National Condemnation, National Salvation

Transcript

GR 687
10/21/1984
National Condemnation and Personal Salvation
Matthew 11:20-30
Gil Rugh

Matthew 11 is the turning point in the ministry of Christ. At this point in Christ’s ministry, it is clear that the nation is unwilling to have Him as their Messiah and Savior, so His message now turns to one of condemnation and judgment upon the nation for their rejection of Him.
God has acted in grace, and the people are under great condemnation because they have rejected the revelation and display of God’s grace which is given in the closing verses of this chapter. The revelation given through the Son of God has been clear, yet the nation has rejected Him and is now under condemnation. Since the nation as a whole has rejected the kingdom, they themselves will be rejected for a time as a nation. But that does not mean that God does not still graciously offer salvation to any individuals within the nation who will recognize their sinfulness and respond to the Savior.
Matthew records in Matthew 11:20, “Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent.” In light of the great display of Christ’s miracles and powers, the people now face the judgment of God because of their rejection. Matthew 11:5 describes the miracles which had been accomplished in their presence: “the blind receive sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them.”
In spite of all these mighty things which have transpired, the nation accuses John the Baptist of being demon-possessed. John questions Jesus about His identity, and Jesus claims to be the Messiah as He sends word to John in Matthew 11:4-6. Jesus said that the things He had done were proof of the fact that He is the Messiah. Yet the people said Jesus was a gluttonous friend of sinners. They accused Him of going to their parties and associating with them in an improper way. Keep in mind that Jesus never became one of them. He was never a glutton. He never indulged in sinful activity. He did associate with those people and went where they were in order to present the truth to them.
The nation Israel had all kinds of excuses to reject the truth that was being presented to them. At this point Jesus began to denounce the cities because of their rejection of the message. “Denounce” is a strong word referring to reviling or heaping insults upon someone. Jesus is bringing strong condemnation upon the cities of the nation in which He has performed great miracles because the people would not repent. Some of the specific cities mentioned are cities in the northern part of Israel along the Sea of Galilee where Jesus had done great and mighty miracles. Yet the people did not repent.
The issue of their condemnation is significant. Their condemnation and reproach is not because of overt hostility to Christ, although there was some of that, but rather because of gross indifference to His message. They were exposed to the message of life and salvation, but they did not repent. Jesus is condemning them for what they did not do.

They remained indifferent and were unmoved by the message He had presented to them as their Messiah. They did not change their minds about their sin. They would not accept the salvation God was providing, and for that they were condemned. This passage deals with people whose greatest sin was indifference to the message of Jesus Christ. They did not change their minds about Him when they were confronted with the truth of who He was.

Jesus gives some examples of the unbelieving cities in Matthew 11:21: “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida!” Chorazin and Bethsaida were cities along the northern part of the Sea of Galilee in the region of Capernaum, Christ’s hometown, which will be mentioned shortly. Incidentally, in this verse is the first use of the word “woe” by Christ which speaks of the coming condemnation and tragedy. Anger and sorrow are mingled in this word.
In the last half of verse 21, Jesus gives the reason for the woe: “For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.” Tyre and Sidon are towns repeatedly mentioned in the Old Testament as emblems of wickedness deserving of judgment. In Isaiah 23 and Ezekiel 26-28, God’s wrath and judgment are to be poured out on Tyre and Sidon for their wickedness. They were Phoenician cities on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea to the north.
The Jews were well aware of the fact that these cities were pictures of wickedness worthy of judgment. Christ gives them as an example. Sackcloth and ashes were visible signs of humbling before God, acknowledging unworthiness and the need for forgiveness and salvation. Christ made the point that Chorazin and Bethsaida are much worse than Tyre and Sidon, because Tyre and Sidon would have responded positively if they would have had the same amount of revelation that Chorazin and Bethsaida have had.
