Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of John 6:37
All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
37 40. Digression on the blessedness of those who come to Christ as believers
37. All that the Father giveth him that cometh ] There is a significant change of gender in the Greek which is obscured in the English version: ‘all that’ is neuter, all that which; what is given is treated as impersonal, mankind en masse; what comes, with free will, is masculine. Men are given to Christ without their wills being consulted; but each individual can, if he likes, refuse to come. There is no coercion. Comp. similar changes of gender in Joh 1:11, Joh 17:2.
shall come to me, and him that cometh For I came down ] The verb ‘come’ here represents three different Greek verbs, but there is no such great difference between them as to make it worth while to change so familiar a text; yet it would be more literal to translate all that the Father giveth Me, to Me shall come, and him that approacheth Me I will in no wise cast out; for I have descended, &c. The second ‘Me’ is emphatic, the first and third are not.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
All – The original word is in the neuter gender, but it is used, doubtless, for the masculine, or perhaps refers to his people considered as a mass or body, and means that every individual that the Father had given him should come to him.
The Father giveth me – We here learn that those who come to Christ, and who will be saved, are given to him by God.
- God promised him that he should see of the travail of his soul – that is, the fruit of his wearisome toil (Lowth), and should be satisfied, Isa 53:11.
- All men are sinners, and none have any claim to mercy, and he may therefore bestow salvation on whom he pleases.
- All people of themselves are disposed to reject the gospel, Joh 5:40.
- God enables those who do believe to do it. He draws them to Him by His Word and Spirit; He opens their hearts to understand the Scriptures Act 16:14; and He grants to them repentance, Act 11:18; 2Ti 2:25.
- All those who become Christians may therefore be said to be given to Jesus as the reward of his sufferings, for his death was the price by which they were redeemed. Paul says Eph 1:4-5 that, he hath chosen us in him (that is, in Christ) before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love; having predestinated us unto the adoption of children to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will.
Shall come to me – This is an expression denoting that they would believe on him. To come to one implies our need of help, our confidence that he can aid us, and our readiness to trust to him. The sinner comes to Jesus feeling that he is poor, and needy, and wretched, and casts himself on his mercy, believing that he alone can save him. This expression also proves that men are not compelled to believe on Christ. Though they who believe are given to him, and though his Spirit works in them faith and repentance, yet they are made willing in the day of his power, Psa 110:3. No man is compelled to go to heaven against his will, and no man is compelled to go to hell against his will. The Spirit of God inclines the will of one, and he comes freely as a moral agent. The other chooses the way to death; and, though God is constantly using means to save him, yet he prefers the path that leads down to woe.
Him that cometh – Everyone that comes – that is, everyone that comes in a proper mariner, feeling that he is a lost and ruined sinner. This invitation is wide, and full, and free. It shows the unbounded mercy of God; and it shows, also, that the reason, and the only reason, why men are not saved, is that they will not come to Christ. Of any sinner it may be said that if he had been willing to come to Christ he might have come and been saved. As he chooses not to come, he cannot blame God because he saves others who are willing, no matter from what cause, and who thus are made partakers of everlasting life.
In no wise – In no manner, or at no time. The original is simply, I will not cast out.
Cast out – Reject, or refuse to save. This expression does not refer to the doctrine of perseverance of the saints, but to the fact that Jesus will not reject or refuse any sinner who comes to him.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Joh 6:37
All that the Father hath given Me shall come unto Me, and him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out
The certainty and freeness of Divine grace
I.
GRACE TRIUMPHANT IN SPECIALITY.
1. Christ leads us up to the original position of all things. All men are naturally from the beginning in the hand of the Father as Creator, Governor, and Source and Fountain of election.
2. He proceeds to inform us of a great transaction. That His Father put His people into the hands of His Son as the Mediator. Here was the Fathers condescension in giving, and the Sons compassion in receiving.
3. He assures us that this transaction in eternity involves a certain change in time. The only token of election is the definite open choosing of Christ.
4. He hints at a power possessed by Him to constrain wanderers to return. Not that any force is used, but by His messengers, Word, and Spirit, He sweetly and graciously compels men to come in accordance with the laws of the human mind, and without impairing human freedom. We are made willing in the day of Christs power.
5. He declares that there is no exception to this rule of grace. Not some but all, individually and collectively.
II. GRACE TRIUMPHANT IN ITS LIBERALITY.
1. The liberality of its character: him that cometh, the rich, poor, great, obscure, moral, debauched.
2. The liberality of the coming: no adjective or adverb to qualify. Not coming to the sacraments or worship, but to Christ. Some come at once; some are months in coming; some come running; some creeping; some carried; some with long prayers; some with only two words; some fearfully; some hopefully, but none are cast out.
3. The liberality of the time. It doesnt say when. He may be seventy or only seven; at any season; on any day.
4. The liberality of the duration. Never cast thee out, neither at first nor to the last,
5. Something of the liberality is seen in the certainty, in no wise. It is not a hope as to whether Christ will accept you. You cannot perish if you go.
6. There is great liberality if you will notice the personality. In the first clause, where everything is special, Jesus used the large word all; in the second, which is general, He uses the little word him. Why? Because sinners want something that will suit their case. This means me. (C. H.Spurgeon.)
An account of the persons that come to Christ
1. What is meant by coming to Christ?
(1) An outward coming in application of the means. When we come to His ordinances we come to Him.
(2) Closing with Christ, embracing Him, believing on Him, and submitting to Him. Coming not with the feet but with the heart.
2. What is meant by the Father giving men to Christ?
(1) In Gods eternal purpose and counsel.
(2) In the drawing of our hearts to Him when God by His Spirit persuades us to close with Christ. This giving is mutual: Christ is given to us and we to Him, so there is a marriage-knot drawn and contracted between us.
I. ALL THAT THE FATHER HATH GIVEN ME SHALL COME TO ME.
1. This is an expression of some latitude and universality–all Eph 1:4-5; 2Pe 3:9). From which we learn how to make our calling and election sure, viz., by closing with the conditions of the gospel. We may know whether we are given to Christ by coming to Him.
2. This is an expression of restriction. None come to Christ but such as are given to Him (Joh 6:44; 2Co 3:5; Php 2:13). The reasons why none come to Christ but those whom God gives to Him are
(1) Because all others are ignorant of Him, and without the knowledge of Christ there is no coming to Him (Mat 16:16-17).
(2) There is a perverseness in their wills and affections, so that though many know Him, they hang off from Him (Joh 3:19), so there must also be a drawing of their hearts which is the work of God alone.
3. From the word come we learn that men by nature are distant from Christ.
4. From the word given we see that all men are in the hands of God, for none can give what they have not got.
II. CHRISTS ENTERTAINMENT OF THOSE WHO COME TO HIM.
1. His reception.
(1) He will take them into friendship with Himself (Mat 11:28; Isa 55:7; Eze 33:11).
(2) None excepted (Rev 22:17). There is nothing to exclude Isa 1:18; 1Ti 1:15).
(3) What an encouragement to all men to close with Christ.
(a) The nature of our sins cannot exclude us, since Paul, Manasseh, Mary Magdalene, etc., found mercy (Psa 25:11). The ground of Gods pardon is not our sin, but His grace (Isa 44:3; Isa 44:24-25).
(b) Nor the Humber of our sins (Hos 14:4; Jer 3:1).
(c) Nor any supposed imperfection in our humiliation. We are humbled sufficiently if we come.
(4) Consider the great advantage of coming.
(a) Pardon and the life of justification (Isa 55:7; Mic 7:19).
(b) Power over sin and the life of sanctification.
(c) Comfort and peace of conscience.
(5) To enlarge, we may come not only in conversion, but after it, for assurance, greater measures of grace, and progress. Let us then come boldly (Heb 4:16).
2. His custody and preservation. I will keep him in. (T. Horton, D. D.)
The Fathers gift the sinners privilege
I. THE EXPRESSION. All that the Father, etc.
1. Number. Who can measure the amplitude of all?
2. Definiteness. Not one more or less.
3. Relation. The Father sends His Son to men and men to His Son. The conditions of this relation are the Incarnation and Atonement on the part of Christ; coming or believing on the part of men.
4. Donation. This was mediatorial.
5. Value. What must be the worth of that which the Father could give and Christ accept?
II. THE PROMISE. Shall come unto Me.
1. The certainty. He shall see of the travail of His soul.
2. The act.
(1) Externally, they shall be brought in the providence of God under the means of grace.
(2) Spiritually. If you have come to Christ you have entered into the meaning of four words–conviction of sin, the suitableness of Christ, venturing on Christ, continual coming to Christ.
III. THE ENCOURAGEMENT. I will in no wise cast out.
1. Personality. Him. Sin is personal, so must salvation be.
2. Extent. Christianity is the only universal religion; it can take root everywhere because it makes its offer to everybody.
3. The removal of doubts.
(1) On the part of sinners.
(a) When they have been called late in life; but remember the dying thief.
(b) Sin suggests doubts. It is not what you have been, but what you are willing to be.
(c) Unworthiness and infirmity create doubts.
(d) Doubts arise from ignorance. All these are removed by the invitation.
(2) On the part of saints.
(a) Many feel a sense of inward corruption.
(b) Others are conscious of stupidity and perverseness.
(c) Lowness of attainment suggests doubts; and
(d) Remaining guilt and imperfection. But what are these in the light of the promise, Him that, etc.? (Dr. Andrews.)
Encouragement to seekers from the purposes and promises of God
I. GODS GRACIOUS PURPOSE.
1. God the Father is the prime Mover in the scheme of redemption. Beware of regarding the Father as an enemy and the Son as a friend. The Fathers love is perpetually magnified in Scripture.
2. The Father hath given His Son a multitude which no man can number.
3. This gift was a very burdensome one to the Son. A ransom must be paid and satisfaction given.
4. The acceptance of the gift was most willing, for the Son gave Himself to receive it (Eph 5:25).
II. THE ARTICLE OF THE COVENANT which secures the actual union of His people to the Redeemer. Shall come unto Me.
1. What is meant by coming to Christ?
(1) Seeking, implying a sense of need, danger, misery, condemnation, ruin.
(2) Finding, including an enlightened understanding, and the revelation of the Saviour as suited to the sinners necessities.
(3) Appropriation.
2. The instrument of calling sinners is the Word, the Law with its warnings and threatenings, the gospel with its invitations and promises.
3. The effectual agent is the Spirit. We preach like Ezekiel to dry bones until the heavenly breath breathes upon them.
III. THE PROMISE. Him that cometh, etc. The preachers commission is as unlimited as this promise. Go ye into all the world, go.
1. Our encouragement to go forth under this commission is drawn from our knowledge of Gods purpose. This assures us that our labour shall not be in vain.
2. No degree or kind of guilt will be a bar to the sinners reception if he will but come.
3. Surely then the expostulation is timely, Why will ye die?
(1) Why go on in ways you know to be ruinous?
(2) Why keep away from Jesus when you are sure of a welcome?
4. Whose fault will it be if you perish? Yours, not Gods. (W. Hancock, M. A.)
Comers welcomed
I. GROUNDS ON WHICH THEY FEAR REJECTION.
1. Supposed omission from the number of the given, in which case they deem it hopeless to come.
2. Greatness of guilt–they are too bad to be received.
3. Absence of merit–they are not good enough to be accepted.
4. Lateness of repenting–they are too old to be welcomed.
5. Defects in believing–their faith is too feeble or not of the right sort.
II. REASONS WHY THEY ARE SURE OF A WELCOME. Christ will not cast them out.
1. For their sakes. He knows
(1) The value of the soul.
(2) The greatness of the peril.
(3) The blessedness of salvation.
2. For His Fathers sake. To do so would be to place dishonour upon Him whose will He had been sent to perform.
3. For His own sake. Since every sinner saved is
(1) An increase to His glory.
(2) A triumph of His grace.
(3) A trophy of His power.
(4) A subject added to His empire.
4. For the worlds sake. How could the gospel prevail if it got noised abroad that one was rejected. Lessons
1. Despair for none.
2. Hope for all. (T. Whitelaw, D. D.)
High doctrine and broad doctrine
Consider
I. THE ETERNAL PURPOSE.
1. If all that the Father giveth to Christ shall come to Him, then some shall come, and why should you not be among them? One says, Suppose I am not one of the elect; but suppose you are–or, better still, leave off supposing altogether and go to Christ and see.
2. Those who come to Christ come because of the Father and the Son. They come to Christ not because of any good in them, but because of the Fathers gift. There never was a soul who wanted to come but Jesus wanted him to come a hundred times as much.
3. They are all saved because they come to Christ, and not otherwise. There is no way of salvation for peculiar people. The Kings highway is for all.
4. If I come to Christ, it is most clear that the Father gave me to Christ.
II. THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL.
1. Him that cometh, go., is one of the most generous of gospel texts. Generous
(1) As to the character to whom the promise is made. Him, the atrocious sinner, the backslider, you.
(2) The text gives no limit to the coming, save that they must come to Christ. Some come running, some limping, etc.
(3) There is no limit as to time. Young and old.
2. The blessed certainty of salvation–lit. I will not, not, or never, never cast out.
3. The personality of the text–Him, that is, thee. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Coming to Christ
Every stage of the Redeemers life confirmed the delightful fact, that God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, etc.
I. THE OBJECT OF APPROACH. Prophets spake of Him, that around Him should throng the sons and daughters of woe. Jacob said, when dying, Unto Him shall the gathering together of the people be. Isaiah said, Unto Him shall men come; and He Himself said, All that the Father hath given Me, etc. And I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Me. He possesses qualifications to relieve our wants, in opposition to all assumed characters.
1. He is infinitely wise.
2. He is of illimitable power.
3. He is of boundless compassion: and by possession of these, He is able to save to the uttermost all that come unto God by Him.
II. THE PURPOSES FOR WHICH WE ARE TO COME.
1. For instruction. We are ignorant of ourselves–of God–of Christ–of the way of salvation. He is the light of the world–the great prophet. All thy children shall be taught of the Lord, etc.
2. For pardon. We are guilty, and need pardon. Him hath God exalted with His right hand, etc. In whom we have redemption through His blood–the forgiveness of sins, etc. Whosoever believeth in Him shall receive remission of sins.
3. For strength. We have duties to perform, difficulties to encounter, trials to endure. Without Him we can do nothing: but He has said, My grace is sufficient for thee, and always remember as a check to indolence and supineness, that though without Him we can do nothing, we can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth us.
4. For peace. He is the Prince of Peace. My peace I leave with you, etc.; and we, as ministers of Christ, preach peace through the blood of His cross.
5. For eternal life. I give unto My sheep eternal life. He is the record, God hath given unto us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.
III. HOW WE ARE TO COME. A bodily act is not intended; many do this, and not come at all. Jesus said, when they thronged around Him, Ye will riot come unto Me that ye might have life; but a spiritual act is meant; and does it not remind us that we are naturally at a distance, not locally, but spiritually; and hence arises the necessity of the agency of the Holy Spirit–No man can come unto Me, etc.
