John 8:51 Truly, truly, I say to you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. Our Lord uttered multitudes of sayings while He was upon the earth. He was a great speaker; no man spake like Him. He was the greatest of talkers; and hence innumerable sayings dropped from His lips — parables, proverbs, criticisms, invitations, exhortations, warnings, commandments, remonstrances, encouragements, and exceeding great and precious promises. To which of His sayings, then, is it that He here refers? I would say in reply, that it is not to any single saying in particular, any detached or separate "saying," that our Lord had reference. To hit at random on any one of His multitudinous sayings would indicate an utter ineptitude for the grasp of the Saviour's ideas, or indeed for the grasp of anyone's ideas. What then? The saying referred to is manifestly that grand multiple message from God to men which constituted the sum total of our Lord's teaching. Or we might put it thus: It is the sum total or condensed essence of all the revelations that were divinely made by our Lord, in our Lord, and through our Lord. And what is that? It is evidently the glorious gospel of God's grace, the good news and glad tidings coming from behind the veil of all terrestrial things, and manifesting to men a living, loving, compassionating, sin-hating, yet sin-forgiving God. It is, in short, the joyful announcement of free and full salvation for the chief of sinners. That, that is the "saying," the life-giving "saying," of Christ Jesus, which, if a man keeps, he shall never see death. "Whosoever liveth," said our Lord to Martha, "and believeth in Me shall never die." (J. Morison, D. D.)Would you wish to be in the blissful condition depicted in our Saviour's language? Then keep His saying. Keep His words. Keep His Word. Keep the truth about Himself; keep Himself, the living Word, the living gospel. Keep Him in your thoughts, affections, mind, heart. Let everything slip and pass away from you which you cannot keep side by side with Him. (J. Morison, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.WEB: Most certainly, I tell you, if a person keeps my word, he will never see death." |
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