This raises an interesting question. Why did God not give a sufficient amount of revelation to those cities to bring about repentance? Why did He give that amount of revelation to Chorazin and Bethsaida when they would not respond? In these examples the sovereign control of God is displayed in dispensing His truth. This is going to come out later when Christ says that the Father reveals His salvation to those to whom He is pleased to reveal it. One basic answer to the question is that the Messiah was sent to Israel with a message for Israel, not to Tyre and Sidon. God was not obligated to dispense that revelation to those cities. But the point of the argument is that there will be a balancing in judgment-the judgment will be just.
Jesus continues with His comparison in Matthew 11:22: “Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.” If they have had greater revelation, greater light from God and greater exposure to the truth, then they will be more accountable before God on the Day of Judgment. Is it fair that some have more truth presented to them than others? That will be balanced in considering the coming judgment, because in the Day of Judgment those who have had more exposure to the truth of God will have a more severe judgment.
The next example Jesus gives in verse 23 is of His hometown: “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You shall descend to Hades.” The way that question is phrased in the original language indicates that a negative response is expected. It tells something of the mentality of the people of Capernaum. The town was a religious town that prided itself in its religious practices. The people there were sure they were on their way to heaven. But Jesus told them they were not. He said they would be brought to hades instead of heaven.
Christ spoke of hell in Matthew 10:28 as He spoke about fearing the One who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell. The word used in that verse is different from this word. The word in Matthew 10:28 was gehenna, a reference to hell. In Matthew 11:23 the word is hades, the temporary holding place for those who are going to hell. Luke 16 makes it clear that hades is a place of torment and suffering by telling of the rich man who lifted up his eyes in hades being in torment. The difference between hades and hell is that hades is temporary. The people in hades are suffering while awaiting their final sentencing to hell.
The last half of verse 23 tells why Capernaum will descend to hades instead of ascending to heaven: “For if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day.” Jesus uses the example of a city that is the personification of vileness in God’s judgment on wickedness-Sodom. Sodom and Gomorrah are usually associated together in the Old Testament, and they were the cities destroyed in Genesis 19 because their wickedness was so great. They became living examples of judgment upon wickedness.
Jesus now says that Capernaum is worse than Sodom. Sodom was so vile and perverse that strangers could not spend the night in the city because the people were so open and flagrant in their practice of their perverted activities, and it had become so vile that God destroyed it. That Old Testament city was so vile that we still use its name for perverted sexual activity. God now says that when it comes to the Day of Judgment, Capernaum will be in worse condition than Sodom: “Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you” (Matt. 11:24). Jesus is saying that Capernaum will have a more severe judgment than Sodom.
In this example is a principle of judgment: Judgment will take place in the context of the truth to which you have been exposed. Capernaum was nowhere near Sodom in its openness with vile, sinful activity. The self-righteous people of Capernaum would not have even thought of indulging in the perversions of Sodom. But Jesus said that when it comes to Judgment Day, it is going to be worse for Capernaum than for Sodom.
Why is that so? It is because Sodom did not have the Son of God come and present Himself in that city. He did not do His mighty miracles there, displaying His person. But Capernaum did have those advantages. Sodom did not have as much revelation from God as Capernaum had. Greater light brings greater responsibility. That principle should be impressed upon our minds as it relates to our own city and country. Those in line for the most severe judgment are those who have been exposed to the truth of God. The people of Capernaum were the most religious people of the day. They thought for sure that they were on their way to heaven. They were meticulous in their religious observances. Yet Christ said they are going to have a more harsh judgment than the vile, corrupt, filthy city of Sodom.
What does this say about our situation today as we have the completed revelation of God? He has unfolded the complete truth of His Word in a Book that is the best seller year after year. We know God’s purposes and plans in redemption. We have the full account of the coming of His Son, His death on the cross to pay the penalty for sin, His resurrection and ascension to the Father. We have the complete revelation of His purposes and plans in bringing men and women to salvation and in establishing His Church and molding it into His character. Yet we have multitudes of people who are committed to their religion and concerned about observing the practices of their church rather than being committed to Christ and His Word. Jesus said it would be more tolerable for Sodom in the Day of Judgment than for those people because they have been exposed to greater truth.
