To the Pharisees who questioned Him at the feast of Tabernacles, Jesus said, “Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man. And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me” (John 8:15-16). Their carnal, fleshly standards of judging Jesus would never allow them to see His true identity as the Son of God. Previously in their discussion, Jesus had warned them not to judge according to appearance, but to judge righteous judgment (John 7:24). In John 8, it seems that their judgment had grown even worse. It is one thing to judge according to appearance. We all know the fallacy of judging a book by its cover. However, it is quite another thing for our thinking to be so corrupt and fleshly that we are unable to see plain spiritual truths right before our eyes.
Jesus said, “I judge no man” (John 8:15). Jesus’ purpose in coming into the world was not so that people would be condemned (judged); instead, He came to save. John 3:17 explains, “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” However, if one refuses salvation, the other side of the coin is condemnation.
But Jesus said He judges no man, period. While He spoke words of comfort and invitation (Matt. 11:28-30), we cannot deny that He also spoke words of judgment on the Pharisees (Matt. 23). How then can Jesus say that He judges no man? It must mean that He judges no man in the way He has just described the Pharisees judging, that is, after the flesh (John 8:15). As Christians, we too must develop spiritually so that we do not judge after the flesh. The apostle Paul in his earlier life judged after this manner; however, when he became a Christian, he did not judge Christ or any other man according to fleshly standards. He wrote, “Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more” (2 Cor. 5:16). In the church, judgments based on worldly, carnal thinking, (such as how much money people have, how physically attractive they are, etc.) should not be the criteria for whom we honor.
After Jesus said that He judges no man in this way, He went on to say, “if I judge, my judgment is true” (John 8:16). Jesus will come to judge the world in righteousness one day (Acts 17:31). But even when Jesus was living on earth for a third of a century and even now in our lives, Jesus judges true judgment. One of the themes throughout the book of John is Jesus’ knowledge of who each person really is on the inside (John 2:24-25). Whether it was Nicodemus (John 3:1-12), the woman at the well
(John 4:7-26), Judas (John 6:70-71; 13:21-30), or a host of other people, Jesus always knew what to say to lay bare a person’s true motives. He made the most accurate statements about who people really are and what they really need. We ought to put ourselves in the same position as these people and realize there is nothing we can hide from the Lord Jesus Christ. He knows us for who we truly are in all our shortcomings and yet He still loves us.
In His final public appeal, Jesus said, “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day” (John 12:48). The Jewish nation among whom He lived was generally comprised of unbelieving and hard-hearted people (John 12:37-41). Some in their innermost thoughts recognized the truth of who Jesus was but were too afraid of the religious rulers to commit to Jesus (John 12:42-43). But a few did believe in Jesus, recognizing Him as the mirror image of the Father in heaven, God’s mouthpiece that declared His glory to the world (John 12:44-45, 49; cf. 1:14). Notice two important truths Jesus highlighted in John 12:48 regarding the consequences of rejecting Him and His word:
1. There is a judge — Many in our world today will say that no one should judge another. There are some who do not believe in God and thus imply that there is no ultimate standard or meaning behind any act. Many others say they believe in God but reject or suppress any notion of God judging. However, all of us act as if there is an ultimate standard of judgment. We argue that we should be good people, treat others fairly, show love, reduce suffering, etc.; but, why? If there is no one sitting at the bench of the great tribunal of the universe, or if the one occupying the bench is so unconcerned with justice that he even rewards the disobedient, then why are we so concerned about people living the right kind of life? If all moral values and ethical practices are subjective, then why would anyone have the right to tell anyone else that they ought to do anything? But deep down we act like there is a standard because there really is a judge. We cannot live as if our affections, beliefs, and actions have no meaning. The reality is they do matter, and we will be judged concerning them.
2. There is a last day — In John 12:48, Jesus declared final judgment is coming. There will be a “last day” in which the physical world will cease to exist, and all souls will enter spiritual, timeless destinies (1 Cor. 15:52-53). Jesus showed that time is linear and will have an end in John 12:48. The apostle Paul argued against the Greek notion that time is circular by preaching that the world is drawing to a close and the time to repent is now (Acts 17:31). The universe had a beginning when a mind, greater and beyond the universe, a personal agent, created the universe in time. This personal agent is God who is timeless (Psa. 90:2). The Father and the Son were already there in the beginning when God spoke the universe into existence and time started (John 1:1-3; Gen. 1). God is the beginning and the end (Rev. 1:8; 22:13). The last day is coming (Rom. 13:11-12). All things will not continue as they have since creation; the physical world will be dissolved
(2 Pet. 3:4, 10-12).
With these two truths clearly affirmed by Jesus Christ, the ultimate question is whether or not one is receiving His word. The only way to stand in the judgment is to receive Jesus and His word; no amount of fleshly standards of appearance, talent, or achievements will suffice in the last day (Rom. 14:4). Receiving in John 12:48 is more than intellectually acknowledging the truth. It is a reception of the truth that becomes the dynamic of our lives. Jesus is the Son of God and the rightful Lord of our lives. His word is received when it is believed and obeyed; our becoming Christians in the first place is by obeying His word (John 8:24; Luke 13:3, 5; Matt. 10:32; Mark 16:16). It also applies to obeying His word in how we treat those who lack food, water, shelter, clothing, or who are sick or in prison; Jesus described the final judgment in these terms (Matt. 25:34-46). When we engraft Jesus’ word into our lives, it is able to save our souls (Jas. 1:21). How will you fare in the judgment in the last day?
–Mark Day