The
spiritual inability of fallen man is so severe that “No one can come
to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the
last day” (John 6:44, ESV).
Summarily, this verse teaches the necessity of the Father’s initiative
within the inclinations and abilities of sinners to come to Christ. The verse also makes it very clear that those
whom the Father draws will be raised up on the last day. This clearly implies “raised up to eternal
life” as it is used in verse 39.[1]
Having said that, we know that John records the words of
Jesus in Chapter 12 saying, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will
draw all people to myself.”” (John 12:32, ESV)
If we apply the same interpretation to John 12:32 as we do
to John 6:44 the result is universalism – all people will be saved to eternal
life. This would be true because the
text says, “will draw ALL people to myself” [emphasis mine]
It’s not my
intent to refute universalism[2]
for any orthodox view of salvation would immediately discount such a
notion. However, it is a legitimate
argument that verse 32 of chapter 12 at least implies that God grants inclining
grace to all people. But a careful
examination of that will show otherwise.
My reasons are as follows:
1. If John
meant in the 6th chapter that all men are drawn, meaning every
individual, it makes the teaching of our Lord nonsensical. John 6:37 and 6:44 are complimentary verses. “All
that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never
cast out” (John 6:37, ESV); and “No one can come to me unless the Father
who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:44,
ESV). They are meaningless if the intent of the Spirit is to suggest all people
are given to the Son and all people are drawn.
Whatever else this means; it means that there is a determined group of
people given to the Son by the Father and that determined number come by means
of the Father’s drawing.
2. In John 12:32, the Greek text reads: “κἀγὼ ⸀ἐὰν ὑψωθῶ ἐκ τῆς γῆς, πάντας ἑλκύσω πρὸς ἐμαυτόν.” Literally that reads in English: And I if I be lifted up from the earth, all
will draw to myself. English Bibles
insert “all people” or “all men”. That
is a valid implication, but it can be confusing. Does it mean “all people”,
i.e., every human, every individual? Not
necessarily. Firstly, we need to recognize
as Biblical students do that “all” doesn’t always mean “every individual”.[3]
Of course it can, but not necessarily. “All”
can also mean “all who believe” as it does in Romans 5:18.[4] All can also mean “all types of people”
implying rich, poor; Jew, Gentile; high class, lower class; etc. Most commentators see this meaning in John
12. For example:
a. “Jesus
there claims he will draw ‘all men’ to himself. The context[5]
shows rather clearly, however, that 12:32 refers to ‘all men without
distinction’ (i.e. not just Jews)
rather than to ‘all men without exception’”[6];
b. “All people, in context, means “all kinds of people,” that is, both Jews and Gentiles (John 10:16;
11:52; cf. 12:20–21)”[7];
c. "All men" does not imply that all men will
ultimately be saved; instead, it means that Christ draws men to himself
indiscriminately, without regard to nationality, race, or status. Jesus'
utterance was prompted by the presence of the Greek Gentiles and should be evaluated
by the setting of the occasion. There is, however, a clear differentiation
between believers and unbelievers, between the saved and the lost, in all the
Johannine writings (John 1:11; 3:18, 36; 5:29; 6:40, 53, 64; 8:44; 1 John 3:10,
15; 5:12)”[8];
and even Grant Osborne, an Arminian
(albeit with inconsistent and confusing theology) admits;
d. “Jesus claims to “draw all people” to himself, and he is
hardly teaching universalism. I believe that 6:44 refers to God’s control of
salvation and to the security of the believer.”[9]
Summary
So how are we to understand that the lifting up of Christ
will draw all [men] in relation to the assertion that no one can come to Christ
unless the Father draws? I think there
are 2 reasonable choices that do not violate the text:
Choice One: As noted
above and seemingly fitting the context the best, Jesus said in John 12:32,
when He dies and rises again, he will draw all kinds of people to Himself. This is likely the best interpretation. It
fits squarely with Genesis 49:10[10].
Choice Two: Because John
records the “lifting up” passage after the “drawing” of the 6th chapter,
I think it is likely that the reader will already know that 6:44 is a controlling,
defining, interpreting verse over 12:32.
In other words, the reader ought to know what “drawing” is because John
already defined it. In that case 12:32
may mean “when I am lifted up, I will draw those whom the Father has given me,
to me.”
Conclusion
MacArthur’s comments form a fitting conclusion:
“The combination of v. 37a and v. 44 indicate that the
divine drawing activity which Jesus referred to cannot be reduced to what
theologians call “prevenient grace,” i.e., that somehow the power to come to
Christ is allegedly dispensed to all of mankind, thus enabling everyone to
accept or reject the gospel according to their own will alone. Scripture
indicates that no “free will” exists in man’s nature, for man is enslaved to
sin (total depravity) and unable to believe apart from God’s empowerment (Rom.
3:1–19; Eph. 2:1–3; 2 Cor. 4:4; 2 Tim. 1:9). While “whosoever will” may come to
the Father, only those whom the Father gives the ability to will toward Him
will actually come to Him. The drawing here is selective and efficacious
(producing the desired effect) upon those whom God has sovereignly chosen for
salvation, i.e., those whom God has chosen will believe because God has
sovereignly determined that result from eternity past (Eph. 1:9–11).”[11]
To God be the Glory
[1] “And this is the will of him who
sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it
up on the last day.” (John 6:39, ESV)
[4] “Therefore,
as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness
leads to justification and life for all men.” (Romans 5:18, ESV)
[5] “Now among those who went up to worship at the
feast were some Greeks.” (John 12:20, ESV) The context, and the occasion of the words,
which was the desire of the Greeks, that were come to the feast, to see Jesus.
[6] Carson, D. A. (1991). The Gospel according to John (p. 293).
Leicester, England; Grand Rapids, MI: Inter-Varsity Press; W.B. Eerdmans.
[7] Crossway Bibles. (2008). The ESV Study Bible (p. 2049).
Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
[8] Expositor's Bible Commentary, The, Pradis
CD-ROM:John/Exposition of John/II. The Public Ministry of the Word
(1:19-12:50)/F. The Crisis of the Ministry (12:1-50)/3. The response to the
Greeks (12:20-36), Book Version: 4.0.2
[9] Osborne, G. R. (2018). John: Verse by Verse. (J. Reimer, E.
Ritzema, D. Thevenaz, & R. Brant, Eds.) (p. 165). Bellingham, WA: Lexham
Press.
[10] “The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the
ruler’s staff from between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and to him
shall be the obedience of the peoples.” (Genesis 49:10, ESV)
[11] MacArthur, J., Jr. (Ed.). (1997). The MacArthur Study Bible
(electronic ed., p. 1592). Nashville, TN: Word Pub.
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