John 5:24-30

²⁴ “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. ²⁵ Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come 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 judge because he is the Son of Man.

²⁸ “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice ²⁹ and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned. ³⁰ By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.

 Have you ever wondered why many Christians do not grow in faith as fast as the others?

Or why is it that there are Christians who testify about their exciting journey in their Christian life but others are wondering if they really have experienced the presence of Jesus in their life or not?

Our Spiritual Growth is associated with our understanding of the word “H…E…A…R…”

Listen to this story…

A spokesman of the Mayor of a certain town walked around the town with a loudspeaker broadcasting that the mayor is inviting everybody to his birthday.

A husband and wife heard the news. The husband decided to attend the birthday party and enjoyed it. The wife decided to stay at home.

Which of the two heard the news about the birthday party of the mayor?

Who says the husband?

Who says the wife?

Who says both the husband and the wife?

Your understanding and perception about the word “hear” or listen has something to do with your response to every sermon you hear in this Sanctuary.

Let’s continue our studies in the Book of JOHN 5:24-30.

God must have loved TMEC so much.

I suppose you are finding favour in the eyes of God. You are becoming closer to His heart.

God wants you to grow in your relationship with Him.

God wants you to experience the reality of His abundant blessings that you have not experienced before.

If you have observed in the previous sermons as we go through the Book of John, God is telling you about His up-coming judgment. God is warning you about His imminent or nearing 2^nd advent or the return of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Our Lord Jesus Christ is coming again to give rewards to those who believe in Him and to judge those who did not trust in Him for their eternal life.

The passage that we just read and are about to dissect is reminding us of the coming of Jesus to Judge the living and the dead.

Spiritually, you are dead if you have not proven that you really trusted Jesus as your Lord and Saviour.

You will be judged if you cannot provide proof that you have truly trusted Jesus.

The title of our message today is…

….”Jesus Judges Justly” J.J.J.

How can Jesus judge justly?

1. Jesus gives Conditions for His Decisions

In verse 24 it says, ²⁴ “Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.

Our Lord Jesus gives the stipulations or conditions of having eternal life.

We cannot read a phrase in the Bible that says, “Everybody has eternal life.” Many people believe that God is love.

Since God is love, they assume, He does not let anyone go to hell to be condemned.

Many people believe that God’s love is unconditional.

When they say “unconditional”—whatever they do—God will still save them because God’s love is unconditional.

Have you ever read in the Bible that the love of God is unconditional?

Perhaps, you, as many others—believe that the love of God is unconditional but our passage teaches that having eternal life is conditional.

There are stipulations or requirements for those who will be entering heaven.

The phrase “whoever hears my word and believes” can be understood that the word “whoever” would mean all people.

The word “whoever” does not necessarily mean all people. Some people can also be included as “whoever.”

Few people can also be included in the word “whoever.”

But for me… I understood the word “whoever” as something that means not all people; not some people; not few people but the person who hears Jesus’ Words and believes. That’s where the condition is…

Only those individuals who are continuously applying into their lives the Words of Jesus will receive eternal life.

Jesus says… “whoever hears” that is singular… meaning… every individual person who hears Jesus’ words.

Not all people but the individual person will receive eternal life on the condition of hearing and believing Jesus’ Words.

Many of us have problems with the word “hear.”

Many understand the word “hear” like hearing music or hearing a story and appreciating it.

Again…we read the phrase “Very truly I tell you” in verse 24. Jesus must be telling us something beyond the human understanding about the word “hear and believe”.

Christmas Groceries

There is a Filipino Association in Winnipeg that welcomes new immigrants. You probably know that this Filipino Association gives Christmas groceries to newcomers in Winnipeg.

There were two Filipinos who just arrived and a friend introduced them to the Filipino Association just in time before the distribution of Christmas groceries.

The person in-charge of the distribution of Christmas groceries welcomed these two newcomers and then instructed them: “Please write your name, address, phone number on a piece of paper and leave it on the table.”

Then the person in-charge of the distribution of Christmas groceries left them for personal necessities.

These two new arrivals were in a hurry and did not wait for the person in-charge of the distribution of Christmas groceries. They left the place without saying goodbye.

Christmas came and one of the two new arrivals received a package of Christmas groceries while the other did not.

The one who did not receive a Christmas package wondered and asked his friend… “Where did that Christmas package come from?”

“It came from the Filipino Association”, he replied.

Why? Have you not received any Christmas package?

“No, I haven’t”, the former said.

“Did you write your name, address, and telephone number on that piece of paper?” his friend asked.

No, I didn’t.

Did you hear the man when he told us to write our name, address, and telephone number?

Yes, I heard him tell us to write on a piece of paper our name, address, and telephone number and leave it on the table. Actually, I saw you leave the piece of paper on the table and I thought you also wrote my name.

Both new arrivals heard the instruction but only one acted upon it.

Do you think the other man really heard the instruction? He said he did hear the instruction and even went on to the point of repeating what was said.

Hearing, the words of Jesus, needs action.

To hear God’s Words is to act upon the instruction.

Shall we wait to be called by our names before we act upon it?

Jesus said “whoever”—this means everyone—anyone who acts upon His Words will be benefit.

Pray hard and ask God to speak to you clearly so that you may understand His instruction.

You may have been assured of eternal life.

You need to maximize your relationship with Jesus.

Ask for peace that surpasses understanding.

