5:28-38 The Father’s testimony

February 26, 2021

Read John 5:28-38

This brings us to the climax of the section, with an explicit statement that Jesus is the one with supreme authority who at the last day will raise all the dead, some to life and some to judgment (28-29). Though John emphasises that eternal life and judgment happen in the present, he also writes about the “last day” (6:39-40; 11:24). These are two aspects of the same event – the present experience is an anticipation of what will happen on the last day, and what will happen on the last day is the outworking of what happens now.

So judgement on that day is based on works, not because people can be saved by good works (Eph.2:8-9), but because those who have come to the light and passed over from death to life will, like Jesus, then live to do the works of God (5:19; Eph.2:10) whereas those who love darkness will continue in evil (3:19-21). To say that people will be judged by their works is the same as to say that a tree will be known by its fruit (Luke 6:44).

Even in judgement the Son is totally dependent on the will of God (30) and Jesus insisted that his claims were witnessed to by the Father (32). The Jewish leaders had ignored John the Baptist’s witness to the truth of Jesus (33-35; 1:15,31). The work of Jesus, such as the healing of the lame man, was another witness to him but they had ignored that sign (5:7-16). The only witness which really mattered was the Father’s witness (32), but the Jews were not open to that either, as confirmed by them not believing “the one he sent” (37-38). Faith in Jesus will result in God’s word dwelling in us, and in God himself witnessing to us that it is true.