Key Text: "...and I will raise him up at
the last day." John 6:40, last part.
In John 6,7, and 8 we find the foundation of Christ's
mission and teachings. At great length and in complete detail
our Lord taught the purpose of His coming to the earth the first
time. In these three chapters of John's writings, we find the
very heart of the gospel and the plan of the free gift of God
which is the forgiveness of sins and the plan of salvation.
But, the majority of the people of Christ's day did not receive Him nor His Word. Their attitude was to get rid of this Man. They did not want Him to rule over them. Finally, they took up stones to cast at Him. "Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by." John 8:59.
The I Will for this month's sermon is the I Will of the resurrection according to the key text listed above. There are three I Wills in our text, and they are as follows:
1. There is the I Will of the Heavenly Father. -
"...and this is the will of him that sent me..." Verse
40. The will of the Father is that the lost be drawn to His Son
and receive salvation. The will of the Father is that the Holy
Spirit working with the gospel will open the mind of the sinner
and give him/her forgiveness. God, the Father chose the plan;
the Son agreed to die on the cross and make the atonement; the
Holy Spirit does the work. In John 6:40 all three of these are
found.
2. The I Will of the lost is inferred. It is concluded
by Scriptural reasoning "...that everyone which seeth the
Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life:..."
Verse 40. Those coming to Jesus when drawn by the Holy Spirit
surrender their wills. Through the work of the Spirit, lost persons
can surrender their wills to God and be saved.
3. There is the I Will of the Son of God. - "...and
I will raise him up at the last day." Verse 40. This is the
I Will of promise concerning the resurrection of the dead saints
at His second coming, at the last day as we know it. He is coming
again.
Let us look at the Scriptures for our sermon this
month. "...and I will raise him up at the last day."
John 6:40. Now, all of heaven knows the spirit and attitude of
this statement. If the Lord Jesus Christ can do nothing about
death, then whatever else He can do amounts to nothing. Death
is man's last enemy, but Jesus has defeated death. He has taken
the keys of death and the grave and forever won the victory. He
conquered man's final enemy.
In John 6:40, we have three beautiful truths: The
Father's Plan, The Lost Making Preparation and the Son's Promise.
Let us consider each one of them.
"And this is the will of him that sent me, that
every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have
everlasting life..." The gospel of Jesus Christ extends to
every person. It goes to anybody, anyplace, anywhere on God's
green earth. Give them the gospel. That is the Father's plan.
"For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved." Romans 10:13, "So then faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God." Romans 10:17.
1. Any Person - "...that every one..." Remember the story of Christ and Nicodemus in John 3. Nicodemus was a good man and was outwardly accepted in the society of his day. He was a person in good standing in his religion. You might say that Nicodemus was the best that religion could produce. Yet, he needed the Lord's will done in his life. To Nicodemus Jesus stated, "...Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3. Friend, what about you? Have you been born again? Why do we need the new birth experience? Because we are conceived in sin (Psal
m 51:5). We have all committed sin (Romans 3:23).
And we are given the free gift of salvation and made righteous
by putting our faith in Jesus who died for us on the cross (Romans
5:12-19).
2. Any Place - Since it is any person, it must be anywhere, any place. And that is what the gospel commission is all about. From the time Jesus gave the great gospel commission until this very day, men and women have helped to carry the gospel to the nations of the world. Missionary teams of husband and wife have gone to the four quarters of the earth to share the love of Jesus in the gospel. "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefor
e, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name
of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching
them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and,
lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen."
Matthew 28:18-20. Just think of all the missionaries, the medical
workers and school teachers who have gone in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ to share the gospel. Just think of all the funds
that have been given in the name of the Lord to support the gospel
in foreign countries. And here is the reason: "And this is
the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son,
and believeth on him, may have everlasting life:..." John
6:40.
3. Any Problem - Friend, please grasp this great
truth. Man has only three problems and the solution for all three
is found in the gospel. Here are our three problems: sin, sorrow
and death. Let us have the assurance that the gospel of Christ
is the answer to these three problems. There is no other method,
no other way, nor any other means. The gospel is the source. That
is one of the reasons why I want to be known as a Bible-believing
gospel preacher.