Jesus gives a parable in Luke 12 which illustrates that the principle is the same for us. He tells about the master of the household, picturing Christ, who leaves slaves in charge of his household while he is away. Then he comes back and demands an accounting of his servants. The point is made in verses 47 and 48: “And that slave who knew his master’s will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few.” The picture is of Christ as the master and Israel, in particular, as the slave. However, the slave could refer in application to anyone who has been exposed to the truth of God as revealed in the Word of God. In this example the slave who knew what he should do, but did not do it, received many lashes. The one who did not know the will of the master and committed deeds worthy of a flogging will receive but few lashes.
The principle is restated in the last half of verse 48: “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more.” Greater revelation brings greater responsibility. The more you know, the more accountable you are. Both servants were judged and punished, even the one who did not know the will of the master. But the one who knew his will and did not do it was punished more severely.

All the judgments in Scripture are based upon works. This point confuses some people. They conclude that as a result of that principle, we must be saved by our works. No, salvation is not the issue in the judgments. The issue is a personal relationship with Christ. But the degree of punishment is determined by the amount of truth to which a person has been exposed.
In Matthew 11:24, Jesus views the judgment of Sodom as future even though at the time Jesus made this statement it had been two thousand years since the city of Sodom had been wiped off the face of the earth in God’s judgment. But at that time the city still awaited a future judgment. The people had been destroyed physically, but the final judgment for Sodom was yet future when the people would stand in the presence of God and be sentenced to hell.
The time that Christ was referring to as the Day of Judgment is seen in Revelation 20 and is known as the Great White Throne Judgment. That is the time when all who have not believed in Jesus Christ from all the ages of time will be resurrected to life to stand in the presence of Christ and be sentenced. The Apostle John records in verses 11 and 12, “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds.”

Two sets of books are indicated: the Book of Life and the book of your works. “And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” (v.15). The only ones going to heaven are those whose names are in the Book of Life. None of those at this judgment are going to heaven, but they are judged out of the book of their works according to their deeds to determine the severity of their punishment in hell.
Everyone at the Great White Throne Judgment will be going to hell. The Book of Life is there merely to demonstrate that their names are not in it. The book of their works is there to determine the degree of punishment they will receive in hell. Everything they have done will be recorded. Every single time that every individual throughout his lifetime was exposed to the truth of God will be recorded there. If a believer has shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with a friend, relative, or someone at work, that has been recorded in the book of the deeds of that person’s life. When the book of his deeds is opened, the record will be there. For some people it will be page after page showing they were confronted again and again with the truth of God and rejected it. For those the punishment will be most severe. Hell is an awful place of torment. Those who are tormented in hell will be there day and night into the ages of the ages. It is not my intention to lighten the effect of hell. But even within that framework, there will be some whose suffering will be to a more intense degree than others according to the amount of revelation they have received.
What will it be like for a person who sits in a church where the Word of God is preached week after week, month after month, and year after year, yet does not believe in Jesus Christ? That person will have the worst of all possible judgments because he has had the greatest exposure to the truth. The principle established in the Word is that judgment is based on opportunity. Those who never hear the gospel of Jesus Christ and die are going to hell, for the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23). But those who hear the gospel of Christ and do not believe it will suffer even worse in hell. Those who will be in the worst position are those religious people in our own country who are exposed repeatedly to the Scriptures as they are made available on television and radio and through printed material but who continue in their indifferent attitude toward Christ.
