In 5:6 John goes on to say, “This is He who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ; not in the water only, but in the water and in the blood; and the Spirit is He who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.” He, Jesus Christ, came as the Son of God so that we may be born of God and have the divine life (John 10:10; 20:31). It is in His Son that God gives us eternal life (1 John 5:11-13). Jesus, the Man of Nazareth, was testified to be the Son of God by the water He went through in His baptism (Matt. 3:16-17; John 1:31), by the blood He shed on the cross (John 19:31-35; Matt. 27:50-54), and also by the Spirit He gave not by measure (John 1:32-34; 3:34). By these three, God has testified that Jesus is His Son given to us (1 John 5:7-10) so that in Him we may receive His eternal life by believing in His name (5:11-13; John 3:16, 36; 20:31). The water of baptism terminates people of the old creation by burying them; the blood shed on the cross redeems those whom God has chosen from among the old creation; and the Spirit, who is the truth, the reality in life (Rom. 8:2), germinates those whom God has redeemed out of the old creation by regenerating them with the divine life. Thus they are born of God and become His children (John 3:5, 15; 1:12-13) to live a life that practices the truth (1 John 1:6), the will of God (2:17), the righteousness of God (2:29), and the love of God (3:10-11) for His expression.
In 5:6 John says that the Spirit testifies because the Spirit is the truth. The Spirit, who is the truth, the reality (John 14:16-17; 15:26), testifies that Jesus is the Son of God, in whom is the eternal life. By thus testifying, He imparts the Son of God into us to be our life (Col. 3:4). In verse 6 truth denotes the reality of all that Christ is as the Son of God (John 16:12-15).
Verses 7 and 8 say, “Because there are three who testify, the Spirit and the water and the blood, and the three are for the one.” “For the one” also means unto the one, that is, unto the one thing, the one point or purpose in their testimony.
First John 5:6-8 says that God testified that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. God testified this in three steps: by water, by the blood, and by the Spirit. The water refers to the baptism of the Lord Jesus. According to the record of the four Gospels, immediately after the Lord came up from the water, the heavens were opened and a voice declared that He is God’s beloved Son. That was God’s testimony that Jesus Christ is His Son, the testimony by water, by baptism. Three and a half years later, the Lord Jesus died on the cross, shedding His blood. Someone standing near the cross testified, after the Lord died, that He was God’s Son. That was the testimony of God by blood concerning Jesus Christ being the Son of God. Following this, we have the testimony of the Spirit. In resurrection Christ became a life-giving Spirit.
If we read 5:6 carefully, we shall see that the Lord Jesus came through water and through blood, but we are not told that He came through the Spirit. Then in verses 7 and 8 we are told clearly that there are three who testify, and that these three are the Spirit, the water, and the blood. Christ came through the water, through the blood, and as the Spirit. Of course, He did not come as the water or as the blood, but eventually, in resurrection, He came as the Spirit. Furthermore, according to verse 6, Christ came in the water and in the blood. But this verse does not say that He came in the Spirit. Concerning the Spirit, this verse has the thought of being, for we are told, “The Spirit is He who testifies.” Therefore, we need to see clearly that Christ came through the water, through the blood, and as the Spirit.
The phrase “through water and blood” refers to the baptism at the beginning of His ministry and to crucifixion at the end of His ministry. After this, in resurrection Christ became the life-giving Spirit, and thus He came as the Spirit. The Son of God came through water and through blood, that is, through His baptism and through His crucifixion. We may also say that He came in the water and in the blood. Then He came not through the Spirit nor in the Spirit, but as the Spirit.
The water of baptism terminates the old creation, and the blood shed on the cross redeems whatever God has chosen of the old creation. Then the Spirit comes to germinate what God has chosen and redeemed. Therefore, here we have termination, redemption, and germination. As the old creation, we have been terminated. But as God’s chosen ones we were first redeemed and then germinated to be the new creation. This new creation is a composition of God’s children.
By these three steps of termination, redemption, and germination, Jesus Christ has not only been testified as the Son of God, but has also entered into us. Through the water of His baptism, through the blood of His cross, and as the Spirit, Christ has been testified as the Son of God. By these three steps He has also come into our spirit. This means that by termination, redemption, and germination, Christ is now within us. Hallelujah, we are a terminated, redeemed, and germinated people! We are no longer the old creation; we are the new creation with the new birth and a new life. Because we are the children of God, we have the life ability to overcome the world and all negative things.