John 5:37,38 - The Father has borne witness

5:37

“And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me.” This presumably has to be the witness borne on earth, which would then mean that it refers to the voice that was heard at Jesus’ baptism. The religious leaders had never seen the Father, and they had never heard His voice. They needed to recognise who they were in relation to Jesus. Jesus has seen and heard the Father directly, we have not. So if we are wise then we will listen to the One who has, we will listen to Jesus. 

5:38

The religious leaders prided themselves on their religious knowledge, they thought they were the embodiment of righteousness. Nothing could have been further from the truth. If the religious leaders did indeed know the word of God, if His word did abide in them, then they would have recognised Jesus for who He is. But they did not believe in the one that God had sent, so this demonstrated that they did not know God at all. God has “invested” everything in His Son, so if we want to know God, want to please Him, then we need to believe in His Son.