John 5:24 24Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
The next truly, truly timeless truth from Jesus is a summary of his teaching and activity thus far in John’s Gospel. The verse has an implied condition that requires two actions to receive the outcome. The outcome is dependent on fulfilling the two requirements. The substantival participles (ho akouōn and pisteuōn) are open to all people. The participles are governed by the same article, suggesting that they are two parts of one action. The first requirement is hearing Jesus’ word. Hearing assumes more than passively hearing sounds but allowing the words to penetrate deeply into the inner person where decisions are made. One cannot obey what one has not heard and understood. The word (logon) that Jesus spoke is the Word of God that created the universe (1:1-4). Jesus embodied the word of God. He spoke what the Father spoke. To listen to him is to listen to the Father because the Son speaks only what the Father wants him to say.
The word of the Father comes through the Son to the receiver, who then must make the decision to accept this word by believing. Believing requires accepting the truth of what has been said. Jesus claimed to be the Truth (14:6). By looking to him, we can know the truth about God and God’s plan of salvation. No other person, place, event, book, teaching, or anything else has the true revelation of God. We must believe that Jesus represents God. Son and Father are intricately connected as one. The Son is the Father’s presence among his creation. Later, Jesus tells his disciples about what will happen when he, as the incarnation of the Father, will no longer be present, and that Father and Son will send the Spirit to be that presence.
Jesus next gives the two possible outcomes with no middle ground. This verse echoes and summarizes 3:16-21. Not hearing and believing leads to the judgment or condemnation. The Son is the final judge because he is the criteria. The Son does not condemn someone arbitrarily but for not believing what has been heard or seen. Another way to say this is that a person condemns him or herself for not accepting the good news about Jesus. Thus, the way to escape judgment is to hear and believe. The promise is to pass from death to life. Death is the outcome of the judgment. Death becomes a significant warning for not believing in Jesus in the next several chapters.
There are two types of death in John. Physical death is the temporary cessation of physical life before one faces God’s judgment. Lazarus experienced physical death but was resuscitated. Spiritual death is separation from God and is experienced before and after physical death. Jesus in John’s Gospel does not describe in detail what this spiritual death will be like for eternity, but it is something to be avoided at all cost. The spiritual death in this lifetime is full of pain, sorrow, and uncertainty. The emphasis in John is more on life. Physical life is temporary; everyone will experience physical death. However, eternal life can begin during physical life and continue forever. This life is to be in the presence of God in God’s “house” (14:2). New life comes through being born again as a result of believing in Jesus. The goal of every person ought to be to find release from the power of death and to experience this new life of faith in the Son.
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