Jesus said the accountability of such people in the Day of Judgment is going to be more awesome, because their exposure to the gospel on each occasion is being recorded. Keep that in mind as you share the gospel. Your efforts to share the gospel with those individuals are also being recorded in each person’s book. That is why we ought to have a driving burden and passion that every person with whom we share the gospel would believe and be saved. Every time he is exposed to the gospel and does not believe it, he is worse off and in a more awful position than he was before hearing it.
Matthew continues his record in Matthew 11:25: “At that time Jesus said, „I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.’” Christ moves on to talk about the plan of God and the clear revelation God has given of Himself through His Son. He reveals that truth to those who humble themselves before Him.

Speaking of the preaching of the finished work of Christ, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:18, “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” The word that is translated “foolishness” is the English word “moron.” Such preaching to them is moronic; it is stupidity. Many people today think that Christians are a little out of date in their belief in the Bible. Those people consider Christians to be an anachronism-living in a bygone day. They think that in this advanced society, we are beyond that and do not need it. But notice Paul’s conclusion in verse 19: “For it is written, „I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of the clever I will set aside.’”
Paul develops the point that man, with all of his wisdom, cannot search out and find salvation. But God in His simplicity, which is brilliant wisdom, has provided a way for sinners to be forgiven of their sins and brought into a personal relationship with Him for all eternity. That is through the death of His Son. Men, with all of their brilliance and wisdom, do not come up with that. So God’s wisdom has nullified man’s wisdom.
Paul continues with the same thought in 1 Corinthians 1:26-28: “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, that He may nullify the things that are.” These are the things God has chosen in order that no man may be glorified. God gets all the credit because He has worked through simple, frail, humble human beings in accomplishing His purposes.
Paul adds in 1 Corinthians 2:6-7, “Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; but we speak God’s wisdom in a mystery.” A mystery is something which cannot be understood apart from the revelation of God. As we speak God’s wisdom, only those who are subject to God can understand it.
You may have had this experience as you brought brilliant unbelievers to church. As they sat and were exposed to the Word of God, they did not understand it. You know it is simple because your four-year-old has trusted Christ. We have six-year-olds who study the Bible in Sunday school and understand it. Yet it is beyond the understanding of the brilliant person. This is because only by revelation is it understood. That revelation is a supernatural work of God in the heart. Until the person is willing to humble himself before God, God can not and does not work in his life. Even the work of humbling is a supernatural work on God’s part according to 1 Corinthians 2:10: “For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.” Verse 12 adds, “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God.” The Spirit of God who indwells believers enables them to understand the word of God.
Contrast that with verse 14: “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.” The natural man, the man apart from the Spirit of God, does not accept the things of the Spirit of God because they are foolishness to him. He does not understand them because they are spiritually appraised. This has nothing to do with intellect; it has to do with revelation.
Why are these things hidden from the wise and intelligent and revealed to babes? Matthew 11:26 gives the answer: “Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.” Do you want to know why God did it that way? Because He wanted to. It pleased Him to do it that way. He is sovereign and can do what He wants. The word translated “well-pleasing” (eudokia) in verse 26 is also used in Ephesians 1 to describe the sovereignty of God. From our perspective as human beings, we sometimes crave a different answer, even a better answer. But there can be no
better answer than the one God gives. We often try to keep going back further to find a different answer. We see that God has worked sovereignly in a certain way and then we want to know why. In Romans 9 Paul finally stops and asks, “Who are you, O man, to ask questions? You are just a lump of clay that the potter is working with. Be quiet. ” Jesus says in Matthew 11 that this is a beautiful plan. God did it this way just because it pleased Him.
Speaking of God’s sovereignty, Paul said in Ephesians 1:5, “He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention (eudokia) of His will.” That is the same word which is translated “well-pleasing” in Matthew 11:26. Jesus said this plan of God was “well-pleasing.” Paul says it was “according to the kind intention of His will.” The King James Version translates this word “goodpleasure. ” Paul wrote in Ephesians 1:9, “He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention (eudokia) which He purposed in Him.”
