded positively to his message and then to push them to move their attentions and affections to someone more important than himself that revealed a picture of God that is seldom seen in this world.

But even so, John, while being very closely reflective of God's character in this respect, was not from heaven himself as was Jesus. John was of this earth and because of that context he did not have the ability to view reality from the vantage point that Jesus had. This may well have had an effect on the way in which John presented his messages to the people. It was not that what he did was wrong – God had sent him to do what he did and used that to prepare people's hearts to better see the truth of the Messiah in the life and teachings of Jesus. But John's presentations were starkly different in style and content than the way Jesus presented things which gave rise to the idea in some people's minds that maybe one or the other of them must be wrong because they were so different.

Apparently John had much more thunder and power and fear mingled into his messages and preaching that Jesus demonstrated. John focused on warning people of dreadful judgments to come if they did not repent and be baptized. What he was preaching was not incorrect but it was much closer to the fear-based kind of religions that sinful humans are much more inclined to embrace and be attracted to than the gentle, compassionate but mysterious ways that Jesus used in His dealings with those around Him. John's style was more along the line with the world's view of reality and of God. Thus the disciple John who was writing this passage notes that John the Baptist was of the earth and therefore would naturally only be able to speak from that perspective. On the other hand, he also wanted to specifically point out in contrast to this, Jesus was not of this earth but had come from heaven.

Since Jesus and John had originated from two starkly different places, quite necessarily their views on reality would also be different though not in conflict with each other. Both of them were in tune with God and were doing God's will which could not be said of most of the religious leaders. But Jesus was inherently so far superior to John that it needed to be explained why John was fading from view after Jesus began to advance His own ministry. I believe that John the writer was especially keen to encourage the disciples of John the Baptist that it would not be an act of betrayal to embrace the authority of Jesus but would in fact be perfectly in harmony with the sole purpose and desires of their former revered leader.

This might also help to better understand some of the next statements that also seem rather oblique at first. John is talking about people's willingness to accept a testimony. Many were willing to embrace and believe the testimony of John who was from the earth like they themselves were. But the writer here is urging them to move beyond that and embrace the greater light that was now shining brightly on the world. No one has yet fully embraced that testimony because of the inability of humans to grasp the significance of that testimony. But that does not mean that we should fail to pursue and true knowledge of God based on the revelation of Him that Jesus came to give us.

What is being addressed here is identical to the problems we see so rampant today in our world, especially in Christianity. There are hundreds of denominations that were started when some small group of people or individuals began to embrace some new truths that became unacceptable to the group they currently worshiped with. Those around them were so resistant to accepting anything new or different that these believers in new ideas were forced to break away after a time and form a new identity which evolved into yet another denomination. The problem has always been in the tremendous power of tradition to prevent us from opening our eyes and hearts to keep moving and progressing into ever deeper truth and revelations of God.

The whole meaning of the word denomination implies division and separation. Someone has said that the multiplicity of denominations in Christianity today is simply a case of dissociative personality disorder in the body of Christ on this earth. But that may be a bit misleading. While it is true that nearly every denomination claims to have the real truth and insists that others must align themselves with that church if they want to be saved, it is obvious that they cannot all be correct. And looking to figure out which one is really the authentic one may itself be chasing down the wrong path in pursuit of knowing God.

I have become very tired of this bigotry that is seen in nearly every church I have encountered in Christianity. I am even disgusted at how often it pops up on my own thinking at times. Even independent cults that use this reasoning to promote themselves as the genuine alternative themselves end up advocating the very same reasoning for people to join them. I believe that the apostles if they were alive today would have some very strong words to everyone in every denomination including my own about the way we think we have a corner on the truth. This kind of thinking is earthly, self-promoting and bigoted in ways different that what we might think at first.

What I am seeing here in this passage is a call to focus my personal devotion, loyalty and affections directly onto Jesus the true Messiah and Savior of all mankind. I cannot allow association with any denomination or church to eclipse my first loyalty and devotion on a very personal level to Jesus Christ Himself or else I fall into the trap of the problems experienced by the disciples of John the Baptist that is being addressed here. It is a problem of viewing reality from an earthly perspective instead of allowing the Holy Spirit to expand and train my mind and heart to perceive truth and reality in ways never before experienced or considered.

This does not necessarily mean that I will withdraw from a church or group of people although that may end up being the result if the dissonance becomes too great. To worship effectively together there must be some level of agreement and sympathy. So when it becomes obvious that those in a church or a group insist on refusing some truth about God that cannot be denied or ignored without eternal danger, then it may become necessary to disconnect from that group in order to maintain the integrity of my personal loyalty to my Savior. But that decision should be made very carefully and not from bitterness or a spirit of independence.

John the Baptist never encouraged people to withdraw from the religion they belonged to as far as I can tell. Instead he called them to repent of the terrible lies they believed about God and about themselves that blinded them to the truth about reality. He called them to perceive a God in heaven who was radically different than the perceptions of God they had received from their religions and to take appropriate actions based on those new perceptions. He warned them of the terrible consequences that they would experience if they failed to act upon these new revelations and the very same messages are still true yet today.

But unlike John the Baptist, Jesus came directly from heaven as the Son of God to reveal the heart of the Godhead to not only humanity but to the whole universe in ways never before seen in all of history. Jesus was the authentic reality of God that John could only talk about second-hand as merely a human. To receive a second-hand testimony is helpful, but to accept the truth of first-hand testimony, especially when it involves the real truth about God, is of supreme importance to life, both now and for eternity.

He who has received His testimony has set his seal to this, that God is true. (John 3:33)

In effect, when we accept the testimony about what God is really like through the life and words and actions of Jesus Christ, then the transformation that takes place in our own beliefs, words, actions and testimony reveals and corroborates the testimony of Jesus that God really is true. By embracing the offer of Jesus for us to dwell in Him, trust completely in His righteousness alone to save us and for Him to dwell in us, we will set the seal of our own testimony alongside the testimony of Jesus and we can in turn be sealed by God to be the children of God who can enjoy living with Him in joy for all of eternity.

Father, I want this to describe my experience with You. Please transform me today, show me Your face and train me in Your ways, thoughts, emotions and perspectives. Dwell inside of me, cleanse me, heal me, live through me as You continue to seal me into Your likeness. Thank-you for Your word and Your promises and Your power to save and heal me. I give You full permission to do whatever You desire in my life. Glorify Your name in and through me today and have Your way fully in my life.