1. We come by prayer: Hence, says Paul, let us come boldly to the throne of grace.
2. By faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God, etc.
(1) It regards His Divinity.
(2) His humanity.
(3) That He is the appointed medium of approach–I am the way, the truth, and the life.
3. With humility on account of our sin.
4. Contrition. Not sorrow merely for its consequences, but from a view of its nature, and the Being against whom it is committed. That godly sorrow which worketh repentance to salvation, etc.
IV. THE CERTAINTY OF ACCEPTANCE. I will in no wise cast out.
1. From the promises and invitations of Scripture. And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come. Ho, every one that thirsteth. Come unto Me, all ye that labour. Wherefore, He also is able to save to the uttermost. As I live, saith the Lord, I have no pleasure. Not willing that any should perish, etc.
2. From the examples of the Scripture. There stands a Manasseh, a Magdalen, St. Luke, a Thief on the Cross, and a Saul of Tarsus. Go to heaven, and ask if Jesus was willing to receive them? The question shall give a fresh impulse to the song, while they swell the strains, and cry, He loved me, and gave Himself for me. Go to the regions of darkness, and ask of them, Is one there that applied to Him? and, while anguish swells their bosoms, they will answer, No; we despised and rejected Him, and would not have Him to reign over us. Go to the north, east, west, and south, and ask believers whether Jesus did not receive them graciously. They will all give their testimony–While a great way off, He ran and met me, and fell upon my neck and kissed me. Conclusion: address to those already come–those coming–and those at a distance. (The Pulpit.)
Coming to Christ
I have read of an artist who wanted to paint a picture of the prodigal son. He searched through the mad-houses, and the poorhouses, and the prisons, to find a man wretched enough to represent the prodigal, but he could not find one. One day he was walking down the streets and met a man whom He thought would do. He told the poor beggar he would pay him well if he came to his room and sat for his portrait. The man agreed, and the day was appointed for him to come. The day came, and a man put in his appearance at the artists room. You made an appointment with me, he said, when he was shown into the studio. The artist looked at him, and said, I never saw you before. Yes, he said, I agreed to meet you to-day at ten oclock. You must be mistaken; it must have been some other artist; I was to see a beggar here at this hour. Well, said the man, I am he. You? Yes. Why, what have you been doing? Well, I thought I would dress myself up a bit before I got painted. Then, said the artist, I do not want you; I wanted you as you were; now you are no use to me. That is the way Christ wants every poor sinner, just as he is. (D. L. Moody.)
Coming to Christ
My next step, said an anxious inquirer, is to get deeper conviction. No, said a Christian friend, your next step is to go to Christ just as you are. He does not say, come to conviction, come to a deeper sense of sin, which you have been labouring to get, but Come unto Me. Ah, she exclaimed, I see it now. Oh, how self-righteous I have been, really refusing Christ, while all the time I thought I was preparing to come to Him. Will you go to Jesus now? Humbly, yet decisively, she responded, Yes, I will. And the Lord in the richness of His grace and mercy enabled bet to do so. (Clerical Library.)
Christ the Saviour of all who come to Him
I. OUR DUTY TO CHRIST. To come to Him.
1. How.
(1) By repentance (Mat 11:28; Mar 1:15).
(2) By faith.
(a) Assenting to Him (Heb 11:6) that He is an only (Act 4:12) and all-sufficient Saviour (Heb 7:12).
(b) Receiving Him (Joh 1:12) for our Priest, to atone (Heb 9:12) and to make intercession (Heb 7:25; 1Jn 2:1); for our Prophet (Deu 18:15; Act 3:22), to make known Gods will and to enable us to know it (Joh 16:13); for our King (IsaJohn 18:36; Mat 28:18), to subdue our enemies Heb 2:14), to rule over us (Psa 110:1-3).
2. What for.
(1) Pardon (Act 5:31).
(2) Acceptance (Rom 5:1).
(3) Purity (Tit 2:14; Act 3:26).
(4) Eternal life (Joh 5:40; Mat 11:28).
II. CHRISTS PROMISE, that if we come to Him He will in no wise cast us out.
1. What are we to understand by this? That He will receive us (Tit 2:14) into
(1) The number of His people (1Pe 2:9);
(2) His love and favour (Joh 13:1);
(3) His care and protection (Joh 17:12);
(4) An interest in his death and passion;
(5) A participation of His grace and spirit (Joh 16:7);
(6) His intercession (Joh 17:9);
(7) His presence and glory (Joh 17:24).
2. How does this appear.
(1) We have His promise.
(2) This was the end of His coming (Joh 3:16; Joh 6:39-40).
III. MOTIVES TO COME TO CHRIST.
1. Are we in debt? He will be our Surety (Heb 7:22).
2. Are we in prison? He will be our Redeemer.
3. Are we sick? He will be our Physician (Mat 9:12).
4. Are we arraigned? He will be our Advocate, (1Jn 2:1).
5. Are we condemned? He will be our Saviour (Rom 8:34).
6. Are we estranged from God? He will be our Mediator (1Ti 2:5).
7. Are we in misery? He will be our Comforter (Psa 94:19).
8. Are we weary? He will give us rest (Mat 11:28). Wherefore come to Him.
(1) Presently.
(2) Cheerfully.
(3) Sincerely.
(4) Resolutely. (Bp. Beveridge.)
The all-important advent
I. THE EVENT. There are various advents.
1. The incarnation.
2. Through the Spirit.
3. At the judgment.
4. That of our text–a mans coming to Christ. This is dependent on the first, is made effectual through the second, and secures that the third shall be blessed and glorious.
II. THE CONSEQUENCE. Those who come will not be cast out.
1. Because it is not in Christs nature to do so.
2. Because He has shed His blood for this very purpose.
3. Because He has said it, which is enough.
III. THE MANNER.
1. Direct–not through any mediator.
2. As you are.
3. As you can.
4. Now. (J. Vaughan, M. A.)
Coming unto Jesus
Take every other verse out of the Scriptures, and leave but this, and you have a foundation on which a world of souls may build their hopes and never be put to shame. Hear it, impenitent sinners, alarmed souls, desponding believers, rejoicing saints.
I. THE PERSON POINTED OUT. What is meant by coming to Him.
1. Negatively.
(1) Not to the Scriptures, they only testify of Him (Joh 5:39-40).
(2) Not the Church, that is only a means, not the fountain of grace.
(3) Not prayer, that is a well of salvation but not salvation.
(4) Joh 6:5; Joh 6:22-24, show how possible it is to come, and yet not to come to Christ Himself.
2. Positively. Christ addresses the spiritual part of mans nature, and the invitation implies
(1) A forsaking of sin. To come to is to come from (2Co 6:14-18).
(2) A renouncing of self.
(3) Faith which worketh by love (Joh 6:35; Joh 6:68-69).
I. THE ASSURANCE GIVEN CONCERNING THE PERSON INDICATED.
1. The assurance itself.
(1) It is unrestricted.
(2) Personal.
(3) Based upon the good will of Christ.
(4) Emphatic, in no wise.
2. The grounds of the assurance.
(1) The purposes of the Father.
(2) The death of Christ.
(3) The resurrection of Christ.
(4) The work of the Spirit.
(5) All Gods attributes make it sure.
Conclusion.
1. What say you to this?
2. Transpose the text, Him that cometh not to Me I will cast out. (S. Miller.)
The gospel welcome
I. THE STATES OF MIND WITH WHICH WE SHOULD COME. The previous part of the text need prove no stumbling-block. All it affirms is that those whom the Father gives do come to Christ. Put the two together and they affirm the absolute freeness of the Divine grace, and exhibit that grace as acting in concurrence with our voluntary powers. Salvation is neither arbitrary, mechanical, nor compulsory. We must corneal. With childlike and dependent trust.
(1) The primary element of all true faith, which is the movement of mind and heart towards God, is simple reliance on the gospel testimony that Christ is all-sufficient for the purposes of salvation.
(2) The great strength and stay of this faith is that it enables the soul to rely exclusively upon a personal Redeemer.
(3) This absolute casting of ourselves on Christ is not offered as a permission, but as a positive command.
2. With chastened humility and godly sorrow, repentance and faith stand together in the gospel commission, and are always united in the experience of the faithful. Going and weeping. The prodigal.
3. In the spirit of total self-renunciation. Leave self, righteousness, sin, etc., and come to ME.
II. THE ENCOURAGEMENT AND CONFIDENCE we have in coming to Christ.
1. Him that cometh or is coming, in the very act of coming now. It is a constantly repeated act; alike necessary in regeneration and sanctification. This includes all of whatsoever country, church, condition, rank.
(1) Hear it, ye young. There is a sense in which your coming to
Christ may be too late, but there is none in which it can be too early.
(2) Ye middle aged whom harassing cares disquiet. He will allow for everything but a refusal to come.
(3) Ye aged. Perhaps the harvest is passed and ye are not saved.
2. In no wise.
(1) But I have stayed away too long.
(2) I am a backslider. No matter.
3. Has Jesus ever cast any one out? No.
(1) All the glorious perfections of His nature bend Him to welcome you.
(2) The mighty price paid for your redemption.
(3) The purpose and promises of God.
Conclusion: Not to come is to be rejected; not to be saved is to be lost; there is no middle state. (D. Moore, M. A.)
Invitations of the gospel–the sinners warrant
In the courts of law if a man be called as a witness, no sooner is his name mentioned, though he may be at the end of the court, than he begins to force his way up to the witness-box. Nobody says, Why is this man pushing here? or, if they should say, Who are you? it would be a sufficient answer to say, My name was called. But you are not rich, you have no gold ring upon your finger! No, but that is not my right of way, but I was called. Sir, you are not a man of repute, or rank, or character! It matters not, I was called. Make way. So make way, ye doubts and fears, make way, ye devils of the infernal lake, Christ calls the sinner. Sinner, come, for though thou hast nought to recommend thee, yet it is written, Him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
The essential in religion
I. WHAT TRUE RELIGION IS.
1. Negatively.
(1) It cannot consist in any feeling of moral fitness. What need of coming to Christ if our own nature is morally sufficient?
(2) Nor in the observance of external ritual. The source of the corruptions of Christianity is the tendency to put form for faith.
(3) Nor in simple orthodoxy.
2. Positively. A living relation with a living Christ.
II. THE METHOD OF GAINING TRUE RELIGION.
1. Not thronging about Christ.
2. But coming to Christ by faith.
III. THE PROOF OF THE POSSESSION OF TRUE RELIGION.
1. Not in an old experience preserved in the memory.
2. Nor in a present release from the fear of death.
3. Nor in the fervent glow of feeling (these may accompany it), but in the present proneness of the soul on these words of Christ.
Conclusion: Why will you not come to Christ?
1. Is it because you are afraid of ridicule and what others may say? Whosoever shall be ashamed of Me and of My words, of him shall the Son of man be ashamed.
2. Is it because of the inconsistencies of Christians? Every man Shall give account of himself to God.
3. Is it because you are not willing to give up all to Christ? What shall it profit a man, etc.
4. Is it because you are thinking you will do as well as you can, and that God ought to be satisfied with that? Whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
5. Is it because you are postponing the matter without any definite reason? Boast not thyself of to-morrow, etc.
6. Is it because you fear you will not be accepted? Him that cometh unto Me I will in no wise cast out. (W. Hoyt.)
Scripture difficulties
To thread a needle in the dark is a thing which no one can do. The difficulty and impossibility, however, does not lie in the thing itself, but in the circumstances under which it is attempted. Only let there be light, and the thing is not only possible, but perfectly easy. This will serve to illustrate our inability to reconcile, understand, and explain certain mysteries in Divine things; for instance, to reconcile Gods fixed decrees and infallible foreknowledge with mans free will and responsibility. Our Lord plainly declares, that no man can come to Him except the Father draw him; but, at the same time, He gives the widest and most unlimited invitation–Come unto Me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Whosoever will, let him take of the water of life freely. And He charges it as entirely their own fault, if any refuse to come, and so perish: Ye are not willing to come to Me, that ye might have life. (W. Hancock.)
I was cruising one day in the western Highlands. It had been a splendid day, and the glorious scenery had made our journey like an excursion to Fairy Land; but it came to an end, for darkness and night asserted their primeval sovereignty. Right ahead was a vast headland of the isle of Arran. How it frowned against the evening sky! The mighty rock seemed to overhang the sea. Just at its base was a little bay, and into this we steamed, and there we lay at anchorage all night, safe from every wind that might happen to be seeking out its prey. In that calm loch we seemed to lie in the mountains lap while its broad shoulders screened us from the wind. Now, the first part of my text, All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me, rises like a huge headland high into the heavens. Who shall scale its height? Upon some it seems to frown darkly. But here at the bottom lies the placid, glassy lake of infinite love and mercy: Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. Steam into it, and be safe under the shadow of the great rock. You will be the better for the mountain-truth as your barque snugly reposes within the glittering waters at its foot; while you may thank God that the text is not all mountain to repel you, you will be grateful that there is enough of it to secure you. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Character not needed for salvation
In the mission at George Yard, Whitechapel, a converted street-singer, who had experienced much difficulty in getting work for want of a character, but who afterwards became a licensed hawker and distributed tracts as he walked along, said: Bless God, I have found out that Jesus will, take a man without a character. (J. F. B. Tinling, B. A.)
The essence of the gospel
Pluck a green leaf from a bough and look at it. That leaf, science tells us, is the typical tree. The tree is built upon the pattern of that leaf. The tree is only the leaf expanded, and with its various parts altered to suit new requirements; but the idea manifest in the leaf is the idea according to which the tree is made and shaped. For instance, science tells us that the seed–the starting-point of life to the tree–is only a leaf rolled tight and changed in tissue and in contents, and so fitted for its special uses. The tree-trunk is only the leaf-stem made to take columnar form, and greatly lengthened and strengthened and enlarged. All the mingling mass of branch and bough and twig, lifting their manifold tracery against the sky, is but the reproduction and increasing of the delicate tangle of veins striking through the green substance of the leaf. In short, the tree is only the leaf cut in larger pattern. Everything in the huge tree is adjusted to the method of the little leaf. In the leaf you have the tree in germ and type. So it is, it has seemed to me, with this short text I have read to you, Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. It is the typical gospel. In this text we have the whole great gospel in germ and type. The entire system of the revelation of salvation is shaped after the pattern of this text. (W. Hoyt.)
