>>> Continued from previous message
       28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all
      that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Notice the "Marvel not at this". He said earlier that Christ was going
to do greater miracles than healing the sick in order that they marvel.
But here he says they are not to marvel. When Jesus stated that He would
show greater works than these for them to marvel He was ultimately
alluding to the culmination of all this in His ultimate judging on the
throne. Up until this point every thing he said was not reason to marvel
for the ultimate was yet to be revealed. Yes He is equal with the Father
in relationship, power, authority  and honor. All that would cause them
to marvel. Even in His power to regenerate dead sinners. But the
culmination of all of this is in His power in which He will call
all that are in the graves to life for judgement on that great day.
Note the language "in the which all that are in the graves shall
hear his voice," . It is THIS that he wanted them to marvel at.
In the first resurrection  mentioned in verse 25 it would only be the
elect of God spoken to spiritual life. But here he will bring every
person that ever lived on the face of the Earth before His throne. What
an awesome sight to even think about.
But for the purpose of our study we want to compare the language in this
28th verse with that of the 25th verse. There is a direct connection
that we cannot avoid. Just as there is nothing but the very voice of
Christ that will call all humanity from the grave, His voice alone
without any human means, calls dead sinners to spiritual life. Jesus
himself makes the connection. When He said "marvel not at this" he was
looking back to what was said previously and verse 25 was part of that.
He will now take the same language and apply it to the resurrection of
the body.
But notice the use of the pronoun "HIS voice" as oppose to "the voice
of the Son of God". The fact that he used the pronoun makes a direct
connection with the 25th verse. There are those that hear the voice
of the Son of God and will live but an hour is coming when those
in the graves will hear HIS voice. Jesus himself makes the connection to
show His ultimate authority in not only raising sinners to spiritual
life but in calling all of humanity before His great while throne.
This is one reason why the voice in verse 25 is not the gospel. The very
purpose of Christ in this discourse is to show His ultimate authority.
So to jump from the Son's power and authority in judgement and honor
etc.. and then to jump to the gospel as the efficient cause of spiritual
life, and then jump back to the Son's voice as the efficient cause of
the physical resurrection would make little sense.
We have seen in this study that all authority is given unto Jesus by the
Father and that will ultimately be expressed in His power over all
flesh to call all humanity before the throne of justice. This same
authority and sovereignty is given to Christ as expressed in our text to
call spiritually dead sinners to life. But does this mean there is no
need to "preach the gospel to every creature"? Perish the thought! There
are those that accuse the likes of  us who hold to the direct operation
of the Spirit in regeneration of having no desire to preach Christ to
all nations. When we understand what takes place in this process of
conversion one would better understand the  difference between those
that teach a gospel of free and sovereign grace and a gospel of human
ability and human means.
A question may have come into the mind of some readers as the time frame
between the hearing the voice (regeneration) and hearing the gospel.
Although it is not the scope of this work to deal with that it is
important to note that these verses cannot prove either a necessity
for an instantaneous progression between the two, or the quickening
of the dead soul happening some time prior to the sinner spiritually
hearing the gospel.
The initial quickening by Christ's voice is the Spirit of God calling
that sinner dead in tresspasses and sins to spiritual life. Reformed
theologian Louis Berkhof has a very preceptive statement in his
Systematic Theology pg 474:
"Regeneration if a creative act, by which the spiritually
dead sinner is restored to life. But the truth of the gospel
can only work in a moral and persuasive way. Such an instrument
has no effect on the dead. To assert its use would seem to imply
a denial of the spiritual death of man; which of course, it not
intended by those that take this position.
Regeneration takes place in the sphere of the sub-conscience,
that is, outside of the sphere of the conscious attention,
while the truth addresses itself to the consciousness of man.
It can exercise its persuasive influence only when man's attention
is fixed upon it."
What Berkhof is saying is that it is not until the work of the Spirit
upon the heart in the subconscious that a sinner is able to perceive the
truth of the gospel to their salvation.
The process that takes place in the salvation of a sinner is first
the initial quickening that makes it possible for the Word of God
to enter the sinners heart. This is the changing of the heart of
stone to a heart of flesh Ez. 26:26. At that point the sinner comes
under conviction. If he has had no exposure to the Word of God
there still may be a conviction by the "works of the law written
on their hearts" Romans 2:15. But when they hear the preaching of
the gospel their condemnation becomes greater because the requirements
of God are seen it their clearest light and his rebellion against
this Holy God is more reprehensible. There are many cases where a
sinner after hearing the gospel is under extreme conviction for some
length of time. It is our belief that this is a quickened sinner who has
had the Word enter him and cut him to the heart. No dead sinner can have
that conviction.  It is then they cry out "what must I do to be saved?".
And the faith which is created by this work of the Spirit embraces
Christ unto salvation.
Before giving some concluding remarks in this study it would more to our
profit to briefly look at the next verse in the context of this
resurrection.
       29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the
      resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the
      resurrection of damnation.
In this verses our Lord shows the result of his voice calling
the dead to life of judgement day. Where it says those that "have done
good" does this mean that salvation is to those who do good works
regardless of whether or not they have been saved by the blood and
righteousness of Christ? We would have to wrench this verse from its
context to come to that conclusion. The doing good is literally "those
the good having done". The good that one does is the hearing His words
and believing on Him who sent Christ after having been made alive by
the voice of Christ.
What shall we say to these things?
If this is all true will it not cause us to have no desire to
preach the gospel to all the nations? Quite the contrary.
If we believe that those who Christ calls to life will respond,
and that all He intends to save will be called to life, we can
have the assurance that our preaching is not in vain and it will
accomplish what God intended it to accomplish.
This doctrine should cause us to have hope that the most hardened sinner
is not beyond the grace of God. You have witnessed to a loved one and
they show no response to the gospel whatsoever. Does that mean we are to
give up? No but does it mean we are to seek to use all types of
gimmicks with the hopes that they will show an interest. My dear
brethren these people are dead with hearts of stone. This doctrine
should shut us up to prayer for the souls of our loved ones. It will not
make us fatalists. It should cause us to be bold in our proclamation of
the truth of the gospel of God's free and sovereign grace knowing that
the sheep have heard the voice of Christ and will come forth to hear
His word and believe on Him who sent Christ.
>>> Continued to next message
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 þ SLMR 2.1a þ "The the Word was God"
--- FLAME v1.1
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