Answer
In John 6:44, Jesus says, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV). The promise that Jesus will “raise him up on the last day” also appears three other times in the same context, in verses 39, 40, and 54. This promise of resurrection is couched in an extended teaching as Jesus presents Himself as the Bread of Life.
In John 6:39–40, Jesus speaks about the Father’s eternal will and purpose for those who come to the Son. He says, “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. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV, emphasis added). The repetition of raise him up at the last day indicates the sureness of the promise. Jesus gives a guarantee that those who look to (and believe in) Him will be resurrected unto eternal life.
In John 6:44, Jesus speaks of how people are drawn to the Son: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV, emphasis added). This verse introduces the doctrine of divine sovereignty in salvation, a major theme in the Gospel of John (see verse 65; 10:29; 17). Divine sovereignty and human responsibility are not incompatible. People must look to the Son and believe in Him for eternal life, but they cannot come to Jesus unless the Father gives them the desire and inclination to do so. And when they come, Jesus promises not to reject them (John 6:37). They belong to Him, and He will raise them up on the last day.
In John 6:54, Jesus speaks about the need to eat His flesh and drink His blood for eternal life: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (ESV, emphasis added). Of course, Jesus is not speaking literally. To “eat” His flesh is to trust and believe that He gave His body as a ransom for our sins (verse 35; cf. Mark 10:45). Likewise, to “drink” His blood means to trust in His atoning death, represented by His shed blood on Calvary. His flesh and His blood must be “consumed” to gain eternal life.
Readers should not hastily skip over the parallel between John 6:40 and John 6:54. The only substantial difference is that the former speaks about looking to the Son and believing in Him, while the latter speaks about eating His flesh and drinking His blood. The obvious conclusion is that verse 54 is the metaphorical expression of verse 40. Eating illustrates belief. As Augustine of Hippo wrote, “Crede, et manducasti” (“Believe, and you have eaten”).
The final resurrection, mentioned in John 6:39, 40, 44, and 54, is granted to everyone who trusts and believes in the finished work of Christ. Eternal life is not just promised the soul or spirit, but the body as well.
Christ redeems the whole person, and we have passed from condemnation to justification (Romans 5:1), from darkness to light (1 Peter 2:9), and from death to life (John 5:24).