The accessibleness of Christ
Have you never read the story of the good ship that had been a long time at sea, and the captain had lost his reckoning; he drifted up the mouth of the great river Amazon, and, after he had been sailing for a long time up the river without knowing that he was in a river at all, they ran short of water. When another vessel was seen, they signalled her, and when they got near enough for speaking they cried, Water! We are dying for water! They were greatly surprised when the answer came back, Dip it up! Dip it up! You are in a river. It is all around you. They had nothing to do but to fling the bucket overboard, and have as much water as ever they liked. And here are poor souls crying out, Lord, what must I do to be saved? when the great work is done, and all that remains to them is to receive the free gift of eternal life. What must you do? You have done enough for one life-time, for you have undone yourself by your doing. That is not the question. It is, Lord, what hast thou done? And the answer is, It is finished. I have done it all. Only come and trust Me. Sinner, you are in a river of grace and mercy. Over with the bucket, man, and drink to the full. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Human perversity
If a compassionate prince wrote over his palace gate–Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out, would poor beggars reading it need to have these words explained before they could understand them? And if the good man kept his word, and received all who asked his help, would his porch be ever empty night or day? Yet has Jesus, the Prince of Life, emblazoned these words in large, shining letters above His gates of grace, and ever kept His promise to help all the destitute and miserable who come to Him, and thousands of sinners are found to this hour who will not understand them, and millions of sinners who care nothing about them. (H. G. Guiness.)
Abundant mercy
You say, Do not get the invitation too large, for there is nothing more awkward than to have more guests than accommodation. I know it. The Seamens Friend Society are inviting all the sailors. The Tract Society is inviting all the destitute. The Sabbath schools are inviting all the children. The American and Foreign Christian Union is inviting all the Roman Catholics. The Missionary Society is inviting all the heathen. The printing-presses of Bible Societies are going night and day, doing nothing but printing invitations to this great gospel banquet. And are you not afraid that there will be more guests than accommodation? No! All who have been invited will not half fill up the table of Gods supply. There are chairs for more. There are cups for more. God could with one feather of His wing cover up all those who have come; and when He spreads out both wings, they cover all the earth and all the heavens. (T. De Witt Talmage, D. D.)
None cast out by Christ
In some of the hotels on the road to the lead and gold mines of California, there is constantly to be found in the register the names of persons with D.B. opposite to them. This means dead broke, and it is the custom never to refuse a meal to these poor fellows who have risked and lost their all in these precarious ventures. (H. O.Mackey.)
Whosoever comes is saved
A messenger came to a Hasten as quick as you can, there is a Sunday-school superintendent and said: A boy in a garret that wants to see you: he is dying. The Sunday-school superintendent hastened to the place, and in the garret, in the straw, lay a boy who had been crushed by a cart. He was dying; and as the superintendent entered, the boy said: Oh! I am so glad you have come. Didnt I hear you say the other Sunday that whomsoever comes to God he would be saved? Yes, replied the superintendent, I said about that. Well, said the boy, then I am saved. I have been a bad boy, but I have been thinking of that, and I have been saying that over to myself, and I am saved. After he had seen his superintendent, his strength seemed to fail, and in a few moments he expired, and the last words on his lips were: Whomsoever cometh to God, He will in no wise be cast out. He did not get the words exactly right, but he got the spirit.
Mercy for all
Men are going to ruin; but not like the boat that was seen shooting the rapid, and had reached a point above the cataract where no power could stem the raging current. To the horror of those who watched it shooting on to destruction, a man was seen on board, and asleep. The spectators ran along the banks. They cried; they shouted; and the sleeper awoke at length to take in all his danger at one fearful glance. To spring to his feet, to throw himself on the bench, to seize the oars, to strain every nerve in superhuman efforts to turn the boats head to the shore, was the work of an instant. But in vain. Away went the bark to its doom, like an arrow from the bow. It hangs a moment on the edge of the gulf; and then, is gone for ever. Suppose a man to be as near hell!–if I could awaken him, I would. The dying thief was saved in the act of going over into perdition. Christ caught and saved him there. And He who is mighty to save, saving at the uttermost can save, though all our life were wasted to its last breath, if that last breath is spent in gasping out St. Peters cry, Save, Lord, or I perish! (T. Guthrie, D. D.)
A Saviour for the lost
I am lost, said Mr.Whitefields brother to the Countess of Huntingdon. I am delighted to hear it, said the Countess.
Oh, cried he, what a dreadful thing to say! Nay, said she, for the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost; therefore I know He is come to save you. O sinner, it would be unreasonable to despair. The more broken thou art, the more ruined thou art, the more vile thou art in thine own esteem, so much the more room is there for the display of infinite mercy and power.
The gospel for dying hours
You may know the name of Mr. Durham, the author of a famous book on Solomons Song, one of the most earnest of Scotlands ancient preachers. Some days before he died he seemed to be in some perplexity about his future well-being, and said to his friend Mr. Carstairs, Dear brother, for all that I have written or preached, there is but one Scripture which I can now remember or dare grip unto now that I am hastening to the grave. It is this–Whosoever cometh unto Me, I will in no wise cast out. Pray tell me if I dare lay the weight of my salvation upon it. Mr. Carstairs justly replied, Brother, you may depend upon it, though you had a thousand salvations at hazard. You see it was a plain, sinners text that He rested on. Just as Dr. Guthrie wanted them to sing a bairns hymn, so do dying saints need the plain elementary doctrines of the gospel to rest upon. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Jesus a great Saviour
Remember He never did cast any one out. Never yet! Never one! I have declared this everywhere, and I have said, If Jesus Christ casts any one of you out when you come to Him, pray let me know; for I do not want to go up and down the country telling lies. Again I give the challenge. If my Lord does east out one poor soul that comes to Him, let me know it, and I will give up preaching. I should not have the face to come forward and preach Christ after that; for He Himself has said it, Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out; and He would be a false Christ if He acted contrary to His word. He cannot cast you out; why should He? Oh, but then I am so bad. So much the less likely is He to refuse you, for there is the more room for His grace. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Christ never fails
When a man brings out a patent medicine, he publishes verifications of the efficacy of his physic. He gets a number of cases, and he advertises them. I suppose they are genuine. I should not like to be hanged if they were not. I suppose, therefore, they are all accurate and authentic. But there is one thing which you never knew a medicine advertiser do: he never advertises the failures of the medicine. The number of persons that have been induced to buy the remedy, and have derived no good from it: if these were all advertised, it might occupy more room in the newspaper than those who write of a cure. My Lord Jesus Christ is a Physician who never had a failure yet–never once. Never did a soul wash in Christs blood without being made whiter than snow. Never did a man, besotted with the worst of vice, trust in Jesus without receiving power to conquer his evil habits. Not even in the lowest pit of hell is there one that dares to say, I trusted Christ, and I am lost. I sought His face with all my heart, and He cast me away. There is not a man living that could say that, unless he dared to lie; for not one has with heart and soul sought the Saviour, and trusted in Him, and then had a negative from Him. He must save you if you trust Him. As surely as He lives He must save you, for He has put it, Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. I will repeat it, Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. You have never come if He has not received you; for He must save those who trust in Him. (C. H.Spurgeon.)
The forgiving mercy of God
It is reported of Julius Caesar, that he never entertained hatred against any so deeply but he was willing to lay down the same upon the tender of submission. As when C. Memnius put in for the consulship, he befriended him before others of the competition, notwithstanding that Memnius had made bitter invectives against him. Thus the great God of Heaven, to whom all the Caesars and kings of the earth are tributaries and homagers, doth never hate so irreconcilably but that true humiliation will work a reconciliation–let but the sinner appear before Him in a submissive posture, and His anger will be soon appeased. (J. Spencer.)
How to come to Christ
At a gathering in the West End of London the Rev. Caesar Malan found himself seated by a young lady. In the course of conversation he asked her if she were a Christian. She turned upon him, and somewhat sharply replied, Thats a subject I dont care to have discussed here this evening. Well, answered Mr. Malan, with inimitable sweetness of manner, I will not persist in speaking of it, but I shall pray that you may give your heart to Christ, and become a useful worker for Him. A fortnight afterwards they met again, and this time the young lady approached the minister with marked courtesy, and said, The question you asked me the other evening has abided with me ever since, and caused me very great trouble. I have been trying in vain in all directions to find the Saviour, and I come now to ask you to help me to find Him. I am sorry for the way in which I previously spoke to you, and now come for help. Mr. Malan answered her, Come to Him just as you are. But will He receive me just as I am, and now? Oh, yes, said Mr. Malan, gladly will He do so. They then knelt together and prayed, and she soon experienced the holy joy of a full forgiveness through the blood of Christ. The young ladys name was Charlotte Elliot, and to her the whole Church is indebted for the pathetic hymn commencing, Just as I am, without one plea. (Ira D. Sankey.)
None cast out
I went the other day to St. Cross Hospital near Winchester. There they give away a piece of bread to everybody who knocks at the door. I knocked as bold as brass. Why should I not? I did not humble myself particularly and make anything special of it. It was for all, and I came and received as one of the people who were willing to knock. (C. H.Spurgeon.)
The comfort of the gospel in a dying hour
When the great Bishop Butler was lying on his death-bed, he was observed to be unusually pensive and dejected, and on being asked the cause, ha replied, Though I have endeavoured to avoid sin and please God to the utmost of my power, yet from the consciousness of perpetual infirmities, I am still afraid to die. A friend who stood by read him this text. Ah, said the dying man, I have read that a thousand times, but I never felt its full force till this moment, and now I die happy. (Dean Stanley.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 37. All that the Father giveth me] The neuter gender, , is probably used here for the masculine, .
Shall come to me] All that are drawn by the Father, Joh 6:44, i.e. all those who are influenced by his Spirit, and yield to those influences: for as many as are LED (not driven or dragged) by the Spirit of God, they are the children of God, Ro 8:14. God sent his prophets to proclaim his salvation to this people; and he accompanied their preaching with the influence of his Spirit. Those who yielded were saved: those who did not yield to these drawings were lost. This Spirit still continued to work and to allure; but the people being uncircumcised both in heart and ears, they always resisted the Holy Ghost; as their fathers did, so did they; Ac 7:51. And though Christ would have gathered them together, as a hen would her chickens under her wings, yet they would not. See Clarke on Mt 23:37. Those who come at the call of God, he is represented here as giving to Christ, because it is through his blood alone that they can be saved. God, by his Spirit, convinces of sin, righteousness, and judgment; those who acknowledge their iniquity, and their need of salvation, he gives to Christ, i.e. points out unto them the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Our Lord may here also refer to the calling of the Gentiles; for these, according to the ancient promise, Ps 2:8, were given to Christ: and they, on the preaching of the Gospel, gladly came unto him. See ample proofs of this in the Acts of the Apostles.
I will in no wise cast out.] The words are exceedingly emphatical – , I will by no means thrust out of doors; excellently rendered by Matthew of Erberg in his Italian Bible-Io non cacciaro fuori, I will not chase him out of the house. Our blessed Lord alludes to the case of a person in deep distress and poverty, who comes to a nobleman’s house, in order to get relief: the person appears; and the owner, far from treating the poor man with asperity, welcomes, receives him kindly, and supplies his wants. So does Jesus. Newer did he reject the suit of a penitent, however grievous his crimes might have been. He is come to the house of mercy; he is lying at the threshold: the servants bid him come in-he obeys, and stands trembling, waiting for the appearing of the Master, doubtful whether he is to be received or rejected: the Master appears, and not only grants his suit, but receives him into the number of his family: he alleges his unfitness, his unworthiness, his guilt, his crimes, his ingratitude: no matter, all shall be blotted out through the blood of the Lamb, and he be put among the children, and on none of these accounts shall he be put out of the house. The Gentiles shall be as welcome as the Jews; and the invitation to them be as free, as full, and as hearty: they shall become his adopted children, and never be cast out, as the Jews have been. O thou God of love! how able and WILLING art thou to save the vilest of the vile, who come unto thee! Thou art not the God of the Jews only, thou art also the God of the Gentiles. Rejoice, therefore, ye Gentiles, with his people.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Here ariseth a great question amongst interpreters of various persuasions, what giving of the Father is here meant; whether an eternal designation of persons to eternal life, in order to the obtaining of which the persons so predestinated are given to Christ, as he who was to be the Messiah, Saviour, and Redeemer of the world; or the infusing the habits of special, saving grace, by which persons are enabled actually to believe. If the former, the words do not only infer an infallible connexion betwixt faith and eternal life and salvation; but also betwixt the decree of election and the collation of special grace, by which men are enabled to believe, and, believing, are saved. That which seemeth to favour the latter opinion is, that the verb is in the present tense; it is not, all that the Father hath given, but
all that the Father giveth; which would incline us to think, that though in other texts the Fathers giving of souls to Christ may signify his eternal election, yet in this text it rather signifieth the donation or giving the habits of special grace. But there are very learned and pious interpreters of another mind, who think by the Fathers giving, is meant the Fathers choosing souls in him, Eph 1:4. Certain it is, that there are some chosen to life, and the certain means by which that life is to be obtained, Eph 1:4,5. And as certain it is, that persons so chosen in him, shall neither miss of that life, nor yet of that effectual means by which it shall be obtained. Whether that eternal election, or donation, be here intended or no, is not so momentous to determine. For the Jesuits argument, that if we understand it of such an eternal gift, our Saviour rather excuses than accuseth them for their unbelief, by telling them they could not believe, because they were not given unto him; it holdeth as strong against special grace as against particular election; so as if that were true, it could be interpreted in neither of those senses: but by their leaves it doth not at all excuse them, unless they did what in them lay to come to Christ: but this question belongs rather to polemical writers than interpreters. Certain it is, that it is such a giving here mentioned, as shall be followed by a coming to Christ; that is, believing in him, and by a true faith receiving of him.