Ephesians 1:11 gives another indication of the sovereignty of God: “Also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will.” Some people would like to think that God made the decision after He talked it over with them or after He took a Gallup poll by the angels. But that is not what it says.
Rather, He “works all things after the counsel of His will” (v. 11). Do you know whom God consults? Himself. How does that strike you? As a human being, my first reaction is that it grates on me a little. I do not like to be told flat out that this is the way it is and it does not matter what I think or say. But the fact that it grates on me or causes me to bristle is indicative of how sinful I really am. I do not like God to be in absolute, final control. I do not mind if He has 80 percent and I have 20 percent. I could even go with Him having 90 percent. But this 100 percent-zero percent stuff is hard to take! That is an indication of my pride and rebellion against God. I do not want Him to be God.
With whom should God consult? Is there a higher authority than God that He should turn to? No, He is God, so He consults with Himself and determines what to do, then He graciously reveals to us how He operates. But the final decision has been made in the counsel of His own person because it pleased Him to work that way. When He reveals Himself to those who humble themselves before Him, He gets all the credit and glory. What kind of world would this be if God had thrown out the information and those with the best intellects would seek it out? We would bow down to those with degrees from institutions and honor them. We would give them a reward which says they are more intelligent than someone else because they made this wonderful discovery. (Incidentally, I do not have any problem with rewards or honors.) But what would heaven be like if only those with the best intellects got there because they were able to discover the truth through their brilliant minds? God is not throwing out a puzzle for us to try to solve. He is offering a free gift of salvation to those who submit themselves to Him and believe in the revelation He has given. We ought to be glad He did it that way. Otherwise, most of us would not have made it. Obviously, none of us would have made it because of our sinful, perverted intellects.
Matthew 11:27 is probably the most important verse in the entire section, and one of the most important verses in all of Scripture. It shows the relationship of Christ to the Father and Christ as the focal point of knowing God: “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father.” In the counsel of the Godhead, it was determined that the Son of God would be the One who does the revealing of the Godhead. Paul wrote in Colossians 2:9, “For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” This is the same emphasis given by Jesus in Matthew 11:27: “Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.” This verse is a clear statement of the deity of Christ.
Someone may say that since all things have been handed over to Him by the Father, that indicates that the Father must be greater. But that is not true. The Father knows the Son completely and the Son knows the Father completely. If you are going to have absolute, full knowledge of God, you are going to have to be God yourself. God, by the very nature of His being God, is inexhaustible, eternal, and infinite. As much as we will learn about God in all eternity, we will never know everything about Him, but the Son knows everything about the Father and the Father knows everything about the Son because they are both deity. Therefore, this is a statement of the deity of Christ.

Jesus goes on to show that the Son knows the Father, and He is the only One who has this knowledge of the Father. He is not referring to the Holy Spirit here because He is speaking about the matter of revelation as He is on earth. No one knows the Father but the Son and those to whom the Son wills to make Him known. This indicates the sovereignty of the Son. It is through Him that we know the Father. If anybody is to know God, they must know Him through Jesus Christ.
You cannot come to know God through your church, through your baptism, through the sacraments or through any religious activity. You come to know God only through the person of Jesus Christ. You may hear about Christ and His Word in a church, but you do not know God by being in the church. You may have been in a church for twenty years, but that does not mean you know God. You know God only if you have met Him through His Son, Jesus Christ, by believing in Him and His finished work. That is the point Jesus is making in this verse. The revelation takes place, but it is limited to the Son. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” The way to God is just that narrow and that exclusive. The only one who knows the Father is the Son, and the Son is the only one who reveals the Father to those to whom He wills.
Jesus is making the point that a clear revelation has been given. That revelation focuses in the Son. It is made known, not to the wise and intelligent, but to babes, to those who humble themselves before God, acknowledge their need as sinners and believe in Him.
