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Drag All to Myself

Chapter 10

Drag All to Myself


(32) "And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw [or, drag] all to Myself." (33) But this He was saying signifying by what sort of death He was about to die. (John 12:32-33 ALT)

(32) And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will make all men come to me. (33) This he said, pointing to the sort of death he would have. (John 12:32-33 BBE)

We all know that Jesus was lifted up and impaled on stakes of wood, a cross, to die for the sin of the world. These words, especially verse 32, are often quoted, but it seems that the depth of their meaning has been lost.

When Jesus declared that if He were lifted up He would draw all men to Himself, He meant exactly what He said. In other words, if He died on the cross of Calvary for the sin of the world, which He most definitely did, He would literally draw all men to Himself. He did not elaborate on how He would do this or when He would do this, but He declared that He would do it. He spoke of the victory that He was about to win and did win for all mankind at Calvary.

The word draw literally means "to drag." In the Greek, this word is helkuo, which appears eight times in the New Testament Greek text (John 6:44; 12:32; 18:10; 21:6; 21;11; Acts 16:19; 21:30; James 2:6).

To understand the meaning of this declaration, we need to see it in the light of another word the Lord declared to His disciples.

"No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws [drags] him; and I will raise him up on the last day." (John 6:44 NASB)

Again, the word draw comes from the same Greek word meaning "to drag." Thus, the dragging starts with the Father. He drags people to His Son. But notice that the Lord said that He would drag all men to Himself, and the word all is an inclusive word that means "everybody."

In other words, it is the Father's will to drag all mankind to His Son, and it is His Son's will to drag all mankind to Himself so that His Father may be all in all. This is in accord with other Scripture.

(3) For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; (4) Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:3-4 KJV)

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Notice that God will have all men to be saved. It does not state all men might be saved, or probably will be saved, or that God wishes all men to be saved, although some translations word it as such, but that God wills for all men to be saved.

Through Isaiah the prophet, God declared: "My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure" (Isaiah 46:10). If God wills that all men will be saved and thus He will drag all men to His Son, do we think that He will not accomplish what He has willed?

Jesus declared that all that the Father drags to Him, He will raise up on the last day. For years, I thought this referred to the end of our present eon, but I have since come to see that this last day refers to the end of the millennial reign of Christ when all the dead that were not raised in the first or out-resurrection from among those who are dead (Philippians 3:11) [according to Wuest's An Expanded Translation] will be raised in the second resurrection to appear before the Great White Throne, or what Jesus called the resurrection of life and the resurrection of judgment (John 5:29), and Paul called the resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.

(28) "Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, (29) and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment." (John 5:28-29 NASB)

(14) "But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets; (15) having a hope in God, which these men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked." (Acts 24:14-15 NASB)

These verses refer to the resurrection that precedes God's Day when all will be made new. In that day, all that were not raised in the better resurrection 1,000 years prior will be raised from the state of death to appear before the Throne of God, not for the purpose of annihilation or eternal condemnation but for the purpose of either being saved, yet so as through fire (believers) or being judged and brought under the fiery law of God, not for punishment but for correction and restitution (unbelievers).

In our present evil age, men are drawn to Christ by grace through faith, and that not of ourselves, so that no one may boast (Ephesians 2:8-9). We are dragged to Christ by grace and faith that is given to us. At the Great White Throne Judgment, the majority of mankind will be dragged to Christ by the judgment of the fiery law of God; again, so that no one may boast.

Thus, all men will be dragged unto the Lord because the cross is and will be an absolute, 100% success in the reconciliation and restoration of all things, in which all mankind is included.

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