And those that do so, our Lord saith, he
will in no wise cast out. Out of heaven, say some; others understand it of perseverance; but certainly the phrase denotes no more than the freeness and readiness of Christ to receive every one who truly believeth in him, and to preserve him to eternal life and salvation. Who they are that are given to Christ, and that will or shall believe in him, is a secret that is known unto God alone: but this may be known to all, that Christ will not throw off any soul that is willing to receive him as its Saviour, and that no such soul shall perish for ever.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
37-40. All that, c.Thiscomprehensive and very grand passage is expressed with a peculiarartistic precision. The opening general statement (Joh6:37) consists of two members: (1) “ALLTHAT THE FATHERGIVETH ME SHALL COME TO ME”thatis, “Though ye, as I told you, have no faith in Me, My errandinto the world shall in no wise be defeated for all that the Fathergiveth Me shall infallibly come to Me.” Observe, what is givenHim by the Father is expressed in the singular number andneuter genderliterally, “everything”; while thosewho come to Him are put in the masculine gender andsingular number”every one.” The whole mass,so to speak, is gifted by the Father to the Son as a unity,which the Son evolves, one by one, in the execution of His trust. SoJoh 17:2, “that He shouldgive eternal life to all that which Thou hast given Him”[BENGEL]. This “shall“expresses the glorious certainty of it, the Father beingpledged to see to it that the gift be no empty mockery. (2) “ANDHIM THAT COMETH TO MEI WILLIN NO WISE CAST OUT.” As the former was the divine,this is just the human side of the same thing. True, the”coming” ones of the second clause are just the “given”ones of the first. But had our Lord merely said, “When thosethat have been given Me of My Father shall come to Me, I will receivethem”besides being very flat, the impression conveyed wouldhave been quite different, sounding as if there were no other lawsin operation, in the movement of sinners to Christ, but such asare wholly divine and inscrutable to us; whereas,though He does speak of it as a sublime certainty which men’srefusals cannot frustrate, He speaks of that certainty astaking effect only by men’s voluntary advances to Him andacceptance of Him”Him that cometh to Me,” “whosoeverwill,” throwing the door wide open. Only it is not the simplywilling, but the actually coming, whom He will not castout; for the word here employed usually denotes arrival, asdistinguished from the ordinary word, which rather expresses the actof coming (see Joh 8:42,Greek), [WEBSTERand WILKINSON]. “Inno wise” is an emphatic negative, to meet the fears of the timid(as in Re 21:27, to meet thepresumption of the hardened). These, then, being the two members ofthe general opening statement, what follows is meant to take in both,
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
All that the Father giveth me,…. The “all” design not the apostles only, who were given to Christ as such; for these did not all, in a spiritual manner, come to him, and believe in him; one of them was a devil, and the son of perdition; much less every individual of mankind: these are, in some sense, given to Christ to subserve some ends of his mediatorial kingdom, and are subject to his power and control, but do not come to him, and believe in him: but the whole body of the elect are here meant, who, when they were chosen by God the Father, were given and put into the hands of Christ, as his seed, his spouse, his sheep, his portion, and inheritance, and to be saved by him with an everlasting salvation; which is an instance of love and care on the Father’s part, to give them to Christ; and of grace and condescension in him to receive them, and take the care of them; and of distinguishing goodness to them: and though Christ here expresses this act of his Father’s in the present tense, “giveth”, perhaps to signify the continuance and unchangeableness of it; yet he delivers it in the past tense, in Joh 6:39, “hath given”; and so all the Oriental versions render it here. And it certainly respects an act of God, antecedent to coming to Christ, and believing in him, which is a fruit and effect of electing love, as is clear from what follows:
shall come unto me; such who are given to Christ in eternal election, and in the everlasting covenant of grace, shall, and do, in time, come to Christ, and believe in him to the saving of their souls; which is not to be ascribed to, any power and will in them, but to the power and grace of God. It is not here said, that such who are given to Christ have a “power” to come to him, or “may” come if they will, but they shall come; efficacious grace will bring them to Christ, as poor perishing sinners, to venture on him for life and salvation:
and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out; such who come to Christ in a spiritual manner, and are brought to believe in him truly and really, he not only receives kindly, but keeps and preserves them by his power, and will not cast them out, or thrust them from him into perdition: the words are very strongly and emphatically expressed in the original, “I will not, not, or never, never, cast out without”; or cast out of doors. Christ will never cast them out of his affections; nor out of his arms; nor out of that family that is named of him; nor out of, and from his church, which is his body, and of which they are members; nor out of a state of justification and salvation; and therefore they shall never perish, but have everlasting life. The three glorious doctrines of grace, of eternal election, efficacious grace in conversion, and the final perseverance of the saints, are clearly contained in these words.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
All that ( ). Collective use of the neuter singular, classic idiom, seen also in John 6:39; John 17:2; John 17:24; 1John 5:4. Perhaps the notion of unity like in 17:21 underlies this use of .
Giveth me ( ). For the idea that the disciples are given to the Son see also John 6:39; John 6:65; John 10:29; John 17:2; John 17:6; John 17:9; John 17:12; John 17:24; John 18:9.
I will in no wise cast out ( ). Strong double negation as in verse 35 with second aorist active subjunctive of . Definite promise of Jesus to welcome the one who comes.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
All that [ ] . The neuter singular of the adjective and pronoun. All believers are regarded as one complete whole. Compare Joh 17:24, according to the correct reading, “that which Thou hast given me.”
Shall come [] . Emphasizing the idea of reaching or arriving.
Cometh [] . A different verb, emphasizing the process of coming.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “All that the Father giveth me,” (pan ho didosin moi ho pater) “All which the Father gives to me,” or (neuter gender) meaning “everything” that the Father gives to me, the redemption of the created universe, the whole world from the wreck of sin, and restoration to the Father’s favor, Joh 3:16; Rom 8:19-21.
2) “Shall come to me; (pros eme ekei) “To me they, these things, will come,” come to be restored to their Edenic glory, of “good” and “very good,” Gen 1:4; Gen 1:31 Act 3:21 indicates that this will occur by Jesus at His second coming, for the “restitution of all things,” when He shall deliver all in a redeemed state to the Father, 1Co 15:24-28.
3) “And him that cometh to me,” (kai ton erchomenon pros me) “And the one who comes to me,” in addition the things” of the universe that were cast down (Rom 8:20-21); The “him” or “anyone” as a person, who has a will, a power of choice to be redeemed, Joh 7:17, which the things” of creation, of neuter gender did not have, Rom 8:20.
4) “I will in no wise cast out.” (ou me ekbalo ekso) “I will not by any means cast outside,” or cast away. This is a Divine pledge of unending, eternal security to anyone and/or everyone who comes to Jesus Christ for salvation, the eternal water and bread of life; 0 that all men might exercise that personal power of choice, that will to come to Jesus, Mat 11:28, Re 22 17.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
37. All that the Father giveth me. That their unbelief may not detract anything from his doctrine, he says, that the cause of so great obstinacy is, that they are reprobate, and do not belong to the flock of God. His intention, therefore, in distinguishing here between the elect and the reprobate is, that the authority of his doctrine may remain unimpaired, though there are many who do not believe it. For, on the one hand, ungodly men calumniate and utterly despise the word of God, because they are not moved by reverence for it; and, on the other hand, many weak and ignorant persons entertain doubts whether that which is rejected by a great part of the world be actually the word of God. Christ meets this offense, when he affirms, that all those who do not believe are not his own, and that we need not wonder if such persons have no relish for the word of God, but that it is embraced by all the children of God. In the first place, he says, that all whom the Father giveth him come to him; by which words he means, that faith is not a thing which depends on the will of men, so that this man and that man indiscriminately and at random believe, but that God elects those whom he hands over, as it were, to his Son; for when he says, that whatever is given cometh, we infer from it, that all do not come. Again, we infer, that God works in his elect by such an efficacy of the Holy Spirit, that not one of them falls away; for the word give has the same meaning as if Christ had said, “Those whom the Father hath chosen he regenerates, and gives to me, that they may obey the Gospel.”
And him that cometh to me I will not cast out. This is added for the consolation of the godly, that they may be fully persuaded that they have free access to Christ by faith, and that, as soon as they have placed themselves under his protection and safeguard, they will be graciously received by him. Hence it follows, that the doctrine of the Gospel will be salutary to all believers, because no man becomes a disciple of Christ who does not, on the other hand, feel and experience him to be a good and faithful teacher.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(37) All that the Father giveth me.There is something startling in this power of the human will to reject the fullest evidence, and to remain unbelieving, after the proof which it has itself demanded as a foundation for its belief. In that assembly there are representatives of the differing stages of faith and non-faith in Him, which every age of Christianity has seen. Here are men in the pride of human wisdom rejecting Him because He does not fulfil their own idea of what the Messiah should be. Here are men of humble heart finding in Him the satisfaction of the souls deepest wants, and believing and knowing that He is the Holy One of God (Joh. 6:69). Here are men of the Nicodemus type, passing from one stage to the other, almost believing, but held back by their will, which willeth not to believe. Here are men, too, of the Judas type (Joh. 6:64; Joh. 6:71), traitors even in the faithful few. For these varying effects there must be a cause, and in the next few verses Jesus dwells upon this. He finds the reason (1) in the eternal will of God, of whose gift it is that man willeth; and (2) in the determination of the will of man, of whose acceptance it is that God giveth. Men have seized now one and now the other of these truths, and have built upon them in separation logical systems of doctrine which are but half-truths. He states them in union. Their reconciliation transcends human reason, but is within the experience of human life. It is, as St. Bernard said, following the words of Jesus, If there is no free will, there is nothing to save; if there is no free grace, there is nothing wherewith to save; or, in words more familiar to English ears, . . . . the grace of God by Christ preventing us, that we may have a good will, and working with us, when we have that good will (the Tenth Article of Religion).
And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.It is not easy to improve the English rendering of this verse, and there is a sacredness in the sound of the old, old words; but still, they convey to few readers the full meaning of the original. The word come is made to serve, within two or three lines, for three different Greek words. Literally, we should read, All that the Father giveth Me shall arrive at Me, and him that is on the way I will in no wise cast out: for I am come down. . . . The present tense of giveth should be noted. The giving is not of an act in the past, but of a ceaseless love ever in the present. The word all is the neuter of the collective whole, thought of without reference to individual action. It is repeated, and still with reference to the gift in Joh. 6:39; while in Joh. 6:40, with the thought of each mans coming, it passes to the masculine, which marks out the separate life and faith of every unit in the mass.
It may be that the words come (arrive at) and cometh (is on the way), contrasted as they are in this verse, refer to the different positions of those who seek Himto the ninety and nine in the fold, and the one who in the far distance hears His voice and comes in doubt and fear; but the context seems rather to point out the fulfilment of the Messianic kingdom as the Fathers gift, and the individual difficulties of, and individual help given to, those who strive to enter it, and shall in no wise be cast out. There were men among those who heard Him who in darkness and difficulty were feeling their way: these men were guided and strengthened by an unseen hand until they found it; there were men there who were being cast out but not by Him.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
37. All It is remarkable that this word is in the Greek neuter. It expresses not so much a person as a nature, a thing, a character: The whole sort that the Father giveth me. These gross men did not belong to those given, because, entertaining nothing but hopes of mercenary gain from Christ and his miracles, they truly believed not, as in the last verse is said. See note on Joh 6:26. So in Joh 6:45 it is more fully explained; it is only every one that hath learned of the Father that cometh unto me.
The Father, finding the willing soul, teaches by his law; attracts, convinces, and convicts by his Spirit; but when the soul has perfectly obeyed all their influences with a living faith, the Father does not himself save, but He draws and hands him over to Christ. Thither coming, and embracing Christ with a full faith, the man is not cast out but accepted and redeemed. But the Father giveth none to Christ who reject his teachings and drawings, none who do not freely consent to be given and go to his Son. Such is the great scheme of salvation.
Shall come unto me Will come unto me. It is the simple future; the shall expresses no authority or securement of the coming. Every one who freely yields to the teachings and drawings of the Father, is, by the Father, given, and comes to Christ. Such a person coming to Christ will be accepted. For the Father gives none but such as will freely come. The giving by the Father is consequent upon the obedient learning; not the learning upon the giving. See notes on Joh 6:44-45; Joh 6:65.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“All whom the Father gives to me will come to me, and him who comes to me I will in no way cast out.”
Happily, however, there would be those who would respond and would recognise Him for what He was. ‘All whom the Father gives to me will come to me.’ It is impossible to avoid here the suggestion that in the end those who truly come do so because the Father chooses them out, for the ‘giving’ by the Father is before the ‘coming’. John continually quite clearly depicts the difference between those whose faith is temporary and based on the emotion of a moment, and those whose faith is permanent and lasting, and he sees Jesus as demonstrating that this second kind of faith results from the work of the Father. It is because they have been given to Him by the Father that they believe in Him so fully.
‘And the one who comes to me I will not reject for any reason whatsoever’. And Jesus indicates that once a man has been called by God and truly responds there is not the slightest chance of his ever being rejected again, for he is part of the Father’s gift to His Son. It does not matter how bad he may have been, or how weak he might be, God will do the necessary to ensure his perseverance and spiritual growth. This is a promise of hope providing underlying security for the believer. It is not, however, a grounds for assuming that from now on what we do does not matter. Someone who has that attitude is not a true believer. If we have truly believed, what we do will matter to us almost as much as it matters to God.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Joh 6:37. All that the Father giveth me, &c. For the explication of these words it must be noted,
1st, That to believe in Christ, and to come to him, is the same thing. Compare John 5 Joh 6:38 with Joh 6:40. So John 7 Joh 6:37 with Joh 6:38. Again, Joh 6:35 of this chapter, He that cometh to me shall never hunger, is the same with the following words, He that believeth on me shall never thirst. So when Christ had said, Ye have seen me, and believe not, he adds this reason of their incredulity, you come not to me, because you are not given of the Father. He then adds, Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. Note;
2nd, That to be given of the Father, cannot here signify to be absolutely and unconditionally chosen by him to eternal life; for then the Jews could not reasonably be accused for not coming to Christ, or not believing in him, much less that they would not believe, or come to him. Seeing, upon this supposition, that only they, whom God had absolutely and unconditionally chosen to eternal life, could come to him, it was impossiblethey should believe, whowere not thus elected; and so it could not be imputed as their crime, that they did not that thing which it was impossible for them to do; whereas it is certain that our Saviour represents it as their great sin, that in him, whom the Father had sent, they believed not, Joh 5:38 and that they would not come unto him, that they might have life, Joh 6:40 and that they had no excuse for that sin, Ch. Joh 15:22; Joh 15:25. Whereas what better excuse could be made for them than this, that they could not come unto him, as not being elected by God to that life which he offered, to induce them so to do? (2.) Hence it must follow, that Christ could not rationally have invited them to come to him, or called them to believe in him, who were not given him by the Father: for this would have been to invite them to come to him that they might live, who, he well knew, could never come, as being never chosen to obtain that life: much less could he have told them, that this was the work which God required them to do, even to believe in him as the true Messiah; this being to require them, according to the present supposition, to believe a lie; that is to say, that Christ was sent to be the bread of life, and a Saviour to them, for whom the Father never did intend salvation by him: and yet Christ did manifestly say to those, who, seeing him, did not believe, Labour for that meat which endureth unto overlying life, which the Son of man shall give unto you, Joh 6:27 and this is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent, Joh 6:29 and my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven, even him that cometh down from heaven, and giveth life (not to those who are absolutely and unconditionally elected, but) to the world. I therefore here inquire thus,was our Lord truly willing that those to whom he spoke should have life? If not, why does he say, These things I say, that ye might be saved, Ch. Joh 5:34 but ye will not come unto me, that ye might have life.If so, why did he say, that he did always those things which pleased him, Joh 8:29 and could do nothing but what he saw his Father doing, seeing it was not the Father’s will that they should be saved, or come to him that they might have life, whom he had not given to him, that is, had not unconditionally elected to salv
But, lastly, who are they whom the Father giveth to Christ? There is a prediction or prophesy of Christ, Psa 2:8. (of whom in the words immediately preceding it is said, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee,) that God the Father will give him the heathen for his inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for his possession; where we discern what kind of giving is here meantgiving for an inheritance or possession, and that is for Christ to be Lord or owner of them, and they, as possessions, subject to his power and disposal: and this is done in the conversion of them. Of thispossession we find mention Tit 2:14 where the peculiar people are a people for a possession, and those are to be purified by Christ, that he might redeem them from all iniquity. But there are not any peculiar number of men absolutely (without all respect to any qualifications) chosen by God to eternal life; for it is apparent and expressly affirmed of one of this number, that he was finally lost: Those that thou gavest me, says Christ, I have kept; and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition, Joh 17:12 where, through his own wretched default, one of those who had been given to Christ by God the Father, totally and finally departed, and was lost from him. By the above negative considerations the positive will, I suppose, be best collected.That they who are so qualified and disposed, as that, Christ being proposed to them, they will come to him, follow him, and be his disciples, those are they whom God the Father gives to Christ. For there is a sort and temper of mind which is most agreeable and proportionable to the believing on or receiving of Christ; and they who possess this temper of mind, are said to be fit, or prepared, or disposed for the kingdom of God, Luk 9:62 such as are ready and willing to accept of Christ’s conditions, to part with all and follow him. And of such Christ says that they are not far from the kingdom of God, and that of such is the kingdom of heaven. If it be demanded what temper this is; I answer, it is the honest heart described in the parable of the sower, desiring sincerely to know the truth, and to do God’s will, Joh 7:17. It is the temper resembled by the little children: and of those poor in spirit is the kingdom of God (or the Christian state) made up; and those are they who are evangelized, that is, wrought upon by the preaching of the gospel; and God gives grace to the humble, but resists the proud, refractory, confident person. Of these who are thus qualified, it is here truly said, that as God the Father gives them to Christ as his portion, the men who are to be his subjects; so when Christ calls all to come to him, these shall actually come; as soon as ever Christ is revealed to them, they receive him: as Josephus, speaking of Christ, Ant. 1 18: 4 says, he was “a teacher of those men, who did with pleasure receive the truth.” To those who by the preventing grace of God (and this preventing grace is offered to all) are thus qualified and disposed, it is said to be given them from the Father to come unto Christ; that is to say, their coming to Christ is consequent to that probity of mind wrought by the grace of God in them. It is an effect of this grace, and of that probity produced by it, (which awakens the soul to an ardent desire after Christ,) that any man lays hold on and receives the genuine faith of Christ.
