Life in the Son of God

Introduction

Happy New Year! We are grateful to God for bringing us safely to 2025, and we are looking forward to a year in which we continue to gather together to exalt Christ, grow together in Christ, and go on mission to reach our neighbors for Christ.

I want to refresh you on this series and tell you where we will head in the new year. We started going through the gospel of John in October, and we decided to call the series 'Behold the Lamb of God.' As we went through the book's first half, we noticed that John is calling us to look at Jesus for who he is. We are being called to BEHOLD Jesus, and by beholding him, we are called to believe in him. We are called to trust him. Beholding Jesus with new eyes and a new heart leads to believing in him as Savior: new eyes, new heart, new life.

Each week, we will dive into a passage from John and try to follow it faithfully. That leads us weekly to beholding Jesus as the Lamb who came to be slain for us. We have seen him turn water into wine, heal people, and correct our worship. We have heard John the Baptist identify him as the Lamb and read John describe him as the long-awaited Messiah, the God-man Christ Jesus.

We will continue to go through this series until Easter. On Palm Sunday, we will shift to Matthew for Palm Sunday and Easter. After Easter, we will have a series called 'Church Basics,' where we will look at some of the foundational issues and biblical rationale for why and how we do church. That takes us right up to Summer. In the Summer, we'll begin a new series called 'Summer in the Psalms.' Back in the Fall, we will pick up in John 12 and go through the end of the book with a new series called 'Christ the King.' This is our preaching plan for 2025. We hope you are edified and encouraged by our preaching ministry. Another way we want to reinforce what we are covering each week is our new community group ministry. Right now, we will all be one big community group, and this will take place on Wednesday evenings. We will gather and pray together each Wednesday and have a sermon discussion.

With all that said, we want to get back to our passage found in John 5:16-47

John 5:16–47 (CSB)

16 Therefore, the Jews began persecuting Jesus because he was doing these things on the Sabbath.

17 Jesus responded to them, “My Father is still working, and I am working also.” 18 This is why the Jews began trying all the more to kill him: Not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal to God.

19 Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, the Son is not able to do anything on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, the Son likewise does these things. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing, and he will show him greater works than these so that you will be amazed. 21 And just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom he wants. 22 The Father, in fact, judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all people may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.

24 “Truly I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not come under judgment but has passed from death to life.

25 “Truly I tell 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 just as the Father has life in himself, so also he has granted to the Son to have life in himself. 27 And he has granted him the right to pass judgment, because he is the Son of Man. 28 Do not be amazed at this, because a time is coming when all who are in the graves will hear his voice 29 and come out—those who have done good things, to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked things, to the resurrection of condemnation.

30 “I can do nothing on my own. I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, because I do not seek my own will, but the will of him who sent me.

31 “If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. 32 There is another who testifies about me, and I know that the testimony he gives about me is true. 33 You sent messengers to John, and he testified to the truth. 34 I don’t receive human testimony, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 John was a burning and shining lamp, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

36 “But I have a greater testimony than John’s because of the works that the Father has given me to accomplish. These very works I am doing testify about me that the Father has sent me. 37 The Father who sent me has himself testified about me. You have not heard his voice at any time, and you haven’t seen his form. 38 You don’t have his word residing in you, because you don’t believe the one he sent. 39 You pore over the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, and yet they testify about me. 40 But you are not willing to come to me so that you may have life.

41 “I do not accept glory from people, 42 but I know you—that you have no love for God within you. 43 I have come in my Father’s name, and yet you don’t accept me. If someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. 44 How can you believe, since you accept glory from one another but don’t seek the glory that comes from the only God? 45 Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom you have set your hope. 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me, because he wrote about me. 47 But if you don’t believe what he wrote, how will you believe my words?”

Let's pray.

Father, we are grateful that you have given your word to us. We want to see Jesus today for who he really is: help us to behold the Lamb of God who has come to take away the sin of the world. In this passage, there is such glory, such truth. Please help us to grasp, and to be in awe of it. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. Amen.

How many of you have heard used the phrase: "This is giving me life!"? Probably most of us! Maybe after a run or a workout, you take a sip of water and say, "Ah, this is giving me life." Or maybe you've gone to a conference or a get-together and had a great time and told people it was "life-giving." And sure, we don't typically mean that these things will actually be the difference in whether we live or die, but we give lip service to their supposed life-giving qualities.

