John 5:28-30

²⁸"Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear His voice ²⁹and come out - those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned. ³⁰By Myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and My judgment is just, for I seek not to please Myself but Him who sent Me.

Jesus said in v25-27 that the spiritually dead will hear the voice of the Son of Man and live. And He adds to that here, speaking of the resurrection of the physical body. Why does Jesus begin here saying, “Do not be amazed”? We tend to be amazed when our eyes see things thought impossible, like raising a physical body from death to life. We often fail to find amazement when things happen miraculously that we cannot perceive in the physical realm, like the conversion of sinner. Jesus has proclaimed His authority to raise the spiritually dead to spiritual life. We might not be amazed when that happens, but we should be. It’s a more impressive miracle than a physical resurrection. Understanding that reality, we should not be amazed that He has the authority to raise the physically dead as well; but we are.

Like spiritual life-giving, the time is coming for physical body-raising, but unlike spiritual life-giving, for which the time is now at hand, the time for physical body-raising is not yet come. This reality takes into v29, where we perceive that Jesus is speaking of the last day, Judgment Day. “All who are in their graves will hear His voice and come out.” His voice is the Trumpet (Matthew 24:31; 1 Corinthians 15:52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16); it’s the day we long for when we say, “Come Lord Jesus – Maranatha.” And this is a good desire for believers (we yearn to see Him face to face), but we must take note of the consequences for unbelievers (condemnation). Jesus marks believers by their good deeds, and He marks unbelievers by their evil deeds. Salvation is by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), but evidence of believers’ faith is seen in good works, the hatred of sin, and the desire to live for Christ (James 2:26). Evidence of unbelievers’ lack of faith is seen in their evil deeds, the lust for sin, and the desire to live for self.

Finally at the beginning of v30, Jesus reaffirms His initial statement, that He is not able to do anything alone, and qualifies it with this extended observation: He is so united with the Father that it is impossible for the Father to will one thing and the Son to do something else. They are perfectly One, and cannot be at odds with each other anymore than God can deny Himself (2 Timothy 2:13). Notice the shift from third- to first-person. When we read in v30, “My judgment is just,” we ought to note simply that whatever proceeds from God must be right and good and true. And we are likewise reminded that the only rule for acting well is to follow the direction and obey the commandment of God. And if after this the whole world should rise against us, we shall still have this invincible defense: he who follows God cannot go astray. Furthermore, we can know that Jesus’ judgment is just, because He has no disposition that is both unique to His Person and separate from the command of the Father. Praise Him!