The expression , I will in no wise cast out, is extremely beautiful and emphatical: it represents a humble supplicant, as coming into the house of some prince, or other great person, to cast himself at his feet, and to commit himself to his protection and care. He might fear that his petition would be rejected, and he thrust out of doors; but our Lord assures him to the contrary. His house and heart are large enough to receive, shelter, and supply all the indigent and distressed. How comfortable,how glorious an idea! No doubt many thousand souls have been sensibly supported by these most gracious words.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Joh 6:37 ff. Through this culpable , they were quite different from those whom the Father gave Him. How entirely different were all these latter; and how blessed through me, according to the Father’s will, must their lot be!
] Neuter, of persons as in Joh 3:6 , Joh 18:2 ; 1Co 1:27 . It designates them as a “ totam, quasi massam ,” Bengel.
. .] viz. by the efficacious influence of His grace (Joh 6:44-45 ), whereby He inclines them to come, and draws them to me; . , Chrysostom. Moral self-determination (Joh 5:40 , Joh 7:17 ; Mat 23:37 ) may obey this influence (Joh 6:40 ), and may withstand it; he who withstands it is not given Him by the Father, Phi 2:13 . “There is implied here a humble , simple, hungering and thirsting soul,” Luther. Explanations resting on dogmatic preconceptions are: of the absolute election of grace (Augustine, Beza, and most others [233] ), of the natural pietatis studium (Grotius), and others.
] afterwards . But is emphatic. The is not more ( arrivera jusqu’ moi , Godet) than , as Joh 6:35 already shows; comp. the following . . , with which is again resumed.
] I certainly will not cast him out, i.e. will not exclude him from my kingdom on its establishment; comp. Joh 6:39-40 ; Joh 15:6 ; also Mat 8:12 ; Mat 22:13 . The negative expression is a litotes full of love; Nonnus adds: .
Joh 6:38-39 . “How could I cast them out, seeing that I am come only to fulfil the divine will? and this requires of me, not the rejection of any one, but the blessed opposite.”
, . . .] Comp. Joh 5:30 .
. ] impressive repetition of the same words.
, . . . ] Nominative absolute , unconnected with the following, and significantly put first. Comp. Joh 8:38 , Joh 15:2 , Joh 17:2 ; and see on Mat 7:24 ; Mat 10:14 ; Mat 10:32 ; Mat 12:36 ; Buttmann, N. T. Gr. p. 325 [E. T. p. 379]. Here the Perfect , because spoken from the standing-point of the future .
. ] sc . ; see Fritzsche, Conject . p. 36. The conception of losing ( i.e. of letting fall down to eternal death; see the antithesis , etc.) is correlative to that of the . Comp. Joh 17:12 .
, . . . ] of the actual resurrection at the last day (comp. Joh 5:29 , Joh 11:24 , Joh 12:48 ), which, as a matter of course, includes the transformation of those still living. The designation of the thing is a potiori . It is the first resurrection that is meant (see on Luk 14:14 ; Luk 20:34 ; Phi 3:11 ; 1Co 15:23 ), that to the everlasting life of the Messianic kingdom . See on Joh 5:29 . Bengel well says: “hic finis est, ultra quem periculum nullum.” Comp. the recurrence of this blessed refrain, Joh 6:40 ; Joh 6:44 ; Joh 6:54 , which, in the face of this solemn recurrence, Scholten regards as a gloss.
[233] See, on the contrary, Weiss, Lehrbegr . p. 142 ff. Schleiermacher rationalizes the divine gift and drawing into a divine arrangement of circumstances ; see L. J. p. 302 ff. Thus it would be resolved into the general government of the world. According to Beyschlag, p. 162, there would be in this action of the Father, preparing the way for a cleaving to Christ (comp. vv. 44, 45), an opposition to the light-giving action of the Logos (vv. 4, 5, 9), if the Logos be a personality identical with the Son. But the difference in person between the Father and the Son does not exclude the harmonious action of both for each other. Enlightening is not a monopoly of the Son, excluding the Father; but the Father draws men to the Son, and the Son is the way to the Father. Weiss has rightly rejected as unjohannean (p. 248 f.) the idea of a hidden God, as absolutely raised above the world, who has no immediate connection with the finite.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
DISCOURSE: 1639
CHRISTS WILLINGNESS TO RECEIVE SINNERS
Joh 6:37. Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
IT is a pleasing reflection that there is a people secured to Christ, who, having been given to him by the Father, shall, each in his appointed time, be gathered unto Shiloh, to be the fruits of his travail, and the spoils of his victory. This pleasure however would be greatly damped, if we believed, that there were any infallibly, and from eternity, given over to perdition, who should be sent into the world for no other purpose than to fill up the measure of their iniquities, and to fit themselves for the place, to which they had been doomed by an eternal and irreversible decree. We confess that we cannot so draw the line between prterition and predestination, as to satisfy in all cases a cavilling, or perhaps a scrupulous mind: but the same difficulties occur, if we attempt to mark the distinct boundaries of free will, and free grace; or to shew how the existence of sin could ever consist with the holiness of God. This however is not our province: we must leave to God to reconcile the difficulties that occur; and receive the truths he declares, not because we can comprehend every thing respecting them, but because they are revealed by an unerring God. That some are secured to Christ appears from hence, that, if they were not, it might eventually happen, that none might come to him; and consequently, that he might shed his blood in vain. We are not however left to found this sentiment on any uncertain reasonings of our own; since our Lord himself, in the very words before the text, says, All that the Father hath given me, shall come to me. But are all others therefore of necessity sealed up unto perdition? no; for he adds, And him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out.
To improve this blessed declaration, let us consider,
I.
What we should come to Christ for
[In general, we answer, that we must come to him for every thing; since all fulness is treasured up in him, on purpose that we may receive out of it according to our necessities. But more particularly, we must come to him for pardon, which we all need; which we cannot otherwise obtain; and which he is exalted to give [Note: Act 5:31.]. We must come for peace, since all peace derived from other quarters, is delusive, and he, as the Prince of peace, has promised to bestow it [Note: Isa 9:6. Joh 14:27. Eph 2:17.]. We must come for strength, since without him we can do nothing [Note: Joh 15:5. 2Co 3:5.], and by him, every thing [Note: Php 4:13.]; and St. Paul himself applied to him in prayer, and obtained from him, as we also shall do, grace sufficient for him [Note: 2Co 12:9.]. Lastly, we must come to him for eternal life and glory; since he frequently claims it as his prerogative to give it [Note: Joh 10:28.], and will surely be the author of it to all them that obey him [Note: Heb 5:9.].]
II.
In what manner we should come to him
[Of course, our Lord meant not that we were to approach him with our bodies; since many thronged him, and pressed upon him, who nevertheless were cast out. It is therefore, not to the motion of our bodies, but to the frame of our minds, that we are to have respect, when we come unto him. We must come unto him empty. If, like the Laodiceans, we think ourselves rich and increased with goods [Note: Rev 3:17.], our application to Christ will be vain and fruitless [Note: Luk 1:53.]. We must be deeply convinced of our own guilt and helplessness; and be thoroughly persuaded that we must perish if be receive us not. We must be like the Prodigal, when dying with hunger, or like the Disciples in jeopardy, crying, Save, Lord, or we perish [Note: Mat 8:25.]. Moreover we must come believing. This is more particularly intended by our Lord, the words coming and believing, being perfectly synonymous [Note: ver. 35.]. To come filled with unbelief, would be to insult, rather than to honour him. We should be convinced of his suitableness to our necessities, his sufficiency for our relief, and his willingness to receive us. We must regard him as the only way to life, the only door of hope [Note: Joh 14:6; Joh 10:9.]. We must believe in him as appointed of God to be our wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption [Note: 1Co 1:30.]; and then we shall find by happy experience that he is able to save us to the uttermost.]
III.
The encouragement we have to come to him
[Though our Lord sometimes delayed answering the requests of those who came to him in the days of his flesh, he never finally refused any. Thus, though he may not instantly manifest his acceptance of us, he will not reject any who thus come unto him. No past iniquities shall cause him to reject us. This is evident from many strong and express declarations of Prophets [Note: Isa 1:18.], of Apostles [Note: Act 10:43 and 1Jn 1:7.], of Christ himself [Note: Mat 12:31.]. If it be thought that the sin against the Holy Ghost is an exception, let it suffice to say, that no man, who desires to find acceptance through Christ, can possibly have committed that; since he would in that case have been given over to judicial blindness and obduracy, and consequently, would have continued altogether regardless of his eternal welfare. The same may be proved from manifold instances, wherein the vilest of the human race have found acceptance with him. We need only look at Manasseh [Note: 2Ki 21:16. with 2Ch 33:9; 2Ch 33:12-13.], David [Note: 2Sa 12:9; 2Sa 12:13.], and above all at the Apostle Paul, who was in this particular intended for a pattern [Note: 1Ti 1:16.], and this blessed truth will be established beyond a possibility of doubt. Nor will any present infirmities cause our Lord to reject us. For his Disciples, long after they had found acceptance with him, betrayed manifest symptoms of pride [Note: Mar 9:33-34.], revenge [Note: Luk 9:54.], and cowardice [Note: Mat 26:56.]; and Peter, whose misconduct was by far the most glaring, received by far the most striking tokens of our Lords regard [Note: Mar 16:7 and Joh 21:15-17.]. We say not this to encourage sin, but to illustrate the tender mercies of him, who carries the lambs in his bosom, and who, instead of breaking the bruised reed, will bring forth from it the sweetest melody [Note: Isa 40:11; Isa 42:3.].]
Address
1.
Those who are afar off from Christ
[Can it be supposed, that, if we will not go to Christ, we can ever participate his benefits? Doubtless we cannot: if we keep at a distance from him in this world, there will be an impassable gulf between us in the world to come. Let us remember then, that we must go to him or perish. Let not any one object, I cannot go: for the truth is, we will not [Note: Joh 5:40.]. Yet, notwithstanding our past obstinacy, we may go to him, with a full assurance that he will in no wise cast us out. Let us not then delay, lest death seize us, and the door of mercy be for ever closed.]
2.
Those who are coming to him
[We are told of one in the Gospel, whom, when coming to our Lord, the devil cast down, and tare, and left to appearance, dead [Note: Mar 9:20; Mar 9:26.]. Such enmity will Satan discover against us also as soon as ever we attempt to come to Christ. He will raise every obstacle in his power: he will assault us by fightings without, and fears within. But the more earnest he is in his endeavours to draw us from Christ, the more determined let us be in going to Christ: so shall we most effectually defeat his malice, and secure beyond a doubt our own salvation.]
3.
Those who have come to him
[Whence is it that so great a difference has been put between you and others? Is it that you were of yourselves more inclined to good, and that you made yourselves to differ [Note: 1Co 4:7.]? No: you were once as far from God as any; nor had the smallest inclination to seek him till God gave you the will [Note: Php 2:13.]; nor could you then have come to Christ, except the Father had drawn you by his Almighty power [Note: Joh 6:44.]. Be careful then to give all the glory of your salvation to God alone. And remember that you are still to be coming to Christ every day you live [Note: 1Pe 2:4-5.]. All your fresh springs are in him; and out of his fulness you must continually receive. Live then a life of faith on the Son of God; and the communion, which you enjoy with him on earth, shall soon be perfected in the realms of glory.]
Fuente: Charles Simeon’s Horae Homileticae (Old and New Testaments)
37 All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
Ver. 37. All that the Father giveth me ] Gr. , all things, that is, the whole community of Christians, all the elect, of which number you plainly show yourselves to be none by your want of the faith of God’s elect, that distinctive character. Wisdom is justified of all her children.
I will in no wise cast out ] Gr. , I will not not, cast out out. A powerful speech, and a most comfortable consideration. Who would not come to Jesus Christ upon such sweetest encouragement? Surely as all that were in debt and distress came to David, and he became their captain; so should all afflicted spirits come to the Son of David, the Captain of our salvation. Non autem pedibus itur ad Christum, sed affectibus, &c., Moreover he should not come to Christ but with affection, where this life giving carcase is, thither let the eagles resort.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
37. ] The whole body of believers on Christ are spoken of by Him, here and in ch. 17, as given to Him by the Father . But Bengel’s observation is very important: “ vocula momentosissima, et, collatis iis qu sequuntur, consideratu dignissima. Nam in sermonibus Jesu Christi, quod Pater ipsi dedit, id, et singulari numero et neutro genere, appellatur omne; qui ad ipsum, Filium , veniunt, ii masculino genere vel etiam plurali numero describuntur, omnis , vel illi . Pater Filio totam quasi massam dedit, ut omnes quos dedit unum sint; id universum Filius singulatim evolvit, in exsecutione. Hinc illud in xvii. 2, ut omne quod dedisti ei, det eis vitam ternam.” See also 1Jn 5:4 . See further on , Joh 6:44 .