A lot is going on in this passage. And I will go ahead and warn you: We will not be able to plumb the depths of every truth that this glorious passage has to offer. For time's sake, we will summarize Jesus's teaching and apply it. This is Jesus's first long, uninterrupted dialogue in John's gospel. He has had some long conversations (with Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman), but this is more like a sermon. And when we read a sermon, we cannot forget to think about who the sermon was preached to. Jesus gave this address to the Jewish leaders who were mad at him for healing the man on the Sabbath. Christ had miraculously healed a man, and the Jewish leaders were upset with him because he had performed a miracle on the Sabbath. He presents his case as if he were on trial. He calls witnesses and makes his testimony. Testimony to what? To the fact that he is God and is the giver of life. All who seek life must come to Jesus. So as we think about the main point, we can see that in verse 40 of Jesus's discussion, He says, "You are not willing to come to me so that you may have life."

The Jewish leaders Jesus addressed were doing everything to find life but come to Jesus. They were trying to find life in religious obedience. They were trying to find life in fame and leadership. They were trying to find life in a pursuit of power. They were saying, "Our obedience is giving us life." "Our popularity is giving us life." "Our power is giving us life." And such were some of us. Friend, where are you seeking life this morning? Where are you seeking life? What are you viewing as the key to your survival? And I am not talking about physical survival — we are talking about something much more critical: Spiritual survival. So what is 'giving you life' spiritually? Is it your obedience? Is it your doing good deeds? Is it in the faith of your parents? Is it in a pursuit of popularity? Is it the Christian t-shirts you wear or the music you listen to?

None of those things are bad in and of themselves. We should strive to be obedient. We should do good deeds. But those can't be the end-all-be-all of our faith. Those can't be what gives us life.

Jesus gives us the key to life in our passage: Come to him. That's the main point today: Because we find life in Christ, we must go to him. And what does it look like to go to Christ?

The Work of Christ

First, let's look at Christ's work. And we see this in verses 16-23. Jesus was coming under persecution for healing on the Sabbath. He responded to the persecution with a peculiar quote: "My Father is still working, and I am working also." These Jewish leaders had just accused Jesus of breaking the Sabbath. Sabbath was a God-ordained day of rest; to break it was to break God's holy Law. This was a supreme offense to the Jewish leadership. But God himself cannot break his own Law. In fact, Rabbis in the first century determined that though God is constantly working (sustaining and governing the universe), he cannot be accused of breaking the Sabbath since the universe is his domain anyway. Assuming that God works constantly, Jesus applies that to himself. He is not saying that he is above the Law; he is saying that he can work continuously and not break the Sabbath because he is God. The universe is his.

The Pharisees and Jewish leaders were concerned with what works Jesus did to accuse him of breaking the Sabbath. They said, "You commanded a man to pick up his mat and walk." That is a Sabbath violation. But wait: Jesus didn't pick up his mat and walk. He was not breaking the Sabbath. They interpreted Jesus's healing work to be a Sabbath violation, however. But Jesus tells them he has been at work, is currently at work, and will continue to work. Why? Because the Father is at work. He and the Father are one. He is associating himself with the God of the Universe. His works do not break the Sabbath because they redeem people and give life to them. Jesus was claiming to be God at that moment. His works were not subject to their scrutiny because he created the Sabbath. He calls himself Lord of the Sabbath in Matthew 12. the works of Christ are redemptive. Christ is continually working to redeem a people to himself. Even in this healing.

He describes his works more: He says he does not act on his own but only on what he sees the Father doing. This is where we get into the complex relationship between the Father and the Son and the work the Son is doing.

Jesus is the Son of God and is fully divine. We have already covered that several times. We can truly call him God. However, the Son is always submissive to the Father. He does what pleases the Father. D. A. Carson says this: "The Father initiates, sends, commands, commissions, grants; the Son responds, obeys, performs his Father's will, receives authority." This does not make the Son any less divine. This is not talking about the nature of the Son. Instead, in his Incarnation, the Son is submissive to the Father. Submissive does not mean less than. God the Son is not less than God the Father. The Son does submit to the Father's will. This is beautiful because the Father's will is to save people for himself. And the Son's mission in coming to earth is to accomplish the will of the Father. Look at John 5:20–23 “20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing, and he will show him greater works than these so that you will be amazed. 21 And just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom he wants. 22 The Father, in fact, judges no one but has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all people may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Anyone who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.” The Father sends the Son in love and has shown him great works, like healing the man at the Bethesda Pool. But even greater works of redemption were coming—life-giving works.