Jesus closes this passage with an emphasis on the salvation that is found in Him. You might think that since He has talked about the revelation that has been given, about a negative reaction and about condemnation, God has closed the doors. You may conclude that there is no hope. You may think that since those who are exposed to the light and do not believe are condemned and those who are exposed to the light and by God’s sovereign grace are saved, there is, therefore, nothing to do but sit back and see what happens. But that is not the case. Instead He gives an invitation for our response. He says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” Jesus is saying that even though the nation will not accept Him, He invites the individuals to come to Him personally.
He tells those who are burdened down, weary and heavy-laden that He will give them rest. The word “weary” refers to those who are totally exhausted and worn out. “Heavy-laden” refers to those who are under a burden. The Jews of that day were under a tremendous burden. Jesus condemned the religious leaders of His day in Matthew 23 for putting a burden on the people that no one could bear. Those people were giving it their best, but they were working under a tremendous load of all the religious observances and regulations that were put on them by the religious leaders. They were trying to keep all of those regulations and observances in hopes that God would find them acceptable and forgive them.
The same thing goes on today. We had a dear neighbor who trusted Christ shortly before she died. She is with the Lord now. But before she came to know Christ, she got up faithfully every morning and walked down to the church. She was hoping to work her way to heaven. What a tremendous burden! And there was no hope! She went through years and years of that tremendous, wearisome toil in hopes that perhaps God would forgive her, cleanse her and find her family acceptable. Such activities are exercises in futility.
Jesus says that all of you who are weary, burdened down with your sin and even your religious practices which give no hope or rest are invited to come to Him. He will give you rest. Note the sovereign authority He claims. All things have been given to Him by the Father. He has the sovereign right and authority to make the Father known and to give rest and peace to the weary, burdened people who are willing to come to Him.
Jesus continues His invitation in Matthew 11:29-30: “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” A yoke spoke to the Jews of submission. Peter warned in Acts 15:10 about putting the yoke of the Law back on those who had become believers making them submissive to the Law. In Galatians 5:1 Paul talks about going back to the yoke of slavery when you go back to all of the rules and regulations of religious observances. But Jesus says to take His yoke, one that is easy and not burdensome. The load you carry for Him is light. In other words, when you come to Christ, He does not put a burden on you. He does not ask you to do this and this and this and then you can have forgiveness and the hope of life. He says to come to Him and He will give rest to you at no cost. If you will believe in Him, you will be forgiven instantly and brought into a permanent relationship with the Father that will go on for eternity.

You may think that in order to get that you will really have to work hard. No, you do not. Jesus simply says come to Him and He will give you rest. With our human intellect and wisdom, it seems like we ought to have to do something to work at it, we ought to contribute our part. It is hard for us to let God be God and do it all. But Jesus says, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.” What an invitation!
Recently I watched a series of programs on television regarding suicide among young people. It seems that no one can understand these tragedies. Something seems to be missing in life. There is a lack of rest, a lack of inner confidence, tranquility, assurance and peace. But the one who has come to Jesus Christ for salvation belongs to God for eternity. Life for a believer has meaning and purpose. People all over the world are getting chewed up, and all religion does is add to the confusion and turmoil of their lives. It increases the burden. Religion is only something else under which they must toil in hope that in the end perhaps God will put their works on the scale and find that the good outweighs the bad.
In love and mercy Jesus Christ offers a gracious salvation, a free invitation. He tells us that when we come to Him, He will take the burden. He will assume our weariness. He will give us rest for our souls. He tells us that life is in Himself.
In this passage Jesus has come full circle. He started out with condemnation and concluded with an invitation to come to Him. Those who reject the light and the truth of the invitation in verses 28 through 30 swing right around and start again at the condemnation of verse 20. There is no hope for them but condemnation. Revelation centers in the Son. For those who reject that revelation, there is nothing but great condemnation. But God offers an invitation to individuals to come to Him. He will take the weariness. He will take the burden. He will give rest for your soul.