. does not refer here to the office of the Son of God as Judge; but is another way of expressing the grace and readiness with which He will receive all who come to Him.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Joh 6:37 . No; for . “Everything which the Father gives”; the neuter is used as being more universal than the masculine and including everything which the Father determines to save from the world’s wreck, viewed as a totality. Cf. Joh 6:39 . : and the collective neuter, as in Thucyd., iii. 16, for . Lampe thinks the neuter is used, “quia hae personae spectantur ut reale peculium, haereditas, merces, genus, semen, sacerdotium, sanctuarium Domini”. What is meant by ? It is an act on God’s part prior to the “coming” on man’s part; the coming is the result of the giving. Calvinistic interpreters have therefore identified the giving with election. “ Donandi verbum perinde valet ac si dixisset Christus, quos elegit Pater, eos regenerat” Calvin. “Patrem dare filio est eligere” Melanchthon; and similarly Beza and Lampe. On the other hand, Reynolds represents a number of interpreters when he says, “It is the present activity of the Father’s grace that is meant, not a foregone conclusion”. This identifies the Father’s “giving” with His “drawing,” Joh 6:44 . It would rather seem to be that which determines the drawing, the assigning to Jesus of certain persons who shall form His kingdom. This perhaps involves election but is not identical with it. Cf. Joh 17:6 . Euthymius replies, from a Semi-Pelagian point of view, to the objections which arise from an Augustinian interpretation of the words. The purpose of the verse is to impart assurance that Christ’s work will not fail. . Grotius thinks the “casting out” refers to the School of Christ; Lcke thinks the kingdom is referred to. It is scarcely necessary to think of anything more than Christ’s presence or fellowship. This strong asseveration , and concentrated Gospel which has brought hope to so many, is here grounded on the will of the Father.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
All = Whatever (Neut. singular)
come . . . cometh. “come” = reach, denoting arrival; “cometh” denotes the act and process.
in no wise. Greek. ou me. App-105. As “never” in Joh 6:35.
cast out. Referring to the Divine Supplement “send away” in Mat 14:15. Put by Figure of speech Tapeinosis (App-6) for giving blessing to such.
out = without.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
37.] The whole body of believers on Christ are spoken of by Him, here and in ch. 17, as given to Him by the Father. But Bengels observation is very important: -vocula momentosissima, et, collatis iis qu sequuntur, consideratu dignissima. Nam in sermonibus Jesu Christi, quod Pater ipsi dedit, id, et singulari numero et neutro genere, appellatur omne; qui ad ipsum, Filium, veniunt, ii masculino genere vel etiam plurali numero describuntur,-omnis, vel illi. Pater Filio totam quasi massam dedit, ut omnes quos dedit unum sint; id universum Filius singulatim evolvit, in exsecutione. Hinc illud in xvii. 2, ut omne quod dedisti ei, det eis vitam ternam. See also 1Jn 5:4. See further on , Joh 6:44.
. does not refer here to the office of the Son of God as Judge; but is another way of expressing the grace and readiness with which He will receive all who come to Him.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Joh 6:37. ) all. A most weighty word, and, in comparing with it those things which follow, most worthy of consideration; for, in the discourses of Jesus Christ, what the Father hath given to the Son Himself, that is termed, both in the singular number and neuter gender, all [omne]: those who come to the Son Himself, are described in the masculine gender, or even the plural number, every one [omnis], or they [illi]. The Father hath given, as it were, the whole mass, in order that all whom He hath given, may be a unity [unum]: that whole the Son evolves individually [one by one], in the carrying out of the Divine plan. Hence that expression, ch. Joh 17:2, that ALL which [ , omne quod] THOU HAST GIVEN Him, HE SHOULD GIVE THEM [, eis] eternal life. In the Greek style of the New Testament, especially of John, wheresoever fastidious minds would say the construction was a solecism, an elegance truly divine, which to the Hebrews never seemed harsh, is usually found to lie beneath. That remark especially holds good of this passage. It is owing to it that this 37th verse has two members, which are presently handled, the same words being repeated; and indeed the former of the two, at Joh 6:38-39, where the all [ , omne, etc.] is mentioned in conjunction with the Father; the second member, at Joh 6:40, This is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life; where the every one [, omnis] is mentioned in conjunction with the Son. The former, by means of the , for [Joh 6:38], and the latter, by means of the , for [Joh 6:40 : is the common reading; but , [128][129][130][131][132][133][134] Vulg.], are connected with Joh 6:37.- , giveth Me) by means of that drawing, Joh 6:44, No man can come unto Me, except the Father, which hath sent Me, draw him. The present tense. Afterwards the past, Joh 6:39, This is the Fathers will,-that of all which He hath given Me, I should lose nothing, with reference to their preservation. The Father giveth to the Son: the Son chooseth, i.e. gives as it were to Himself; Joh 6:70, Have I not chosen you twelve? Believers are given; it is given to believers; Joh 6:32; Joh 6:65, My Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.-No man can come unto Me, except it were given unto him of My Father.- ) The emphasis rests on this; in other places it is usually written .-) shall come. It is only that all [which the Father giveth Me] which shall come unto Me. Jesus speaks those things, which [such-as] if the Jews would receive, they would be believers in reality: and, after their unbelief has been brought home to them, He now offers them faith: and what He had before spoken under a figure, He now declares plainly.- , I will not cast out) This signifies not merely the first reception, but the lasting preservation, through all changes and progressive steps in their course, even up to the resurrection-that goal, which takes for granted all things anterior to it; Joh 6:39-40, This is the Fathers will, that-I should lose nothing, but raise it up again at the last day;-that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life; and I will raise Him up, etc.; Joh 6:44; Joh 6:54. There is a Litotes [the meaning is stronger than the literal words]: I will not cast him out, but by all means will preserve him; ch. Joh 10:28, etc., They shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of My hand. My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all; and none is able to pluck them out of My Fathers hand: a passage which closely corresponds to the passage here. Comp. , out, ch. Joh 15:6, Cast forth as a branch, and is withered; .
[128] the Alexandrine MS.: in Brit. Museum: fifth century: publ. by Woide, 1786-1819: O. and N. Test. defective.
[129] Cod. Basilianus (not the B. Vaticanus): Revelation: in the Vatican: edited by Tisch., who assigns it to the beginning of the eighth century.
[130] Ephrmi Rescriptus: Royal libr., Paris: fifth or sixth cent.: publ. by Tisch. 1843: O. and N. T. def.
[131] Bez, or Cantabrig.: Univ. libr., Cambridge: fifth cent.: publ. by Kipling, 1793: Gospels, Acts, and some Epp. def.
[132] Vercellensis of the old Itala, or Latin Version before Jeromes, probably made in Africa, in the second century: the Gospels.
[133] Veronensis, do.
[134] Colbertinus, do.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Joh 6:37
Joh 6:37
All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me;-There is a recognition in the scripture that certain classes of persons with honest hearts desirous to know and do the right are Gods people, and will do what God desires them to do. That class is here represented as given to Christ by God. In the tenth chapter Christ speaks of having sheep not of the flock then with him, referring to the Gentiles who would receive him when he was preached to them. Again, at Corinth God told Paul, I have much people in this city (Act 18:9-10) before any of them had confessed him. Certain persons fitted in character to receive Gods word are called his people before they confess him. This explains the calling and predestination of the Bible. God has called and predestinated to eternal life all willing to receive him.
and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.-All that class Jesus receives. Some who are not of this class receive him temporarily, but lack depth of character and under temptation fall away. Judas was an example of this character of people.
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Christs Doctrine of Election
All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.Joh 6:37.
1. After claiming to be the Bread of Life, and condemning the Jews attitude towards Himself, Jesus announced His assurance that notwithstanding their unbelief all that the Father gave Him would come to Him, and then immediately uttered the gracious words which have given confidence and courage to all approaching Him through the centuries, Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. In this twofold declaration the Lord revealed two aspects of one great effect, the heavenly and the earthly. The heavenly takes in the whole result, All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me. The earthly declares the individual responsibility, and utters the word creating confidence, Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
2. The tone in which the words are spoken supplies another element in the picture. Jesus seems to pause after saying, Ye have seen me, and yet believe not. It is a sorrowful fact, and it is very mysterious. Here are His own people rejecting Him, or at any rate coming to Him in such a wrong fashion that He has to discourage them. It looks as though Gods plan of salvation were not working out right. Is it going to fail at the outset? Such questions must crowd into the Saviours mind, as He faces the fact that these people will not accept Him. But they are not allowed to cloud His faith for an instant. At once the Son acquiesces in the Fathers plan. It is all right; it cannot fail. All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me. Nobody will be lost whom the Father designed to save. Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. I am doing My part correctly. So all must be well.
The Commander-in-Chief at the base of operations decides upon the plan of campaign, and entrusts its execution to another General who never doubts the strategy though it does not appear successful immediately, and never doubts His own perfect fulfilment of the plan.1 [Note: J. E. Roberts.]
Mark well this passage, I will in no wise cast him out. Our Saviour doth plainly import that there neither is nor can be devisedno, not by God Himselfany one consideration whatsoever which might occasion Him to put off or say nay to any person that doth come. No consideration in the world, I say, can so aggravate a mans condition, could he make it as bad as the devils themselves, yet, if there be a coming to Christ, there can be no consideration in the highest pitch of sinfulness for Christ to reject, or put by, a person coming to Him. For you must know, beloved, Christ is well acquainted with all the objections the heart of man (nay, the devil) can object against the freeness of His grace and life by Him. To save labour, therefore, in this one passage (I will in no wise cast out) Christ at once answers all the objections that could be made. And I dare be bold to maintain, in the name and stead of Christ, let a person but say and lay down this for granted, that come he wouldthat he would have Christ rather than his life,let this be granted for a truth, I will be bold with Christ out of this passage to answer ten thousand objections, even fully to the silencing of every objection that can be made; I will in no wise cast him out; I will in no wise, that is, I will upon no consideration that can be imagined or conceived.2 [Note: Tobias Crisp.]
I
The Fathers Part
All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me.
At once the question suggests itself, Who are given by the Father to the Son? The context supplies an answer. The charge brought by Jesus against these Jews is, Ye see and believe not. He has declared already, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent. It seems evident, therefore, that that which the Father giveth includes all who believe on the Son. That may include everybody. Whosoever will may believe. But to believe is the essential condition. Therefore the great truth of our text is that all who believe are saved. It sounds a commonplace: but consider what it means. Take a few cases. A is a denizen of the slums, poor in pocket and in education; B is a University professor, of high moral instincts and intellectual attainments; C is a Roman Catholic scientist; D is a cannibal on a mission station on the Congo. Now suppose each of these convicted of sin and desiring to trust Jesus. Their circumstances vary enormously. Coming to Christ and reaching Him mean very different experiences. A never uttered a prayer in his life, and scarcely understands any article of the Christian creed; B has considered the creed carefully and critically, and has been accustomed to reverent worship; C has to accept dogmas on the authority of the Church, though his reason may contradict them; D has dim conceptions of God and is governed by savage instincts which cannot be eradicated in a brief time. Does it seem at all likely that four men placed in such different circumstances should ever succeed in finding God in Christ? Jesus says they shall. All that which the Father giveth me shall come unto me. No lack of knowledge, no spirit of caution, no church dogma, no savage instinct shall hide the face of God in Christ or keep a seeking soul from the Saviour. Coming from East and West and North and South, the guiding star shall gather them all at the feet of the Son of God.
The Christian doctrine of election used to be freely preached; but it was sometimes mis-stated, and therefore it was misunderstood. So it fell into disuse. Now it seems to be too much neglected. If it means what some people think it meansthat God elected a certain number of individuals without reference to their moral fitness for salvation and consigned all the rest of mankind to eternal perditionI do not wonder it is neglected. Such teaching conflicts with our knowledge of God and has no shred of evidence in the Scriptures. Its true meaning is given in this verse. God has elected for salvation not this or that individual, but all people who believe in His Son whom He hath sent. This may be all. God wants it to be all. All who believe are saved. That is, God elects, not the individuals, but the means, and guarantees that all who use the means shall be saved.1 [Note: J. E. Roberts.]
As to this matter of election, I would to God that some who object to it had as much common sense in this matter as they have in the daily actions of ordinary life. I ask for no higher degree of common sense. Let me assume that a purse has been lost in the street adjoining our place of meeting; the purse contains a thousand guineas; whoever finds that purse may keep it. Ha! we say, well, only one can find it; therefore what is the good of a thousand seeking it? Only one can have it; and if I am elected to be the man, it will come in my way. I never heard people reasoning so with regard to an affair of that kind. Though only one may have it, ten thousand will strive for it if they know the conditions. There is a prize to be given in the school. It is one prize; there are five hundred scholars in the school. The boys say, Well, only one of us can get it, why should five hundred of us be toiling and fagging for it? Another boy says, I know if I am to have the prize, I will get it; so I shall read no books, and make no preparation. You would not allow a boy to reason so. Yet there are men who say this, If we are called to heaven, well get to heaven; if we are elected to be saved, we need not make any effort about it. Thou wicked and slothful servant; out of thine own mouth I condemn thee; the whole action of thy evil life shall be thy answer on the day of judgment, and thou shalt be condemned to an ignominious silence because of a self-accusing conscience.1 [Note: J. Parker.]
I am thankful to believe that my final salvation does not depend wholly on myself. If it did, it would be at stake to the very last! Salvation involves so much. It includes deliverance from sin, development of character, fitness to dwell with God. Mans faith is often such a frail thing. It were a poor refuge, if there were no Divine purpose to support it. It becomes a sure defence if God says, I pledge that mans deliverance. Here is a man battling with a rough sea. A belt is flung to him. What hope of deliverance can he have by clinging to a few pounds of cork? This hope, that there are fifty strong arms pulling him through the surf to the shore. Do not push the simile too far. The Christian life is not simply clinging to a belt; it is a daily conflict with temptation. But it is gloriously true that faith in Christ transfers the responsibility of salvation to the Saviour, and makes deliverance certain. Though I grasp the hand of Christ I might lose it in a moment of doubt or weakness, or when my feet enter the chill waters of the river of death. Thanks be unto God for the assurance that if I clasp the hand of Christ He grips mine, and none can pluck me out of that strong clasp. It is my sheet anchor amidst the storms of life and the floods of death.2 [Note: J. E. Roberts.]
Because I seek Thee not, oh seek Thou me!
Because my lips are dumb, oh hear the cry
I do not utter as Thou passest by,
And from my life-long bondage set me free!
Because content I perish, far from Thee,
Oh seize me, snatch me from my fate, and try
My soul in Thy consuming fire! Draw nigh
And let me, blinded, Thy salvation see.
