“And ye will not come to me”!!!

This is a sad commentary of the mass of lost humanity. “Ye will not come to me”, that is, to Jesus!

Could be this true of the human will; the will that men so arrogantly boast of as being free and having power to choose Christ and come to Christ. But again, what did Jesus say concerning the human will? Lets read it again:

John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

Who was Jesus talking to? Was He talking to heathens, those who know nothing of Messiah and of God’s covenants and promises, who were without God and without hope, and were aliens and strangers to the covenants of promise? No, He was speaking to those of the very highest spiritual advantage. He was speaking to those who claimed to be the people of God according to the flesh, the children of Abraham, heirs of the promises of God. The ones to whom God delivered His Word by the dispensation of angels. Those whom He spoke to through His servants the prophets, and through angels, and even directly. If their were any people who should have known God’s plan and purpose in Christ Jesus, it was them. They knew of the promised Messiah, the Lamb of God that was typified in all their sacrifices and offerings. They heard about the suffering Savior of Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53. They were taught about the virgin born Emanuel (God with us), of Isaiah 7:14, which was to come to save His people from their sins.

Yes, beloved if any people had advantage and position to receive their messiah it was the Jewish people of Jesus’ day. If ever men had a will that was influenced by the divine presence, by perpetual spiritual injunctions, and by the light of God’s Holy Word; it was this people to whom Christ addressed these Words. The inference here in our text was not to an isolated few, but to a nation of totally advantaged people!!! “He came unto His own and His own received Him not”. Yes, this was the epitaph written above the most spiritually advantaged nation of people this world has ever known: “And ye will not come unto me, that ye might have life”.

What, then, do we suppose is the state of the will of those nations and peoples who know nothing about the God of Heaven, who have no spiritual teaching or other advantages recommending them to God? And the Arminian will tell me that men by nature choose God. Oh, proud and arrogant man, who art thou that defies the Scriptures, who flies in the face of Jesus, and calls Him a liar!

This morning we want to observe four implications from this passage of Scripture. These are; 1) Natural men are dead; 2) There is life in Jesus Christ; 3) Natural men will not come to Jesus; 4) All who come to Jesus receive life.

1. Natural men are dead

John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

If men won’t come to Jesus for life, then they must not have life. The need for life is therefore implied in our text. Natural don’t have life and they won’t come to Jesus to obtain it. Therefore it may be deduced that men by nature are dead! But I hear someone say “I am not dead- I am breathing and my heart is beating; how does he say I am dead?” I propose to respond to that question with a threefold answer from the Word of God. Men are not just dead by nature, but they are at least three times dead!

1. Natural men are legally dead (Gen. 2:17; 3:4)

Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

God has pronounced mankind legally dead! The sentence of death is upon all men by nature.

The Word of God says you are condemned already…John 3:36

(Give example of the man on death roe.)

2. Natural men are spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1)

1 Cor. 2:14; Rom. 8:6-8; 1 Cor. 1:18.

From these verses we see that men by nature have no spiritual life in them. They cannot understand spiritual things. The Holy Scriptures make no sense to them. The way of salvation is foolishness unto them. They have not eyes to see nor ears to hear spiritual things because they are spiritually dead. You can talk all day to a man about salvation by grace through faith in Christ; and at the end of the conversation he will say: “I don’t see the need for this Jesus; I am as good as other men”. They didn’t hear a word you said, because they are spiritually dead.

3. Natural men shall die Eternally

Mat. 15:41 Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:

2 Thess. 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, 8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: 9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

Revelation 20:14 And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

The culmination and end of legal and spiritual death, is the second death. Above the door of that dark and treacherous place reads “forsaken of God”.

There shall be no coming out of that place. It is the final abode of dead men. Oh yes, beloved, men by nature are dead legally, dead spiritually, and will one day be dead eternally!

4. Some other considerations

Dead men will not come to Jesus that they might have life.

Modern day evangelism petitions and appeals to dead men.

2. There is life is Jesus

John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

1. Legally

Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

Colossians 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; 14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

2. Spiritually

John 5:25 Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.

Ephesians 2:1 And you [hath he quickened], who were dead in trespasses and sins;

3. Eternally

John 17:2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.

1 John 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

1 John 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

3. Natural men will not come to Jesus

John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

There wills are in bondage to their nature, which is dead in sins.

Therefore they will not because they cannot come to Jesus.

4. Those who come to Jesus receive life

Men by nature will not come to Jesus for life:

John 5:40 And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

But thanks be to God that God draws men to Christ:

John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

God, by the Holy Spirit draws His elect, His chosen ones, unto Jesus. God draws men to the gospel to believe the message of salvation.

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all [ye] that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Revelation 22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Invitation:

Lost sinner, you are spiritually dead

There is life in Jesus Christ

You will not come to Jesus

If you come to him in faith you will have life.

Will you come to Jesus this morning?