John 5:15-23 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. (16) And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. (17) But Jesus answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I am working." (18) This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. (19) So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. (20) For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. (21) For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. (22) The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, (23) that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
Before I address the specifics of verse 22, I need to address a more base issue. I’ve heard many say that they believe in a God of love rather than a God of judgment, as if they cannot be one in the same God. They consider their sin, but they also see the extended patience of Christ with sinners. They see Him dwelling on love, mercy, & forgiveness & mistake those to be the greater makeup of God’s nature.
The greatest makeup of God’s nature, what actually is His nature- is His complete holiness; which drives His complete righteousness. He is firstly, lastly, & everywhere in between- a completely holy Person- & so is driven towards the fullest extent of utter righteousness. Understand, His holiness is what demands that every trespass is accorded right judgment. For Him to overlook wrongdoing, for God to not accord a right sentence for even the least of sins, would blemish His perfect holiness. For God to allow any sin into His pure presence would cause Him to less than pure Himself. “If the dough offered as first fruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches” demonstrates that the holiness of the greater drives the holiness of the lesser. We can only accede to the measure of holiness that God Himself maintains. The servant cannot rise above his master, so we who are in Christ should be pleased that God maintains the highest of standards, for it is to our benefit as well.
What’s more, God would be establishing precedent for an endless appeal process. All the rightly judged thereafter would counter- “Well you overlooked his sin, why not mine?” All the guilty would have cause to argue their case. He is a righteous judge, & we must admit that any earthly judge who would forgo passing judgment is not worthy of his robes. We would demand his resignation, based the dereliction of his appointed duty. Consider the plight of David as he runs from those who falsely accuse him. He only seeks God’s right judgment-
Psalms 7:6-17 Arise, O LORD, in your anger; lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies; awake for me; you have appointed a judgment. (7) Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you; over it return on high. (8) The LORD judges the peoples; judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness and according to the integrity that is in me. (9) Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end, and may you establish the righteous-- you who test the minds and hearts, O righteous God! (10) My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. (11) God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day. (12) If a man does not repent, God will whet his sword; he has bent and readied his bow; (13) he has prepared for him his deadly weapons, making his arrows fiery shafts. (14) Behold, the wicked man conceives evil and is pregnant with mischief and gives birth to lies. (15) He makes a pit, digging it out, and falls into the hole that he has made. (16) His mischief returns upon his own head, and on his own skull his violence descends. (17) I will give to the LORD the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the LORD, the Most High.
Note in verse 8 that David asks for God to commence judgment; but what is critical to understand is that he realizes that God’s right judgment must include him as well. David knows that when God judges, His judgment must be a sweeping judgment. God will not judge only one party in a situation; no, His judgments are all-inclusive. Thus the meaning of Jesus’ warning: “Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you.” We must make judgments concerning others all the time; Jesus is simply warning us to walk circumspectly as we pass judgment, & especially as we pass sentence (as the stone throwing hypocrites of John 8 were want to do), lest we be found to be hypocrites & receive just recompense ourselves. Man also needs to acknowledge that bypassing judgment of others does not avert the day of the his own judgment; in fact, where he fails in his duty to judge, he only adds to the charges. If man judges in hypocrisy, then that only adds to the indictment against him; but if man fails in his God ordained duty to bring about justice in his sphere of influence, he has become derelict in His duty. Romans 13:1 says- “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” A governor who does not govern, a judge who does not judge, or a shepherd who shrinks back from shepherding will all be held accountable at the Bema Seat for the unjust suffering their weakness has caused. So, ironically, those in any measure of power who bypass a right judgment with the intent of receiving a lesser judgment themselves actually receive a greater judgment.
But focus on verse 11 too. “God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day.” Indignation is defined as follows by Noah Webster:
1. Anger or extreme anger, mingled with contempt, disgust or abhorrence.
2. The anger of a superior; extreme anger; particularly, the wrath of God against sinful men for their ingratitude and rebellion. 2 Kings 3.