If I were pouring at Thy feet my tears,
If I were clamouring to see Thy face,
I should not need Thee, Lord, as now I need,
Whose dumb, dead soul knows neither hopes nor fears,
Nor dreads the outer darkness of this place
Because I seek not, pray not, give Thou heed!1 [Note: Louise Chandler Moulton.]
II
Mans Part
Him that cometh to me.
1. Coming is the only way of salvation. If there could have been any other way, this one would never have been opened. It is not conceivable that God would have given His only-begotten and well-beloved Son to die upon the cross of Calvary in order to save sinners if there had been any other way of saving them that would have been as consistent with the principles of infallible justice. If men could have entered into everlasting life without passing along the path stained and consecrated by the blood of Jesus, surely that blood would never have been shed for many for the remission of sins. The very fact that this new and living way has been opened proves that there is no other, for God would never have provided it unless it had been absolutely necessary.
2. But what is coming? The people He was addressing had followed Him for miles, and had found Him and were speaking to Him, but they had not come to Him. To come to Him is to approach Him in spirit, and with submissive trust; it is to commit ourselves to Him as our Lord; it is to rest in Him as our all; it is to come to Him with open heart, accepting Him as He claims to be; it is to meet the eye of a present, living Christ, who knows what is in man, and to say to Him, I am Thine, Thine most gladly, Thine for evermore.
An Irish boy was asked what was meant by saving faith. Grasping Christ with the heart, said he. The truest answer possible. And faith is only another word for coming. The man who grasps Christ with the heart, comes.1 [Note: R. D. Dickinson.]
3. The one essential in coming is the desire to come. Christ pledges His gift to readiness of heart. As to the open eye the light pours in, and to the listening ear the music enters, so to the longing heart Christ gives the pardon and the purity and the peace which, though it has not shaped its need into those words, are in reality the gifts for which it yearns. The value of a photographic plate consists not in what it is, but in its readiness to receive the impression when the shutter of the camera is opened and the light streams in. If a mere piece of common glass were there instead of the plate, the light might shine on it for ever and no impression would be made; it is the prepared plate that receives the impression which the light conveys. So, too, it is the prepared soul that receives the gift of Christ. The one thing that the Saviour asks for is readiness, willingness, some movement of the life towards Him; if there is that within us we need not fear that Christ, who is light, will fail to bring His blessing to us or to leave His mark on us. Everything is possible to us if we are open to the influence of God. What is it that we want Christ to do for us? Is it to cleanse away our sin? He points us to His cross. Do we want rest from an accusing conscience and from the weary load of loneliness? Come unto me, He says, and I will give you rest. Is what is deepest in us still unsatisfied, although we have been seeking many fountains and drinking from many cups? He that believeth on me shall never thirst.
At one critical time during this period of soul-conflict he stated in one of his addresses that the question, Believe ye that I am able to do this? was made a word of life to him. He writes: I was very near death; I was almost despairing. The only thing that kept my head above water was the promise, Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. I repeated it again and again, and prayed very earnestly, when the word came to me with such power, and with such a rebuke, Believe ye that I am able to do this? He was able, and I believed Him, and He did it.1 [Note: K. Moody-Stuart, Brownlow North, 41.]
(1) Unfitness is no barrier to coming.It is strange how people are inclined to wait a little, to try to prepare themselves for Christ! They know how unlike Him they are, and how unfit they are for His presence and service; so, as a youth who waits awhile to prepare himself for some important examination, or as a soldier waits awhile to perfect himself in drill for some promotionso they think they can wait. But their waiting never changes their nature or renews their heart. For their case is rather like that of those who suffer from a malignant disease. No amount of waiting or even of attention to the outward signs of the disease is of any avail, and the time spent over that but increases the danger; for the disorder is within, the whole system is poisoned and needs renewing, and it is to save their life that they at once put themselves in the hands of a qualified physician. Christ Jesus is the qualified physician, and His blood is a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world.
I have heard of a cavalier who lost his life because he stopped to curl his hair when Cromwells soldiers were after him. Some of you may laugh at the mans foolishness; but that is all that your talk about fitness is. What is all your fitness but the curling of your hair when you are in imminent danger of losing your soul? Your fitness is nothing to Christ. Remember the hymn
Let not conscience make you linger,
Nor of fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness He requireth
Is to feel your need of Him.2 [Note: C. H. Spurgeon.]
(2) Emptiness and not fulness is required.Before a building is erected it is necessary to excavate for a foundation, which involves the removal of much that seems important. And it is literally true that Christ wants not our fulness but our emptiness, that He may build us up in our most holy faith. We think ourselves full, and are reluctant to part with anything; whereas we are poordestitute of everything that is necessary to appear before God with; we are wretched, being altogether out of harmony with the eternal joys of heaven; and we are blind to our actual condition, to our own welfare, and even to the salvation so freely provided and so fully revealed by Christ our Saviour, till the eyes of our understanding are opened, and we are led to see and desire the many things we need. And the faith that saves is that which takes us out of ourselves, where there is nothing, to Christ, where there is fulness for all we needpurity, peace, and joy, without money and without price.
From all thou holdest precious, for one hour
Arise and come away,
And let the calling Voice be heard in power;
Desert thyself to-day;
If with thy Lord for once thou turn aside,
With Him thoult fain abide.1 [Note: J. E. A. Brown.]
4. The coming is a personal coming to a personal Saviour.How personal the text is concerning both the one coming and the One to whom he is to come: him that cometh to me. That is the long and the short of the whole matter, its Alpha and Omega, its beginning and its end; there must be a personal coming to the personal Christ. It will not suffice for us to come to Christs doctrines. We must, of course, believe what He taught; but believing His teaching will not save us unless we come to Him. It will not be enough merely to come to Christs precepts, and to try to practise them,an utterly impossible task for our own unaided strength; we must first come to Christ, and then, when we trust in Him for salvation, His gracious Spirit will take of the things of Christ, and shew them unto us.
In simple trust like theirs who heard
Beside the Syrian sea
The gracious calling of the Lord,
Let us, like them, without a word
Rise up and follow Thee.2 [Note: Whittier.]
III
Christs Part
I will in no wise cast out.
1. Christs accessibility.Jesus never slept in a walled town is the striking remark of a literary writer. There never lived so open a man, so accessible always to all. Sitting at the well of Sychar, and talking freely to the first comer; receiving Nicodemus by night; listening to the Syro-Phnician mother, who breaks through His concealment; preaching to the five thousand, who disturb His retirement,He is the property of every man that wants Him, and leaves us an example to follow His steps.
2. Christs longing for response.I once knew a mother, says Canon Duncan, who had a son who suffered from paralysis of the brain. Yet, how she loved and cared for him! But the cause of her great grief was this; she said: I have nursed him from childhood, cleansed, fed, and clothed him, watched over him and supplied his every want, tried to please him, and to teach him little things, and now, though in years he is a man, yet he does not even know me, and shows no return of my love, but just lies there to eat and drink and sleep! And I feel that I cannot go on; I am just longing for some recognitionsome response to my lifelong love and care! How many are there, though not afflicted like that son, who nevertheless treat their God and Saviour much the same! He sacrificed His very life for them; fed, clothed, and cared for them day by day; and has called them by His providence, by His word, and by every token of love, and yet they give no response.
He utters this word Himself, that, however long men may neglect it, however long it may be that they see and hear, and yet believe Him not, when they do finally come, He cannot, and will not, and must not cast them away.1 [Note: Schleiermacher.]
It is the greatness of Thy love, dear Lord, that we would celebrate
With sevenfold powers.
Our love at best is cold and poor, at best unseemly for Thy state,
This best of ours.
Creatures that die, we yet are such as Thine own hands deigned to create:
We frail as flowers,
We bitter bondslaves ransomed at a price incomparably great
To grace Heavens bowers.
Thou callest: Come at onceand still Thou callest us: Come late, tho late
(The moments fly)
Come, every one that thirsteth, comeCome prove Me, knocking at My gate
(Some souls draw nigh!)
Come thou who waiting seekest MeCome thou for whom I seek and wait
(Why will we die?)
Come and repent: come and amend: come joy the joys unsatiate
(Christ passeth by )
Lord, pass not byI comeand Iand I. Amen.1 [Note: Christina G. Rossetti, Poems, 164.]
3. The certainty of Christs welcome.Every one who will come to Christ is sure of a welcome. That is the emphatic message of the text. The words used by our Lord are the strongest possible. Sweetly familiar as the music of the English version is, it scarcely represents their double emphasis. Literally they read, Him that cometh to me I will not, not cast out. That is to say, to use a modern phrase, there is not the slightest fear of his being cast out. A heart burdened with a spiritual need will never be repelled; a man panting with a spiritual desire may be absolutely certain that when he comes to Christ he will be welcome. Oh! cries Bunyan, the comfort that I have had from this word in no wise, as who should say, by no means, for no thing, whatever he hath done But Satan would greatly labour to pull this promise from me, telling me that Christ did not mean me. But I should answer him againSatan, here is, in this word, no such exception, but him that comes, him, any himhim that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. Bunyan was right. The welcome is for all, without any reserve or any exception, or any condition, save that of willingness to come.
Of other ten adults at this time admitted, one was specially noteworthy. She was about twenty-five, and the Elders objected because her marriage had not been according to the Christian usage on Aniwa. She left us weeping deeply. I was writing late at night in the cool evening air, as was my wont in that oppressive tropical clime, and a knock was heard at my door. I called out
Akai era? (= Who is there?)
A voice softly answered,Missi, it is Lamu. Oh, do speak with me!
This was the rejected candidate, and I at once opened the door.
Oh, Missi, she began, I cannot sleep, I cannot eat; my soul is in pain. Am I to be shut out from Jesus? Some of those at the Lords Table committed murder. They repented, and have been saved. My heart is very bad; yet I never did any of those crimes of Heathenism; and I know that it is my joy to try and please my Saviour Jesus. How is it that I only am to be shut out from Jesus?
I tried all I could to guide and console her, and she listened to all very eagerly. Then she looked up at me and said
Missi, you and the Elders may think it right to keep me back from showing my love to Jesus at the Lords Table; but I know here in my heart that Jesus has received me; and if I were dying now, I know that Jesus would take me to Glory and present me to the Father.
Her look and manner thrilled me. I promised to see the Elders and submit her appeal. But Lamu appeared and pled her own cause before them with convincing effect. She was baptized and admitted along with other nine. And that Communion Day will be long remembered by many souls on Aniwa.1 [Note: John G. Paton, ii. 282.]
4. The fulness and freeness of Christs welcome.A man may have been guilty of an atrocious sin, too black for mention; but if he comes to Christ he shall not be cast out. To that atrocious sin he may have added many others, till the condemning list is full and long; but if he comes to Christ he shall not be cast out. He may have hardened his neck against the remonstrances of prudence, and the entreaties of mercy; he may have sinned deeply and wilfully; but if he comes to Christ he shall not be cast out. He may have made himself as black as night, as black as hell; yet, if he shall come to Christ, the Lord will not cast him out.
This is the Charter of Christianitythat there lives no sinner too bad for Jesus to save. A year ago I met a doctor possessed of far more than ordinary gifts in dealing with one of our most fatal diseases. From all parts of the country men and women whose lives have been despaired of by their own physicians have journeyed to this mans consulting-room, and have placed their last hope of recovery in his mysterious powers. And he described to me the pathos of his work. For again and again he has to face a body of anxious patients who are waiting from his lips their sentence of life or of death; and, while he is able to restore many to perfect health, he knows that he will find others for whom he can do nothing. Such is the lot of every physician but One. There is One to whom no case is hopeless; who never yet sent patient away unhealed. Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.1 [Note: H. Bisseker, Sunday Evenings in Methodism, 153.]
Lord, dost Thou me invite
To sit in white
At the great Feast which for Thy friends is spread?
I could not be so bold,
In raiment poor and old;
Rather without Thy gates would stand unfed.
Thy messenger mistook
My hungry look,
As claiming seat at table of the pure;
I am too wise to dare
My worthless presence there,
Nor could my spirit that clear light endure.
Hedge-rows for me instead,
Their berries red
Enough of sweetness for my lips contain;
The glow-worm is my lamp
Mid herbage damp;
To tread Thy bright courts would be only pain.
Yet still He calleth me
Come, for I wait for thee,
It is the lost and hungry that I need;
Not luxury and pride,
Already satisfied,
The humble and the poor My feast shall feed.2 [Note: J. E. A. Brown.]
Christs Doctrine of Election
Literature
Bisseker (H.), in Sunday Evenings in Methodism, 153.
Burrell (D. J.), The Golden Passional, 101.
Davies (T.), Sermons, i. 306.
Dods (M.), Footsteps in the Path of Life, 127.
Duncan (J.), Popular Hymns, 148.
Hall (J. V.), The Sinners Friend, 9.
Hoyt (W.), in The American Pulpit of the Day, i. 34.
Hutton (R. E.), The Crown, of Christ, ii. 543.
McDougall (J.), The Ascension of Christ, 86.
Power (P. B.), The I Wills of Christ, 47.
Roberts (J. E.), The Lords Prayer, 73.
Smellie (A.), In the Hour of Silence, 208.
Spurgeon (C. H.), Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, x. (1864) No. 599; xxx. (1884) No. 1762; xl. (1894) No. 2349; li. (1905) No. 2954; lvi. (1910) No. 3230.
Spurgeon (T.), Down to the Sea, 215.
Vaughan (J.), Sermons (Brighton Pulpit, 1866), No. 551.
Christian World Pulpit, liv. 196 (Moule); lxiii. 76 (Mursell).
Church of England Magazine, l. 168 (Dalton).
Expositor, 3rd Ser., iii. 146.
Fuente: The Great Texts of the Bible
that: Joh 6:39, Joh 6:45, Joh 17:2, Joh 17:6, Joh 17:8, Joh 17:9, Joh 17:11, Joh 17:24
shall: Joh 6:44, Joh 6:65, Joh 10:28, Joh 10:29, Psa 110:3, Eph 2:4-10, Phi 1:29, 2Th 2:13, 2Th 2:14, 2Ti 2:19, Tit 3:3-7
I will: Joh 9:34, Psa 102:17, Isa 1:18, Isa 1:19, Isa 41:9, Isa 42:3, Isa 55:7, Mat 11:28, Mat 24:24, Luk 23:40-43, Rom 5:20, 1Ti 1:16, Heb 4:15, Heb 7:25, 1Jo 2:19, Rev 22:17
Reciprocal: Exo 38:1 – General Isa 27:12 – ye shall be Isa 53:10 – the pleasure Isa 55:3 – come Mat 14:36 – perfectly Luk 6:47 – cometh Luk 9:11 – and he Joh 1:39 – Come Joh 5:40 – that Joh 6:35 – he that cometh Joh 6:40 – seeth Joh 7:37 – let Joh 10:3 – the sheep Joh 10:16 – they shall Joh 10:26 – because Joh 17:12 – I kept Act 5:1 – General Act 27:31 – Except Rom 15:7 – as 2Co 6:17 – and I Eph 2:8 – that 1Ti 2:4 – will 2Ti 1:9 – which 1Pe 2:4 – To 2Pe 1:17 – God
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
THE GOLDEN PROMISE
Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.