Ask for spiritual knowledge and wisdom.

Jesus judges justly and He gives stipulations or conditions for His judgment.

2. Jesus has been given authority to decide

²⁵ Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come 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 judge because he is the Son of Man.

 In Matthew 28:18 it says, ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

When you trusted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour… at what magnitude have you trusted Him?

You trusted Him for your life beyond this life that Jesus has the authority to bring life to those who trusted in Him.

If Jesus is the authority over life, do you think He also knows your thoughts?

Do you think that Jesus knows if you are listening to Him or not at this moment?

Do you think that Jesus wants to use this sermon to wake you up from your slumber thinking that my father’s sermon is the same as your pastors’ sermons in the previous years?

In 1 Samuel chapter 8… when Samuel grew old… the Israelites asked for a king. God told Samuel to listen to the people and give them a king.

In 1 Samuel 9:17 it says, ¹⁷ When Samuel caught sight of Saul, the Lord said to him, “This is the man I spoke to you about; he will govern my people.”

In 1 Samuel 10:27 ²⁷ But some scoundrels said, “How can this fellow save us?” They despised him and brought him no gifts. But Saul kept silent.

If you come here in this Sanctuary to listen to God’s Words, whoever is standing here… whoever is preaching and you believe that God speaks through the preacher… you will go home blessed.

If you come here in this Sanctuary to advance your personal agenda of trying to persuade others to do otherwise… listen carefully… I know very well my relationship with my God… I may not hear the conversations when I am not there or when my father is not present… I may not see the conspirators planning against this church… Even if that is the case, my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ knows all about it and He tells me what to do and what to preach.

My Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has been given the authority to decide whether to bless you little or bless you abundantly.

My prayer… I am praying that my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ will bless you abundantly and help you grow in the knowledge of Him.

If my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ wanted you to grow spiritually in this church… I am praying that you will stay in this church cheerfully and peacefully.

If my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ wanted you to grow spiritually in other churches… I am praying that He will lead you to a church where you can find peace and cheerfully worship Him.

Jesus judges justly and Our Lord Jesus gives conditions for His decisions… Our Lord Jesus has been given the authority to decide to whom He wanted to give eternal life…

3. Jesus gives us the example to please God

²⁸ “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice ²⁹ and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned. ³⁰ By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.

Our passage helps us understand that Jesus came to earth and left us with His examples on how to please God the Father who sent Him.

You heard of the saying “Like father like son.”

In some sense this is true if the father and son have close fellowship.

Fathers, look at your children—can you see yourself in them?

The Lord Jesus does only the thing that His Father does. John 5:19 ¹⁹ Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.

Our Lord Jesus seeks to please His Father.

His examples are for us to imitate for us to be able to please our Heavenly Father.

God the Father said of Jesus in Mark 1:11, …You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.

We know that many Bible Characters who pleased God were blessed by God in many things.

Noah found favour in the eyes of God.

Abraham found favour in the eyes of God.

Joseph pleased God and became the prime minister of Egypt.

Job found favour in the eyes of God and God blessed him more than ever.

Name every great men in the Bible and you will find out that all of them pleased God.

How about those who did not obey God?

Moses, the servant of God… instead of talking to the rock as God instructed, in anger struck the rock with his staff then he was not allowed to enter the promise land.

Eli the priest of God, did not reprimand his wicked children and his family suffered the consequences.

The anointed king Saul who started good in serving God but later on did what he wanted to do and God’s Spirit left Him.

 Well, “that is the Old Testament”, you might say…

We are now the New Testament Church.

Why are there groups called Full-Gospel churches?

…I don’t really know myself.

I suppose… it is because many churches are using only the New Testament as their authority of spirituality.

Many Christians don’t believe in the Old Testament because they think and believe they were saved by grace and they don’t need the Law anymore.

Are you a New Testament Church?

Do you follow the examples of the First Century Christian Churches?

What was the Bible used by the First Century Christians?

The First Century Christians did not have a Bible like ours today because the First New Testament Book, probably

1 Thessalonians, was written about twenty years after Jesus’ Resurrection or A.D. early 50s.

This means that the Bible used by the First Century Christians was the Hebrew Bible or what we have now as the Old Testament.

Our Lord Jesus, He is the living Word of God.

Until His death on the Cross, Jesus referred or quoted passages of the Old Testament a lot of times.

One of the most debated issues is “tithing” which the Old Testament teaches.

Many so-called New Testament churches are half-gospel not full-gospel because they preach and teach that the New Testament does not teach literally about tithing.

Let me end this sermon with questions for you to meditate upon.

What was the Bible of the First Century Churches?

If the First Century Churches used the Old Testament for their Spiritual authority, did they practice tithing?

Is there a teaching in the New Testament that Christians should not obey the Old Testament?

Did Jesus teach that Christians should not obey the Old Testament or should not obey the Laws?

In Matthew 5:17-20 Jesus says, ¹⁷ “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. ¹⁸ For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. ¹⁹ Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰ For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Our Lord Jesus judges justly come Judgment Day.

Our Lord Jesus gives conditions for His decisions.

Our Lord Jesus has been given the authority to decide.

Our Lord Jesus gives us the example to please God.

Let us then ask the help of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ for us to surpass the righteousness of the Pharisees and teachers of the Law.

…to be able to love those who mistreat us…

…to bring unity and harmony to this church…

…to let this church grow not only in number but for each of us to grow spiritually mature.