John 2

Introduction

Today's topic is one in which we rarely discuss; one in which we are not familiar; one which brings uncertainty; and definitely one in which we prefer not to talk about. The subject is death. Before my mother passed away, she said,like many of us, “I’m not afraid of dying, I just don’t want to go through the process of dying.”

Maybe it’s death’s uncertainty that makes it natural to fear death. Francis Bacon wrote: Men fear death as children fear to go in the dark (The Essays, 344). Because of the fear of death, we hope for victory over death; we hope for a cure to a disease or the aging process.

John 8: 48-51 “Then answered the Jews, and said unto him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil? Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me. And I seek not mine own glory: there is one that seeketh and judgeth. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.”

Verse 51 contains the promise of never seeing death. The word see in the original is theōreō): has been translated as: 1. look at, see, watch closely ; 2. understand, perceive; 3. experience, to undergo an event or state . Let’s re-translate this phrase: He shall never experience death.

It’s a radical promise; but just exactly what does it mean? David Platt has stated death is fundamentally a separation. A statement which gave me a pause; think about it; we feel this separation when we attend a funeral, we will never see them again his side of heaven. Our soul is separated from our body; this is referred to as physical death. Spiritual death is the separation of our soul from God.

Just as in the verse, students of the Bible know the Bible has a lot to say about spiritual death. Jesus entered this earth, experienced the pain of the cross, in order to keep people from facing spiritual death.

Nicodemus, the woman at the well, the 5000, and now the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem have all heard the same story. Growing up there were TV adds saying Only you can prevent forest fires. Now we can say Only Jesus can prevent you from experiencing spiritual death. Another phrase we used to hear was born once die twice, born twice die once.

Our sin separates us from the sinless God of the universe. That separation is made permanent after physical death, when God the righteous judge, punishes that sin or unrighteousness with eternal separation from Him.

What is it that we fear about death: uncertainty and significance. We really do not know when we will face physical death, but we can be certain of what will happen we experience it.

1 John 3:1-3 “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not. Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.”

Phil. 3:21 “Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.”

Donald Barnhouse was the pastor of Philadelphia’s Tenth Presbyterian Church when his wife died and left him with young daughters to raise alone. While driving to her funeral he realized that he had to say something to explain all of this to his girls, to somehow put into perspective for them something which he himself was already struggling. He stopped at a traffic light while driving to the funeral. It was a bright day, and the sun was streaming into the car and warming it. A truck pulled up next to them and the shadow that came with the truck darkened the inside of the car. He turned to his daughters and asked: “Would you rather be hit by the shadow or the truck?” They responded, “Oh, Daddy, that’s a silly question! The shadow can’t hurt you. I would rather be hit by the shadow than a truck.” He tried to explain to them that their mother had died, and was as if she had been hit by a shadow. It was as if Jesus had stepped in the way in her place, and He was the one hit by the truck. He quoted the familiar words of Psalm 23:4 “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Christ Centered p.202-203

One other item to note; this promise is conditional. This promise is for only those who keep His word. The promise is free and available to any and everyone. It is not dependent upon one being good, bad, or really bad. No one is excluded.

Again reviewing those whom Jesus had confronted: Nicodemus, could have been classified as super righteous; the Samaritan woman, classified as super bad; the lame man at the pool, classified as irreligious because he could not do anything; the woman caught in adultery, should have been stoned, and the hypocritical Jewish leaders, classified as self-righteous. Jesus explained to each they were spiritually dead, but believe on me and you will not experience spiritual separation from God, spending an eternity in hell.

John 8:52-58 “Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death. Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself? Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him, and keep his saying. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham? Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.”

Allow me to summarize the Jews questions: why should I believe this promise of yours? When people make bold statements, we usually look at the persons qualifications and experience.

The qualifications are simply:

He is the one and only Son of God who left heaven, came to this earth, as a man, to save mankind from the penalty of sin required by a sinless God.

He’s not just the Son of God, He is God.

He plainly states He is the great I AM or Yahweh.

Of course the Jewish leaders miss all this, they are focused on Abraham, how could Jesus see Abraham who lived and died 2000 years before?

Jesus really doesn’t explain this statement to the Jews, but the New Testament writers tells us how this happened.

Rom. 4:16 “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all,”

Heb. 11:8 “By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.”

Heb. 11:17 “By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,”

By faith Abraham looked forward to the Messiah, when he and Sarah in their old age conceived Isaac (miraculous birth), to the sacrifice of Isaac, by faith when Isaac recieved his bride, all looking froward to the Messiah.

His experiences:

We not only believe Jesus’ promise of victory over death because of who He is or what He said, but because of what He has done.

We believe His promise of victory over death because He has experienced it; Jesus has conquered death.

1 Cor.15:54 “So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Because of Jesus’ resurrection from the grave we have nothing to fear.

John 8:59 “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.”

Jesus would not allow Himself to be killed, but supernaturally hid Himself and went out of the Temple. (John’s brief and straight forward description of the miraculous escape is reminiscent of how he records other supernatural events in his gospel-John 6:11, 19.) Thus ends the tragic dialogue between Jesus and the doomed religious leaders. MacArthur p 385

Today, just as in Biblical times, there are only two possible responses to Jesus’ claims: Acceptance or Rejection

Next week

Book p. 139-142

Bible John 9: 1-12