5:25 Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man. 28 “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out—those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned.
– John 5:25-29 NIV
Dear friends, greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus as we continue our journey during this Lenten season toward the remembrance of the final events and hours of our Lord’s life. Lent is a time when we focus our attention on the cross of Christ and the price He had to pay for our sins, in order that we, because of Him, might live forever.
The passage today is one that, in many ways, does not seem to fit during this Lenten season. It points to the day when the final judgment will happen and when the dead will be raised at the voice and command of Christ. It seems to be out of place, at least insofar as it looks beyond our Lord’s death and resurrection to that day, known only by the Father, when the final judgment will take place and the world as we know it will come to a close. In that sense, this passage seems to be a bit premature.
At the same time, this passage fits well within the journey of our Lord to the cross, because it was on the cross when God’s judgment played itself out, on our behalf, and when God’s word of promise was spoken clearly and eternally in the death of Christ. On the cross, we were the guilty. Jesus carried our guilt. We were the sinful. All the sins of the world were placed on Him. His righteousness became ours. Our judgment was given solely to Him.
The good news in this passage is that God, as Father, has given the authority to judge to Christ. And because Christ is the one who gave His life for us, through our faith in Him, even in His judgment of us we are secure. “As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us” (Psalm 103:12). In other words, when we stand in judgment before the Lord, the Lord looks not at our sin but at His own redeeming work. When we stand in judgment before God, God looks not at our sin but at Christ.
The apostle Paul uses the words “God” and “Christ” interchangeably when it comes to our judgment. He says, “We shall all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Romans 14:10). He also says, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:10). For the apostle, they are one and the same.
And so where does that lead when it comes to our judgment? How can we be certain and secure when we stand before God? It all comes down to the saving plan and purpose of God, worked out during that final week of our Lord’s life, that the same person of Jesus, both Son of God and Son of Man, would be both our Judge and our Savior at the same time. As Judge, sitting at the right hand of the Father, we will all be found guilty and condemned to eternal death. As Savior, standing alongside of us in our sin, we will all be set free in the sacrificial blood of the Lamb.
It’s a harsh reality, the judgment day we will all one day face. But it’s also a glorious reality when we consider what God has promised in Jesus and the life eternal that will be ours. After all, who would rather have as your judge? Would you rather have someone in your family? Would you rather have the neighbor next door? How about the Supreme Court? How about the possibility of judging yourself? Would you want or feel good about any of those other options to consider, when it come to the judgment of your life?
The fact is that there are no other options. God is our Judge. He is also the one who Has given us a Savior. And the Gospel, the Good News, is the fact that He who sees our sins more clearly and penetratingly than anyone else has dealt with them. They are no longer in the picture. They have been blotted out and erased eternally in Jesus.
And so, in closing, you tell me. Is this passage out of place during the season of Lent? Or is it a passage we need to hear every day? I guess it all depends on what we hope to hear when that final judgment day comes. Here’s what Jesus says: “Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.” I like that passage and I need to hear it every day. My guess is, so do you.
Prayer: Father, we thank You for Your saving plan worked out in the cross of our Lord Jesus. We thank You that the one who will be our judge is also the one came to save. Help us to trust in Him. Help us to face life and death with confidence and in hope. Assure us, through Your Holy Spirit, that our sin has been dealt with and washed away, and the life we now live will be ours forever. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Devotion written by the Rev. Dr. Daniel W. Selbo
Morning Psalms
Evening Psalms
This daily prayer and Bible reading guide, Devoted to Prayer (based on Acts 2:42), was conceived and prepared by the Rev. Andrew S. Ames Fuller, director of communications for the North American Lutheran Church (NALC). After a challenging year in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have been provided with a unique opportunity to revitalize the ancient practice of daily prayer and Scripture reading in our homes. While the Reading the Word of God three-year lectionary provided a much-needed and refreshing calendar for our congregations to engage in Scripture reading, this calendar includes a missing component of daily devotion: prayer. This guide is to provide the average layperson and pastor with the simple tools for sorting through the busyness of their lives and reclaiming an act of daily discipleship with their Lord. The daily readings follow the Lutheran Book of Worship two-year daily lectionary, which reflect the church calendar closely. The commemorations are adapted from Philip H. Pfatteicher’s New Book of Festivals and Commemorations, a proposed common calendar of the saints that builds from the Lutheran Book of Worship, but includes saints from many of those churches in ecumenical conversation with the NALC. The introductory portion is adapted from Christ Church (Plano)’s Pray Daily. Our hope is that this calendar and guide will provide new life for congregations learning and re-learning to pray in the midst of a difficult and changing world.