Joh 6:37
When a penitent sinner ventures to come to the Lord, he is so keenly alive to his condition that a word, a look, would drive him back. This promise, then, is just the strong consolation he wants. It sweeps away every objection and every fear, clears the path for his return, and clasps him at once in the embrace of the Fathers love.
I. To some, no doubt, this is a kind of encouragement which you want most.You feel your need of peace with God. You are convinced that there is mercy for you only through Christ; but this is your abiding fear, that somehow you will not be received. Be assured henceforth that there can be no such thing as refusal. There is nothing which you can construe into a refusal. No soul in this world, or the next, can ever rise up and say that he came according to the Lords word, but was cast out. Jairus came, Mary Magdalene came, the woman of Canaan came, and they were not cast outnay, some He received before they asked, to show how tenderly willing He was to receive sinners. The widow of Nain did not even speak, and yet He knew and granted her hearts desire. The sisters of Lazarus did not ask for such a thing, and yet He gave them their brother restored to life. He might have appealed to the whole Jewish people and said, Which of you, coming to Me, have I once cast out? A silent nation would have attested His readiness to save. And since then, what multitudes has He saved! Whenever His Gospel is fully addressed to the conscience, and Jesus is exalted, then sinners are drawn to Him. Inquirers who are awakened to feel their souls peril, often begin to fear that they shall not be received. Such fears are utterly groundless. Cast them away, then, and come. There is nothing to forbid your finding the mercy which myriads have found already. Do not object that you are not penitent enough, or that, somehow, you do not come in the right way. Very likely, for all you do is faulty. But how are you to come in the right way? Away with your objections. Let the Lord Himself be your teacher. Put His promise to the trial. Come, and commit your eternal interests into His hands. Come, and plead His promise, Lord, here I come, I see ten thousand reasons why I may be cast out, if I were cast out, I would still honour Thy righteous dealing; I deserve to be cast to the uttermost destruction, but I hear that Thou art rich in mercy; I listen to Thy gracious invitation, and here I am come; if I perish, I perish! Is that your history? Then do you think, after what has been said, are you to be the very first that shall not be received? Can you think that after ages of mercy, and myriads of sinners saved, He will now cast out you?
II. Some have come already, and can testify to the truth of the promise.Perhaps many years have passed away since He received you. And now, on reviewing life, marked with countless mercies, this stands prominently forward as the greatest mercy of allthat He drew you to Him, and then, when you came with feeble and tottering steps, He met you with a smile of love, and blotted out all your sins by instantaneous forgiveness. Then what return are you making? Where is your gratitude? Where is your obedience? Where is your constraining sense of the mercies of God? Are you presenting your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable, which is your reasonable service? If you have much forgiveness, are you loving much?
III. But some to whom I am speaking have not come at all.To you I have again to publish the invitation of a willing Lord. Did I say willing? Yes, He is willing. How willing, none can tell! So willing that, with infinite welcome, He would receive every returning sinner who would only come. Remember His tender appeal to Jerusalem, mixed with His very tears, How often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! Was not He willing then? Yea, but He is more than willing. He has commanded His servants to go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that His house may be filled. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christs stead, be ye reconciled to God. Perhaps some are saying, Lord, I will come! and another, I will come! Methinks I hear His voice again breaking His long silence, Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. Would that it were echoed in every nation and every tongue throughout the world, Him that cometh to Jesus, He will in no wise cast out.
IV. But will He always say so?Ah! the day is coming, fast comingwill soon be herewhen He will cast out! Whom? Those who neglected His salvation, those who would not come to Him that they might have life, those who made light of His messages, those who put off the claims of the soul, and thought little of the realities of eternity. Against them the door will be shut. They come, indeed, but come too late, and it will never be opened. But now the door is open, wide open, open to receive you. The Master of the house waits to be gracious. His patience is almost gone, the space for repentance almost spent, He may soon shut the door, and if once shut against you, it will be shut for ever!
Rev. W. B. Mackenzie.
Illustration
Nearly the last words that Henry Bazely, the Oxford Evangelist said, were: Him that cometh unto Me, I will in no wise cast out; and, Lord, I have come.
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary
7
The manner in which the Father gives people to his Son will be brought out further on in the chapter. The point to be noted now is that being given to Jesus, and coming to him, are virtually the same. I will. in no wise cast out. These words express the perfect cooperation between Jesus and God.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Joh 6:37. All that which the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that is coming to me I will in no wise cast out. These words have been understood by some as a reproach: How different are ye from those whom my Father giveth me! but such an interpretation is quite inconsistent with the context. At present, indeed, those to whom Jesus speaks are not believers; but even in their case His mission may not be a failure,they may be given to Him, and He will not cast them out. Up to this point the only gift spoken of has been a gift to men (Joh 6:27; Joh 6:31-34), especially the Fathers gift of the Son to be the bread of life. Here the converse is suddenly introducedthe Fathers gift to the Son. What Jesus brings to men is the Fathers gift to them: what Jesus receives in the homage and belief and love of men is the Fathers gift to Him. The form of expression is remarkable, all that which the Father giveth me. A passage closely akin to this we find in chap. 17 (which has many points of contact with this chapter), and in close connection with the gift which (Joh 6:27) the Son bestows, the gift of eternal life. The passage Isa 17:2 : As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, in order that all that which Thou hast given Him, He may give to them eternal life. In both these verses the totality of the Fathers gift is presented first, and then the individuals who compose this gift and who themselves receive the gift which the Son bestows. The gift of the Father must not be understood by us in the sense of a predestinating decree. Both here and in the other passages of this Gospel where we read of the Father as giving to the Son His people (chaps. Joh 6:37; Joh 6:39, Joh 10:29, Joh 17:2; Joh 17:6; Joh 17:9; Joh 17:24, Joh 18:9), it is the moral and spiritual state of the heart that is thought of under the word. This state of heart by which they are prepared to listen to the voice of Jesus is due to God alone. The truth expressed here by giving is expressed in Joh 6:44 by the drawing of the Father, and in Joh 6:45 by learning and hearing from Him. Such preparation of heart is necessary: as Chrysostom expresses it, faith in Jesus is no chance matter, but one that needs an impulse from above,from Him who worketh in us both to will and to work (Php 2:13). The test, then, of this work in the heart is the coming to Christ. The two words come in this verse are different: in the first instance the meaning is shall reach me; in the second we might almost render the words he that is coming towards me. What was said on the 35th verse is fully applicable here, for the expression is the same. We cannot read the words without being reminded of the most touching of the Saviours parables: the prodigal arose and came towards his father, but when he was yet a great way off his father ran to meet him.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Our blessed Saviour having lamented the obstinate infidelity of the Jews in the foregoing verse, who, though they had seen him, would not believe on him; he doth in this verse comfort himself with the assured expectation, that there would be a number, which should certainly and infallibly come unto him; All that the Father hath given me, shall come unto me, &c.
Here observe, 1. An account of the persons that shall come to Christ: All that the Father hath given him. There is a double gift of us to Christ.
1. In God’s eternal purpose and counsel.
2. In our effectual vocation and calling, when our hearts are by the Holy Spirit of God persuaded and enabled to accept of Christ, as he is freely tendered to us in the gospel.
Observe, 2. The gracious entertainment which Christ gives to those that come unto him: He will in no wise cast them out; that is, I will kindly receive, and graciously entertain them.
Learn hence, 1. That both God the Father, and Christ his Son, are unfeignedly willing, and cordially desirous of the salvation of lost sinners. The federal transaction which was betwixt the Father and the Son from everlasting about the salvation of lost sinners, evidently declares this.
Learn, 2. That the merciful and compassionate Jesus will in no wise cast out or reject, but kindly entertain and receive, every penitent sinner that doth believingly apply unto him for pardon of sin and eternal life; I will in no wise cast out; that is, I will not cast them out of my pity and compassion, out of my love and affection, out of my prayer and intercession, out of my care and protection; I will not cast them out of my covenant; I will never cast them out of my kingdom: for my nature inclines me, my promise binds me, and my office, as Mediator, engages me, to the contrary.
Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament
Vv. 37, 38. All that which the Father gives me shall come unto me; and him who comes to me I will in no wise cast out; 38 for I am come down from heaven to do, not my own will, but the will of him who sent me.
By the words: All that which the Father gives me, Jesus strongly contrasts the believers of all times with these men to whom He had just said: You do not believe! The neuter , all that which, indicates a definite whole in which human unbelief will be unable to make any breach, a whole which will appear complete at the end of the work. The extent of this , all, depends on an act of the Father designated here by the term give, and later by teach anddraw (Joh 6:44-45).
The first of these three terms does not, any more than the other two, refer to the eternal decree of election; there would rather be, in that case, the perfect has given. Jesus speaks of a divine action exerted in the heart of the believers at the moment when they give themselves to Him. This action is opposed not to human freedom, but to a purely carnal attraction, to the gross Messianic aspirations, which had, on this very morning, drawn these crowds to Jesus (Joh 6:26). It is that hunger and thirst after righteousness (Mat 5:6) which the preparatory action of the Father produces in sincere souls. Every time that Jesus sees such a soul coming to Him, He receives it as as a gift of God, and His success with it is certain. I do not think that it is necessary to translate (shall reach), as if it were (shall come, advance towards); for signifies: I am come and am here; comp. Joh 8:42 and Rev 3:3; Rev 15:4, where the substitution of (to come) for would certainly weaken the thought. Jesus means to say, not only that all those whom the Father gives Him will advance towards Him, will believe, but will reach the end. It will not happen to them, as to the present hearers of Jesus, to be shipwrecked on the way. The second part of the verse is parallel with the first. Commonly, an advance on the first is found here, by making the first words: He that cometh to me, the resumption of the last words of the preceding clause: shall come to me. (See Meyer, Weiss, etc.)
But two things seem to me to exclude this interpretation:
1. The substitution in this second sentence of for , which would be a weakening, since the former says less than the latter;
2. The parallelism of the two present tenses (, gives, and him that comes), and that of the two futures (, will reach, and , will cast out).
He that comes to me answers therefore to: All that which the Father gives me; they are the two sides, divine and human, of the inward preparation for salvation. Then: shall come to me answers to: I will not cast out; it is the accomplishment of the salvation itself in the positive and negative relation. Jesus seems to allude by this last term, to cast out, to the stern manner in which He had received this multitude which were so eager to come to Him, and had repelled them with a sort of harshness (Joh 6:26; Joh 6:36). He received them thus only because He did not recognize in them gifts of the Father; for never will any heart burdened with spiritual wants and coming to Him under this divine impulse be rejected by Him. These words recall those of the Synoptics: Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Mat 11:28).
The second clause has, therefore, fundamentally the same sense as the first; but it completes it, first by individualizing the , all, of the first clause (he that), then by substituting the negative form, which excludes every exception (I will not cast out) to the simple affirmation (shall come). The certainty of this welcome full of love promised to believers is justified in Joh 6:38 by the complete dependence in which Jesus placed Himself with relation to the Father, when coming here on earth. Having renounced every work of His own, He can only receive whoever draws near marked with the seal of the Father. The term , I am come down, contains the affirmation of His pre- existence. On the expression my own will, see at Joh 6:30. If Jesus had wished to accomplish here below a work for Himself, distinct from that of the Father, His reception or His refusals would have been determined, at least in part, by personal sympathies or repugnances, and would not have altogether coincided with the preparation due to the work of God in the souls. But, as there is nothing of this, and as He has no will except to make that of His Father at each moment His own, it follows that whoever comes to Him as one commended by the Father, is sure to be welcomed by Him; comp. the same idea of voluntary dependence in the discourse of chap. 5.
Fuente: Godet Commentary (Luke, John, Romans and 1 Corinthians)
6:37 {8} All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
(8) The gift of faith proceeds from the free election of the Father in Christ, after which everlasting life necessarily follows: therefore faith in Christ Jesus is a sure witness of our election, and therefore of our glorification, which is to come.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
These people’s lack of faith did not indicate that Jesus or God’s plan had failed, however. The ability to believe on Jesus requires divine enablement. It is only those whom the Father enables to believe that come to Jesus in faith. These are the people whom the Father has given to the Son as gifts. Jesus viewed the ultimate cause of faith as God’s electing grace, not man’s choice.
Jesus promised not to turn away anyone who came to Him in faith. He used a figure of speech (litotes) to stress strongly the positive fact that all who believe in Him find acceptance and security. In litotes the speaker or writer affirms a positive truth by negating its opposite. For example, "This is no small matter," is a litotes meaning, "This is a very significant matter." In the first part of this verse Jesus spoke of the elect as a group, and in the second part He referred to every individual in the group. Jesus had confidence in the Father drawing the elect to Him, and the believer may have confidence too in the Son receiving and retaining him or her. How can a person know if he or she is one of the elect? Let him or her come to Jesus in faith.
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
NOTE ON CHAP. VI., Vers. 37, 44, 45.
Three terms are used in these verses which call for examination,-giving, drawing, teaching. The two latter are used in a connection which leaves little room for doubt as to their meaning. No man can come to Me, except the Father which hath sent Me draw him…. It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man, therefore, that hath heard and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto Me; but, by implication, no man who has not so learned. Both verses express the thought that without special aid from God no man can come to Christ. There must be a Divine illumination of the human faculties, enabling the man to apprehend that Jesus is the Christ, and to receive Him as such. These expressions cannot refer to the outward illumination which is communicated by Scripture, by the miracles of Christ, and so forth; because the whole of the crowd addressed by our Lord had such illumination, and yet not all of them were taught of God. The hearing, and learning, or being taught of God, here spoken of must signify the opening of the inner ear by the unseen operation of God Himself. Most emphatically does Jesus affirm that without this exercise of the Divine will and Divine power upon the individual no man can receive Him. The mere manifestation of God in the flesh is not enough: an inward and special enlightenment is required to enable a man to recognise God manifest in the flesh. The words, then, of ver. 44 (Joh 6:44) only mean that in order to apprehend the significance of Christ and to yield ourselves to Him we must be aided individually and inwardly by God.
Whether the giving of ver. 37 (Joh 6:37) is intended to signify an act prior to the teaching and drawing may reasonably be doubted. It is prior to the coming to Christ, as the terms of the verse prove: All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me: and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out. Principal Reynolds says it is the present activity of the Fathers grace that is meant, not a foregone conclusion, No doubt that is in strictness true. Our Lord, in the face of general unbelief, is comforting Himself with the assurance that after all He will draw to Himself all whom the Father gives Him; and this implies that the Fathers giving is the main factor in His success.