What is the work of Christ? To do the will of the Father. What is the will of the Father? To raise the dead and give life. To redeem. In other words, God has worked salvation for us. Salvation is a work of God on behalf of sinners. And this work for us is accomplished on the cross, where Jesus gave his life. This is the greater work that was coming. This is why all honor is due to the Son and the Father.

If you are here and are a Christian, Christ has worked on your behalf to give you life. The Father had it in his will to save you. And the Son perfectly accomplished that will. Are you looking to him for your life now?

You may be here but have not received new life in Christ. That leads us to our next section: the judgment of Christ.

The Judgment of Christ

Jesus makes it plain: v. 24: "Anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not come under judgment but has passed from death to life." Belief that Jesus is the Son of God makes the difference in experiencing eternal life or coming under the judgment of Christ. The dead hear the voice of the Son of God. He's talking about the spiritually dead. Paul describes this salvation worked by Christ in Ephesians 2:1–5 “1 And you were dead in your trespasses and sins 2 in which you previously walked according to the ways of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit now working in the disobedient. 3 We too all previously lived among them in our fleshly desires, carrying out the inclinations of our flesh and thoughts, and we were by nature children under wrath as the others were also. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of his great love that he had for us, 5 made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses. You are saved by grace!” What is our status without the work of Christ on our behalf? Dead! And why? Because the wages of sin is death. We are born in sin, and that sinful nature rightly deserves to be judged by Christ on the last day as undeserving of his gift of eternal life. This is the judgment of Christ. And this is entirely just and right of God to do. Now, look at verse 29: "Those who have done good things, to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked things, to the resurrection of condemnation." How do we reckon this verse since we know that salvation is not by works but by grace through faith? But we know that good works are a result of faith. Ulrich Zwingli says, "Works do not save or justify, but they are signs and evidence that a person is righteous and saved..." Who experiences the resurrection of life? Those who have found life in Christ and have a life formed from that faith. The tree is judged by its fruit.

There are two destinations for the souls of every person. One is eternal life with Christ. The other is a resurrection to condemnation. Notice that Christ did not say that the souls who are not in Christ will cease to exist. He said that they will be resurrected to condemnation. This means that those who are not in Christ will experience eternal, conscious torment in a real place called hell. This is the just wrath of God being poured out on those who did not believe in Christ as Savior. And this is not the absence of God. This is the full, unmediated wrath of God. We've made a mistake by saying that hell is the absence of God. Hell is the place where God pours out his wrath on those who have not trusted the saving work of Christ. Hell is the place where God pours out his wrath on those who trusted only in their works to accomplish salvation. Hell is not the absence of God; hell is the absence of Christ's saving work.

So that begs the question, again: Where are you seeking life? If you have found life in Christ, he will pass over you in mercy and grace on judgment day. You will be invited to eternal life with him. Praise God there is no condemnation for you. If you seek life in anything but Christ, you will experience the just condemnation of Christ. You will experience the wrath of God. Find life in him today. If you don't know how to do that or have questions about it, please talk to me or Taylor after the service. We will be a witness to you about what Christ has done. And that leads into our third section: the witnesses of Christ.

The Witnesses of Christ

In verses 31-40, we see several examples of witnesses to Christ. First, though, he refuses to testify about himself for argument's sake. He could: Jesus had already displayed his divine power and work in his miracles and teaching. He had presented all the evidence needed to prove himself. He was a witness unto himself. However, according to Jewish tradition, in the Law, someone's testimony about themselves is invalid in an argument or court of Law. So Jesus — though his testimony concerning himself was valid — refuses to testify about himself. He brings some witnesses to the stand, however.

John the Baptist

First, Jesus points out John the Baptist. John the Baptist is the greatest prophet in Israel's history. He was preaching and baptizing in the desert and wilderness. The Jewish leaders sent messengers to him, and he told them the truth: He was pointing to the coming of Jesus. The whole point of John the Baptist's ministry was to prepare the way for Jesus. He didn't need to point to John the Baptist, but he did so for the sake of his hearers since they were familiar with him. He hoped they might accept his words and be saved by pointing them to John's testimony.

John was a popular teacher, and he drew great crowds. Even the leaders were drawn to listen to his preaching. Jesus calls John a burning and shining lamp they were drawn to for a while. They did not, however, accept John's message because John's message was wholly centered around the coming of Christ. Since they were not accepting Christ, they were also throwing John the Baptist to the curb. But Jesus had a greater testimony.