Let us think realistically as if we were attending
the funeral service of a wonderful Christian friend. He was born
again and had lived a life of service for the Lord. He had a good
testimony for the Lord Jesus Christ. With a solid relationship
with heaven, he stood on the side of the Savior.
As we leave the church for the graveside service,
friends and loved ones are crying. The Lord is looking down from
heaven and holy angels are observing the scene. Heaven knows that
because of the Biblical truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ that
sleeping saint will be resurrected when Christ comes. All because
of the gospel of grace and the Father's plan as expressed in John
6:40.
...that every one which seeth the Son and believeth
on him..." Verse 40. The people referred to in this verse
are making preparation for the last day--the day when Jesus is
going to perform the great I Will of the resurrection. These are
the ones who are true believers, those who use their wills. Not
that they are saved by their wills. They surrender their wills
to God's will. This is one of the three wills in John 6:40 that
we mentioned in the introduction.
"If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat
the good of the land:" Isaiah 1:19. Friend, are you willing?
If not, are you willing to be made willing? Are you willing to
be obedient?
Is the Holy Spirit knocking at your heart's door?
"If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine,
whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself." John
7:17. Is the Holy Spirit searching your heart? Are you under conviction
of God's Spirit?
Listening on a stethoscope, the physician can hear
our heart beat. Even we can hear our own hear beat using the doctor's
instrument. I read some time ago where a nurse in a pediatric
ward at a hospital would often let her young patients listen to
their own hearts. One day as she carefully positioned the stethoscope
for a 4-year old boy, she asked him, "Listen, what do you
suppose that is?" The little fellow thought for a moment
and with a big smile, he answered, "I know. It is Jesus knocking!"
Have you invited Jesus into your life? As the Holy
Spirit pulls and tugs at your heart's door, let Him in. Surrender
your will to God's will. You cannot save yourself, but you can
give yourself. Give yourself in full surrender to His will.
Pray this prayer:
Take me as I am Lord,
And make me all Your own;
Make my heart Your palace
And Your royal throne. Amen.
The lost see the necessity of surrender and the results.
They see the Son of God sent from the Father for the purpose of
man's salvation. They see Jesus as the Bread of God. "For
the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth
life unto the world." John 6:33.
Let us remember the scribe who visited with Jesus
in Mark 12:28-34 and rejoiced at the way Jesus answered the people.
Unlike most of his associates, the scribe thought a lot of Jesus.
All he needed to do was yield his trust and make a full surrender
of his will. The Lord encouraged Him. "And when Jesus saw
that he answered discreetly, he said unto him, Thou art not far
from the kingdom of God. And no man after that durst ask him any
question." Mark 12:34.
"...and I will raise him up at the last day."
Verse 40. This is a promise. Now, friends, let us look at that
Scripture closely. We see the will of the Father as we believe
in the Son. When we follow the first two teachings in this portion
of the Scriptures, we have the promise.
1. We see the Word and His promise. - "...He
that believeth on me hath everlasting life." John 6:47. His
Word is, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
I John 1:9. God has given us His Word and His Word declared that
when we come to Him asking forgiveness, He will forgive us. To
doubt His forgiveness is to doubt His integrity and honesty.
The vain regrets of yesterday
Have vanished through God's pardoning grace;
The guilty fear has passed away,
And joy has come to take its place." --Ackley
Someone said, "When God forgives, it is time
for us to forget."
2. We see the Word and the Person - "...I will
raise him..." Verse 40 "...if any man (person) eat of
this bread, he shall live forever..." Verse 51. "Whoso
eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life..."
Verse 54. "...he that eateth of this bread shall live for
ever." Verse 58.
3. We see the Word and our Position. - Our status
or our position in that day is as an adopted child of God with
life without end. Just think of that last day Jesus is speaking
of in John 6:40 when He says He will raise us up. Verse 40. When
we come to the Lord Jesus Christ and trust His saving grace, we
become children of God. We become adopted children waiting for
the fulfillment of His promise of the resurrection. In this life
we go through trials and tribulations. Troubles come, but this
"last day" in our text will be worth it all.
In the trials God may prove us
Just to bring us forth more bright;
He can never cease to love us.
We are precious in His sight. Amen.