Life and Judgment

By Ed Pilapil Jr.

John 5:24-29; ; 6:29; Daniel 7:13-14 • July 16, 2023 • English Service 10:00 AM

Sermon Introduction

One of the reasons why the Jews wanted to kill the Lord was His claim of equality with God. Despite the threat, He continued to speak the truth about His unity with the Father. The Lord Jesus claimed that He does the work of the Father as the Father reveals it to His Son. But He did not limit it to the healing of the sick. Included in the work of Father and Son was giving eternal life and the rendering of judgment. The Father delegated the function so that all would honor the Son. The reality of this will happen on judgment day.

The judgment has already been made to all who will not believe. But those who believe in the Father and if they believe that the Father sent the Son will have eternal life. Therefore, one cannot believe in the Father if they do not believe in the Son. And that is the only way to escape judgment.

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life (John 5:24)

Ed Pilapil Jr.
Senior Pastor

John 5:24-29

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. 25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

John 6:29

29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent”.

Daniel 7:13-14

13 “I saw in the night visions,

and behold, with the clouds of heaven

there came one like a son of man,

and he came to the Ancient of Days

and was presented before him.

14 And to him was given dominion

and glory and a kingdom,

that all peoples, nations, and languages

should serve him;

his dominion is an everlasting dominion,

which shall not pass away,

and his kingdom one

that shall not be destroyed.

Notes

24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life (John 5:24).

Life
The gospel of John sometimes highlights a dual-meaning approach to a single concept. The Lord speaks about the now and not yet related to life. The now implies the eternal life that He gives. The not yet implies the resurrection before the judgment.

25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. (John 5:25).
Judgment
The Father gave the authority to execute judgment to the Son because He is. He is the Son of Man. The phrase is better understood in the light of Daniel’s prophetic writings (Daniel 7:13-14). The Son of Man is given eternal dominion.

27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man (John 5:27).
So far, we observe in the text two reasons why the Father made the Son the judge. First, the Father wants all to honor the Son as they honor the Father. Second, because of who the Lord is, the Son of Man, the One who rules forever.

13 “I saw in the night visions,
and behold, with the clouds of heaven
there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
and was presented before him.
14 And to him was given dominion
and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
that shall not be destroyed (Daniel 7:13-14).
Resurrection
The Lord Jesus stated that He would do greater works than healing the invalid. One of these works is giving eternal life, and the other one is calling for the resurrection, then the judgment.

28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment. (John 5:28-29).
In a previous statement, the Lord Jesus explained that those who believe would obey. Although good works by obedience is a result, it is not the saving factor. 3 In the context of John’s writings, believing is the work that is needed for eternal life. The good is connected to the belief.
29 Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent” (John 6:29).

Application

Believe in the Life-giver
We must listen to the words of Christ and believe in the Father who sent Him. It also means that we must believe that the Father sent Christ to us that we may believe. And if we believe, we have eternal life.
Believe in the Son of Man
God made the Son as Judge. So we may honor the Son as we honor the Father. Moreover, we must believe that the Lord is the Son of Man prophesied in Daniel. Son of Man denotes the One whose dominion is eternal.
Expect the resurrection and Judgment
There will be a resurrection of humans. One set to the resurrection of life and the other of judgment. The judgment is because they did not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ; they were devoid of works related to the Son.

Reflection & Discussion

According to the text, who has eternal life?
What are the two reasons why the Father made the Son the judge?
What are the two categories in the resurrection?