By: Elder Randy McCarthy
Verily, verily, I say unto you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; and hath given him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of man. Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. John 5:25-29
This scripture provides one of the clearest and easiest to understand statements by the Lord Jesus Christ concerning the doctrines of grace. The Lord states plainly that He is the one who gives life to His people, and He does it sovereignly without aid or help from the flesh or will of man.
The story begins on a Sabbath day with Jesus having healed a man (John 5:10-11). This act by Christ was viewed as a sin by the religious leaders, rather than as a wonderful sign that God was in their presence.
Christ told the Pharisees and Scribes that not only was it not a sin to heal on the Sabbath, but that He was expressly acting in conjunction with his Father. This enraged them because 1) Jesus was claiming to be equal to God and therefore divine, and 2) Jesus was claiming that God actually sanctioned healing on the Sabbath, which meant that these men were wrong in their own religious views.
It can be difficult for us today to appreciate just how loathsome Christ was in the eyes of the Jewish leadership because of His good works on the Sabbath. This does not seem to be a big deal to us. But the Bible makes it clear that His healing of various ones on the Sabbath drove these evil and wicked men to unspeakable rage and intense desire to kill him. Matt 12:14; Luke 6:11.
The Lord proceeded to give an extended discourse to these men concerning Himself and His own divine authority, of which our text above (John 5:25-29) forms a part. Notice that in this discourse, He refers to that authority with respect to commands that He will issue by His own voice.
In v25, Jesus says that the time is coming and now is that the dead shall hear His voice and live. This refers to the new spiritual birth. In v29, Jesus says that the time is coming in the future at the end of time that all that are in the grave shall hear His voice and come forth. This refers to the general bodily resurrection from the dead which will occur at His second coming.
It is important to consider the implications of these two statements: both of these wondrous events will, and do, occur as a result of His almighty voice. Jesus demonstrated this power at the grave of Lazarus by commanding, “Lazarus, come forth!” – and Lazarus did. John 11:43. Jesus said that He had power to lay down His own life, and power to take it up again – and He did. John 10:18. The Bible makes it clear that Christ, the eternal Word of God, was present at the creation and spoke it into existence – and He did. John 1:1-3; Heb 11:3.
The voice of God is powerful and effectual, and cannot be resisted. If God says something will come to pass, it will. But there is even more significance to our Lord’s statement.
In verse 29, it is Christ’s personal voice upon his second coming that will cause the graves to open and all men to come forth in resurrected bodies – the elect to inherit eternal happiness, the damned to deserved eternal torment. In verse 25, it also is Christ’s personal voice that in the meantime calls forth whom he will to have eternal life, and those to whom he speaks will be made spiritually alive.
Both of these resurrections take place in EXACTLY the same way, by the voice of the Son of God – both are irresistible, and both will happen immediately in response to His voice.
It would be foolish to think that a preacher will be able to call forth the dead in the bodily resurrection on judgment day at the end of time, and I don’t know of anyone who believes this. Yet many believe that a preacher has the power to call forth the new birth by the preaching of the gospel, and that men cooperate in their new birth by believing the preached word. This is exactly opposite of what Christ here is saying. The final resurrection and the spiritual resurrection (new birth) take place the exact same way, by the divine voice of Christ. It is not hearing the words of Christ that bring life; it is hearing His voice, which raises the dead.
So where does the preaching of the gospel come in, if not to give spiritual life? The Bible answers this as well: once a man has been born of God, he can “see” the kingdom, but not before. John 3:3; 1 Chr 2:14; Rom 8:7-9. But once a man is born again, he can now be assured of his salvation by being a manifest son of God – that is, manifest, or openly viewable as a child of God, in this world. John 1:12-13. It is for this purpose that God sends his gospel ministers, to share with them the good news (gospel) of their salvation, and to show them the path of obedience and faith in Christ. 2nd Tim 1:9-11. But faith is the result of, not a prerequisite for, having spiritual birth. Heb 11:6; Gal 5:22-23; Eph 2:4-11.
Don’t be afraid to share Primitive Baptist doctrines with others – after all, it’s simply what the Bible says. Don’t be intimidated that most sincere Christians are confused on these essential points and will likely disagree with you at first – just remember that they have probably never heard this before. And only God knows whether they may have read these or other verses and wondered about why they don’t match what they are hearing on Sunday from their preacher.
Jesus compared the sharing of the gospel with the sowing of seeds – no one expects to throw a seed into a garden and have a fully mature plant right then. But over time, faith and understanding can come to fruition through the superintending operation of the Spirit. We should be planting seeds at every opportunity that the Lord gives us, and let God give the increase. 1 Cor. 3:6. Your life is important, and your service of Christ is not in vain. 1 Cor. 15:58. If Christ has given you life, you should live your life unto Him. 2 Cor. 5:15 □
Published: 2011-03-27 by RKM