3. The effects of anger; the dreadful effects of God's wrath; terrible judgments. Isa 26.
4. Holy displeasure at one's self for sin. 2 Cor 7.
Understand the measure of God’s love that He feels this every day, yet He restrains His final judgment. Even greater is the fact that the Father has this indignation, yet He has consigned all judgment to the Son. What a glorious love the Father has in that He denies Himself the satisfaction of recompensing mankind for the hardness of their heart, for the righteous indignation they have brought about within Him.
Romans 11:16-22 "If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches. (17) But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, (18) do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. (19) Then you will say, "Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in." (20) That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. (21) For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. (22) Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off."
Those who see only the kindness of God while ignoring His severity make a fatal error. Their mistake comes as they narrowly judge the preeminent nature of God by the nature His Son expressed during the course of His three year ministry. Yes, the suffering Servant revealed the merciful side of God’s nature better than it had ever been seen before, but that is the point- up to the time of Christ’s appearance, God expressed His terrifying judgment more than His love. He delayed expressing the maximum kindness of God until the Son’s existence became evident, so that only in Christ is God’s immense measure of mercy seen in its fullest. That way, God helps us comprehend that His merciful salvation can only come through Christ alone. It is a confirmation that Jesus alone is the way, the truth, & the life; any attempt to do an end run around Christ to the Father is effectively bypassing the only avenue of mercy that the Father has allowed. What’s even more ironic is the fact that the Son will actually be the end runner’s final stop anyways. As John 5:22 states, Jesus has been given all judgment, so any attempt to run away from Christ is senseless futility- either we freely accept Him as our Savior, or we will be forced to accept Him as our final Judge. As Peter intuitively stated when Jesus asked him if he wanted to leave Him as so many others had done- “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Thursday, August 14, 2008
One Will
John 5:15-23 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. (16) And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. (17) But Jesus answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I am working." (18) This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. (19) So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. (20) For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. (21) For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. (22) The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, (23) that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
Some say that a belief in the Trinity is polytheism. That would be the case if these three Persons held divergent desires. All polytheistic religions have their gods possessing separate wills. They operate unilaterally without regard to the others because they each possess a will of their own that is not often in accord with the others. Hercules opposed Apollo & Apollo opposed Dionysus because they all had different motivations & dissimilar desires.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.” The Son can do nothing of His own accord because He has no accord that is distinct from His Father’s accord. So what do we make of the contextual statement “the Son gives life to whom he will”? Jesus confirms here that He does indeed have a will of His own, but that will is always precisely the same as the Father’s will. Man’s lowliness of nature makes the idea of any three of us always in full unanimity across the full scope of space & time seem impossible, but we must again remember that we are not God, therefore we are imperfect. Even when we agree to aspire to the same goal, we disagree on timetables & methods. We are a warring people because of self-centered motivations. When men created polytheistic religions, they naturally had them in constant conflict with one another, for they knew no other nature to attribute to their gods than their own. They flipped the truth of Genesis 1:27 on its head & created gods after fallen man’s “image & likeness” But the picture of God painted by Jesus in John 5 is like no religion contrived in the lowly heart of man. From everlasting to everlasting, for all of time, these glorious three Persons accomplish what man has difficulty even comprehending- complete unanimity of desire & purpose. But then again, we must remember that "what is impossible with men is possible with God." (Luke 18:27)
The teaching that God is One is conspicuous throughout the OT, & the Trinity becomes evident in the OT in the light of NT revelation. But what is interesting is despite the fact that the NT pulls away the veil that largely concealed the Triune identity of God, it still continues to insist that God is One. Jesus retorted to the scribe’s question of what is most important by first saying “the Lord our God, the Lord is one”. The wise scribe responded first by confirming this truth- “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.” Paul establishes the equality of God’s faithful elect by comparing them to the oneness of God Himself- “Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one--who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.” (Romans 3:29-30).