The Father

Jesus brought forth his second witness, who was far weightier than John. Look at John 5:36–37 “36 “But I have a greater testimony than John’s because of the works that the Father has given me to accomplish. These very works I am doing testify about me that the Father has sent me. 37 The Father who sent me has himself testified about me. You have not heard his voice at any time, and you haven’t seen his form.” Jesus is saying that the Father has testified to his deity by the works that he has done. The 16th-century commentator Johann Wild says, "Now the very works about which Christ is speaking here are the works of incarnation, of nativity, of the miracles of the passion, of resurrection, of ascension, and of the sending of the Holy Spirit. These are the great works of the Lord, sought out according to all his purposes, which prove that he is God."

Jesus is here to do God's will, namely to be the long-awaited Messiah who was born of a virgin in Bethlehem, would live a perfect life, fulfill all prophecy, and die for his people. These were all the works of the Father and were a testimony to Jesus's equality with God and his divinity. In fact, all of God's revelation from the beginning of creation pointed forward to Jesus's coming.

However, they ignored his voice and did not see his form. No one has seen God and lived there, but Jesus spoke about the spiritual eyes of the Jewish people. Their spiritual eyes and ears were closed. If they were opened, they would have accepted Christ as the Messiah.

The Father is a testimony to the Son, as the Son did the works set forth in the Father's will. How do people know the Father's will? That leads to the final witness: the Scriptures.

The Scriptures

These Jewish leaders would have been very familiar with the Old Testament. They would have read and re-read the Prophets, histories, and wisdom literature. Jesus ceded that point: They knew their Old Testament well. These men thought that life could be found in searching the Scriptures. The Mishnah said this:

the more study of the Law, the more life…If man has gained a good name he has gained [somewhat] for himself; if he has gained for himself the words of the Law he has gained for himself life in the world to come.

For these men, life equaled knowing and memorizing their Scripture. And yes, life can be found in the Scriptures, as long as that pursuit leads to the point of Scripture, Christ himself. The Jewish leaders had missed this, however. Jesus was telling them that all Scripture was pointing to him. Any study of Scripture that does not end in Christ is a lost cause. They were reading the Bible with spiritual blindness. Jesus later points to Moses, the Father of the Law. He even claimed that Moses pointed forward to him. They were placing their hope on obedience to the Law, but that was the thing accusing them. If they read Moses's words with spiritual eyes, they would have accepted Christ as the Messiah. The Spirit illumines Scripture to us and points us to Christ there. The Scriptures testify to Jesus, but only when read with Spiritual eyes. Collin Kruse says, "These verses stand as a warning to all who make the study of Scriptures an end in itself and fail to relate to the one about whom the Scriptures testify."

As you can see, Jesus brought forth three witnesses: John the Baptist, the Father, and the Scriptures. All of them pointed and testified to the divinity of Jesus. Jesus presented his opponents with proof that he is the Messiah. He has presented you with the same. Will this be enough for you? It is. Maybe this has convinced you to give Christ another look today: Find life in him. Don't be like the Pharisees who attempted to find life in academic pursuits and their own obedience. You will come up empty. Come to Christ, who is the Son of God and the fulfillment of all of Scripture's promises, and find life today.

Conclusion

"You are not willing to come to me so that you may have life." Don't we know it? We will do everything but come to Jesus. And I am talking to the Christians. He doesn't just give us life at the moment of salvation and then leave us. He continually gives us life. But we so often are prone to wander. Prone to leave the God we love. We chase idols. We chase people. We chase money. We trust our work. We trust our goodness. How exhausting! And how exhausting is life? We are often burdened, tired, sinful, and needy. We're like the lame man at the pool of Bethesda, trying to get into some new water we think will give us life. And Christ sees us. Christ who is gentle and lowly. Christ, who knows our burden and our sin. And he says: Come to me, all who are weak and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.

Let's pray.

Discussion Guide

What significant event does Jesus reference when he says, 'My Father is still working, and I am working also' in John 5?

How do the concepts of judgment and resurrection appear in Jesus's dialogue with the Jewish leaders in this passage?

In what ways might we mistakenly seek life in areas other than our relationship with Christ?

How can we ensure that our study of Scripture leads us to a deeper understanding of Christ?

According to the sermon, what do the works of Jesus reveal about his identity and relationship to the Father?

What is the relationship between faith in Christ and the concept of eternal life as discussed in this passage?

How can we actively demonstrate our pursuit of life in Christ in our daily lives?

What role does the Holy Spirit play in helping us understand and apply the Scripture as it points to Christ?

How does Jesus's reference to Moses challenge the Jewish leaders' understanding of Scripture?

What does the sermon indicate about the nature of hell and God’s judgment in relation to belief in Christ?