“The hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth – those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation,” John 5:28-29.
Jesus is coming again at the time and hour set by God, and all who are in the graves will hear His voice and be raised from the dead. When Jesus comes again, He will call and all the dead will respond and be raised. It will be the voice of the almighty Son of God calling all the dead back to life! It makes us think of Jesus’ friend, Lazarus, who had died. When Jesus, His disciples, and the sisters of Lazarus, Mary and Martha, and many other Jews came to the tomb in which Lazarus had been buried for 4 days, Jesus called, “Lazarus, come forth!” and John the evangelist reports, “He who had died came out bound hand and foot with grave-clothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Loose him, and let him go,’” John 11:43-44.
When Jesus comes again and calls, all the graves throughout the world will be opened; the sea will give up all the dead who drowned, the trenches where ungodly rulers and the military buried hundreds and thousands will be uncovered; the bodies that burned to death accidentally or intentionally by hateful people will be raised from the ashes! The millions of aborted babies will be alive! Yes, ALL the dead will be raised, but in the text above the apostle John says that there will be a difference.
“Those who have done good, to the resurrection of life!” These words are misinterpreted by many religious leaders and lay people. They claim that this is proof that people are saved by their good works. That is in conflict with the clear Word of Scripture, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast,” Ephesians 2:8-9. The good to which John refers are the works that prove the presence of saving faith and hope in Jesus as the Son of God and the Savior from sin, death, and hell. We are not saved by our works, but by our faith, which is alive and which shows itself by Christian living. The good that is done is the evidence for the faith that saves us. You cannot see anyone’s faith, but you can see their Christian life which flows from their Christian faith. These are the people that will enjoy the resurrection of life; they will be welcomed by Jesus into the halls of heaven!
“Those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation.” Those who have done evil are the people who have rejected Jesus as the Son of God and their only Savior, and they show that they have rejected Him by their unchristian living and all their ungodly deeds. They will be resurrected to condemnation. They will go to hell eternally!
Dear reader of this meditation, cling with your faith to Christ Jesus, who lived the perfect life in your place and who carried all your sins committed in thought, desire, word, and deed to Calvary’s cross. There He poured forth His holy precious blood to wash all your sins away! He rose victoriously from the grave and conquered death and the devil. Show your conquering faith by your Christian living! Jesus says:
“I gave My life for thee, My precious blood I shed,
That thou might’st ransomed be, And quickened from the dead.
I gave My life for thee; What hast thou giv’n for Me?
And I have brought to thee, Down from My home above,
Salvation full and free, My pardon and My love.
Great gifts I brought to thee; What hast thou brought to Me?
Oh, let thy life be given, Thy years for Me be spent,
World’s fetters all be riven, And joy with suffering blent!
I gave Myself for thee: Give thou thyself to Me.” Amen.