As Paul discusses the value of the law in Galatians 3:19, he mentions the need for a go-between, a mediator, but nevertheless reinforces the image of God as One- “Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.” As James repudiates those who place their hope in non-evident faith, he too makes the statement that “God is One” is so fundamental that even demons accept it as true- “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe--and shudder!” (James 2:19)
Yet, throughout NT it is explicitly taught that the Son is God to same degree that His Father is God. Rightly confluencing these two expressly taught ideas leads us to no other conclusion than they must be so alike in every way that they become indiscernible as separate Persons to the spiritually uninitiated. Consider the 17th chapter of John as a conversation between equals-
John 17:1-26 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, (2) since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. (3) And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. (4) I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. (5) And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. (6) "I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. (7) Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. (8) For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. (9) I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. (10) All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. (11) And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. (Mark 12:29) (12) While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. (13) But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. (14) I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. (15) I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. (16) They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. (17) Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. (18) As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. (19) And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. (20) "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, (21) that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. (22) The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one (Rom. 3:29-30), (23) I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. (24) Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. (25) O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. (26) I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."
Some say that a belief in the Trinity is polytheism. That would be the case if these three Persons held divergent desires. All polytheistic religions have their gods possessing separate wills. They operate unilaterally without regard to the others because they each possess a will of their own that is not often in accord with the others. Hercules opposed Apollo & Apollo opposed Dionysus because they all had different motivations & dissimilar desires.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise.” The Son can do nothing of His own accord because He has no accord that is distinct from His Father’s accord. So what do we make of the contextual statement “the Son gives life to whom he will”? Jesus confirms here that He does indeed have a will of His own, but that will is always precisely the same as the Father’s will. Man’s lowliness of nature makes the idea of any three of us always in full unanimity across the full scope of space & time seem impossible, but we must again remember that we are not God, therefore we are imperfect. Even when we agree to aspire to the same goal, we disagree on timetables & methods. We are a warring people because of self-centered motivations. When men created polytheistic religions, they naturally had them in constant conflict with one another, for they knew no other nature to attribute to their gods than their own. They flipped the truth of Genesis 1:27 on its head & created gods after fallen man’s “image & likeness” But the picture of God painted by Jesus in John 5 is like no religion contrived in the lowly heart of man. From everlasting to everlasting, for all of time, these glorious three Persons accomplish what man has difficulty even comprehending- complete unanimity of desire & purpose. But then again, we must remember that "what is impossible with men is possible with God." (Luke 18:27)
The teaching that God is One is conspicuous throughout the OT, & the Trinity becomes evident in the OT in the light of NT revelation. But what is interesting is despite the fact that the NT pulls away the veil that largely concealed the Triune identity of God, it still continues to insist that God is One. Jesus retorted to the scribe’s question of what is most important by first saying “the Lord our God, the Lord is one”. The wise scribe responded first by confirming this truth- “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him.” Paul establishes the equality of God’s faithful elect by comparing them to the oneness of God Himself- “Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since God is one--who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith.” (Romans 3:29-30).
As Paul discusses the value of the law in Galatians 3:19, he mentions the need for a go-between, a mediator, but nevertheless reinforces the image of God as One- “Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.” As James repudiates those who place their hope in non-evident faith, he too makes the statement that “God is One” is so fundamental that even demons accept it as true- “You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe--and shudder!” (James 2:19)
Yet, throughout NT it is explicitly taught that the Son is God to same degree that His Father is God. Rightly confluencing these two expressly taught ideas leads us to no other conclusion than they must be so alike in every way that they become indiscernible as separate Persons to the spiritually uninitiated. Consider the 17th chapter of John as a conversation between equals-
John 17:1-26 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, (2) since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. (3) And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. (4) I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. (5) And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. (6) "I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. (7) Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. (8) For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. (9) I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. (10) All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. (11) And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. (Mark 12:29) (12) While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. (13) But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. (14) I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. (15) I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. (16) They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. (17) Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. (18) As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. (19) And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. (20) "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, (21) that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. (22) The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one (Rom. 3:29-30), (23) I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. (24) Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. (25) O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. (26) I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them."
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Omnipotence Overlap
John 5:15-21 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. (16) And this was why the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. (17) But Jesus answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I am working." (18) This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. (19) So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. (20) For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. (21) For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will.
The Gospels tell of three instances of Jesus raising the dead; in all three occasions Jesus simply commanded the dead to come alive. He didn’t pray to the Father for the power to raise them; rather He gave simple direct commands for the dead to return to life…
Luke 7:11-15 Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. (12) As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. (13) And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep." (14) Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to you, arise." (15) And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.
Luke 8:41-56 And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And falling at Jesus' feet, he implored him to come to his house, (42) for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. (43) And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. (44) She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. (45) And Jesus said, "Who was it that touched me?" When all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!" (46) But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me." (47) And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. (48) And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace."
Her faith made her well, but a faith in what? An amorphous concept of general faith in God to heal? If this was true, she could have formerly been healed apart from Christ. Notice two particulars in this passage that allowed the woman’s healing- her faith & His power. But this is more accurately stated as a singular concept- it was actually her faith in His power, which fundamentally points to her personal faith in Him.
Examine the goal of her effort- in Mark’s account, she said to herself- “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” Her faith in Jesus was such that her personal faith in Him told her that simply coming into physical contact with Him.would be sufficient to heal her body. Her firm faith in Him was such that she believed that even His prior cognizance of her condition was not required for His innate power to flow. All that was required was an personal & abiding faith in Jesus as Lord. As her Lord.
Unlike us, Jesus did not need to pray to source power from another for healing to occur, for Christ’s healing power poured forth from Christ Himself.
Continuing in Luke 8:
(49) While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, "Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more." (50) But Jesus on hearing this answered him, "Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well." (51) And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. (52) And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, "Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping." (53) And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.
(54) But taking her by the hand he called, saying, "Child, arise." (55) And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. (56) And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened.
Just as with the story in Luke 7 of the young man’s resurrection unto new life, Jesus has no need to call on the Father for the power to raise the dead, for that very power rests within Him to same degree that it rests within His glorious Father. Here, the veracity of the statement “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will” is made explicitly evident.
The third & most famous substantiation of the Son’s claimed authority to give life to the dead comes in John 11...
John 11:21-45 Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. (22) But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you." (23) Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." (24) Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." (25) Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, (26) and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" (27) She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world." (28) When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." (29) And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. (30) Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. (31) When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there.(32) Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." (33) When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. (34) And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." (35) Jesus wept. (36) So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" (37) But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?" (38) Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. (39) Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days." (40) Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" (41) So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. (42) I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me." (43) When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out." (44) The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go." (45) Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, (46) but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
Jesus seemed more concerned with Martha’s measure of faith in Him than remedying Lazarus’ condition. He delayed going to the tomb to speak to her concerning the necessity of a personal faith in His power to resurrect the human soul from true death; the second death that follows a life never devoted to serving God’s only Son. He paused the working of His miracle once more to say to her “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" in reference to her spiritual vision of His full glory & dominion.
He is “the glory of God” He wants her (& us) to more fully perceive. Oh, she would eventually receive her brother’s physical company once more, but Jesus wants Martha & all the rest of His beloved to comprehend that this work shows His essence as their God & Savior.
“And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me." -True, unlike His prior resurrections, Scripture has Him speaking to His Father before He calls the dead to arise to new life. But note this is not a prayer of petition, it is a prayer of thankfulness that His Father is ever abiding in Him (& He finds no greater pleasure than to dwell in His Father as well). Jesus makes a point of lifting up His eyes & speaking to the Father for the sake of a witness to all present that He performs this work in the Father’s name. Many hard of heart were there also, as v. 46 demonstrates; His words to the Father give them ready witness that He had done this by & in God’s power alone.
His command that restored breath to Lazarus’ lungs was simple one- just three words. He never had to labor at the actual raising of the physically dead; for because of His tremendous power, it was as simple a task for Him as breathing is for us.
No, the truly arduous task that He had to pour Himself into in this chapter & most especially at the cross was the resurrection of the spiritually dead unto new life.
The Gospels tell of three instances of Jesus raising the dead; in all three occasions Jesus simply commanded the dead to come alive. He didn’t pray to the Father for the power to raise them; rather He gave simple direct commands for the dead to return to life…
Luke 7:11-15 Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. (12) As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. (13) And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep." (14) Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to you, arise." (15) And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.
Luke 8:41-56 And there came a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue. And falling at Jesus' feet, he implored him to come to his house, (42) for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. As Jesus went, the people pressed around him. (43) And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, and though she had spent all her living on physicians, she could not be healed by anyone. (44) She came up behind him and touched the fringe of his garment, and immediately her discharge of blood ceased. (45) And Jesus said, "Who was it that touched me?" When all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds surround you and are pressing in on you!" (46) But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I perceive that power has gone out from me." (47) And when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling, and falling down before him declared in the presence of all the people why she had touched him, and how she had been immediately healed. (48) And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace."
Her faith made her well, but a faith in what? An amorphous concept of general faith in God to heal? If this was true, she could have formerly been healed apart from Christ. Notice two particulars in this passage that allowed the woman’s healing- her faith & His power. But this is more accurately stated as a singular concept- it was actually her faith in His power, which fundamentally points to her personal faith in Him.
Examine the goal of her effort- in Mark’s account, she said to herself- “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” Her faith in Jesus was such that her personal faith in Him told her that simply coming into physical contact with Him.would be sufficient to heal her body. Her firm faith in Him was such that she believed that even His prior cognizance of her condition was not required for His innate power to flow. All that was required was an personal & abiding faith in Jesus as Lord. As her Lord.
Unlike us, Jesus did not need to pray to source power from another for healing to occur, for Christ’s healing power poured forth from Christ Himself.
Continuing in Luke 8:
(49) While he was still speaking, someone from the ruler's house came and said, "Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the Teacher any more." (50) But Jesus on hearing this answered him, "Do not fear; only believe, and she will be well." (51) And when he came to the house, he allowed no one to enter with him, except Peter and John and James, and the father and mother of the child. (52) And all were weeping and mourning for her, but he said, "Do not weep, for she is not dead but sleeping." (53) And they laughed at him, knowing that she was dead.
(54) But taking her by the hand he called, saying, "Child, arise." (55) And her spirit returned, and she got up at once. And he directed that something should be given her to eat. (56) And her parents were amazed, but he charged them to tell no one what had happened.
Just as with the story in Luke 7 of the young man’s resurrection unto new life, Jesus has no need to call on the Father for the power to raise the dead, for that very power rests within Him to same degree that it rests within His glorious Father. Here, the veracity of the statement “For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will” is made explicitly evident.
The third & most famous substantiation of the Son’s claimed authority to give life to the dead comes in John 11...
John 11:21-45 Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. (22) But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you." (23) Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again." (24) Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day." (25) Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, (26) and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?" (27) She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world." (28) When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, "The Teacher is here and is calling for you." (29) And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. (30) Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. (31) When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there.(32) Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." (33) When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. (34) And he said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to him, "Lord, come and see." (35) Jesus wept. (36) So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!" (37) But some of them said, "Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man also have kept this man from dying?" (38) Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. (39) Jesus said, "Take away the stone." Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days." (40) Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" (41) So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. (42) I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me." (43) When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out." (44) The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unbind him, and let him go." (45) Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what he did, believed in him, (46) but some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done.
Jesus seemed more concerned with Martha’s measure of faith in Him than remedying Lazarus’ condition. He delayed going to the tomb to speak to her concerning the necessity of a personal faith in His power to resurrect the human soul from true death; the second death that follows a life never devoted to serving God’s only Son. He paused the working of His miracle once more to say to her “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?" in reference to her spiritual vision of His full glory & dominion.
He is “the glory of God” He wants her (& us) to more fully perceive. Oh, she would eventually receive her brother’s physical company once more, but Jesus wants Martha & all the rest of His beloved to comprehend that this work shows His essence as their God & Savior.
“And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me." -True, unlike His prior resurrections, Scripture has Him speaking to His Father before He calls the dead to arise to new life. But note this is not a prayer of petition, it is a prayer of thankfulness that His Father is ever abiding in Him (& He finds no greater pleasure than to dwell in His Father as well). Jesus makes a point of lifting up His eyes & speaking to the Father for the sake of a witness to all present that He performs this work in the Father’s name. Many hard of heart were there also, as v. 46 demonstrates; His words to the Father give them ready witness that He had done this by & in God’s power alone.
His command that restored breath to Lazarus’ lungs was simple one- just three words. He never had to labor at the actual raising of the physically dead; for because of His tremendous power, it was as simple a task for Him as breathing is for us.
No, the truly arduous task that He had to pour Himself into in this chapter & most especially at the cross was the resurrection of the spiritually dead unto new life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)