“Now judgment is upon this world,” declared Jesus in our passage this Sunday. It isn’t a new theme in the Gospel of John. Nineteen verses in this short book take up the theme of judgment on the world. Such a pattern indicates that it is an important topic, and one we are meant to understand. Though each passage seems fairly straightforward on its own, some of them become confusing when taken together.
For example, how are we to understand John 3:17, “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world,” as it relates to John 9:39 when Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world”?
I think it is helpful to group John’s discussion of judgment into a few themes to see how this doctrine is developed. It also demonstrates that when things in Scripture are at first confusing, a closer inspection often resolves the tension.
Here, then, is one way to approach a systematic understanding of judgment in John’s gospel.

The Timing of Judgment

John teaches us that the coming of Jesus into the world the first time was not for the purpose of destroying His enemies, but for the purpose of securing salvation. Thus we read:
John 3:17
“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him."

This does not mean that there will be no judgment, however. It means that the time of judgment is in the future and corresponds with the resurrection of the dead.
John 5:28-29
“Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 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."

Jesus summarizes this point and also tells us that the very message of the Gospel He preached on earth will be the decisive evidence to condemn those who reject Him at the last day.
John 12:47-48
“If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day."

Until then, the Holy Spirit will be a witness against the sinfulness of a world that rejected the coming of the Messiah. He will also testify that the ruler of this world, Satan, is defeated and judged and therefore should not be followed or obeyed.
John 16:8, 11
“And He [Holy Spirit], when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment;
and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged."

The Authority to Judge

John also gives us several glimpses into the authority to judge as it relates to the Father and the Son. Though all authority belongs to the Father in a unique way, He has delegated that role to the Son.
John 5:22
“For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son,"
John 5:27
"and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man."

Nevertheless, the judgment of the son is not independent from the Father, but flows from their unity of will and purpoise.
John 8:15-16
“You judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone."
“But even if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone in it, but I and the Father who sent Me."

Jesus is ultimately not a self-seeking judge, but His judgment is just because He is submitted to the will of the Father, and the Father is the one who has judged that the Son is worthy to be a righteous adjudicator of the world.
John 8:50
“But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges."

The Basis of the Judgment

Ultimately, judgment hinges on our belief in Jesus. Those who believe are freed from judgment, and those who do not already are declared to be guilty.
John 3:18-19
“He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."
“This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil."

The ability to believe in Jesus is dependent on the words of Jesus which give us the objective truth we must accept in faith in order to be saved.
John 5:24
“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life."

This message of Good News given to us by Jesus is the message not only of the Son, but of the Father – the architect of our faith.
John 5:30
“I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me."
John 8:26
“I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these I speak to the world.”

By preaching the Gospel of faith, Jesus draws to Himself those who were thought to be hopeless, and Jesus often repels those who believe themselves to be self-righteous.
John 9:39
And Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.”

Though the timing of the judgment will be at the last day, the death and resurrection of Jesus delivered the decisive blow to the sinful system of this world and its ruler, Satan. At the cross the grounds of judgment are fulfilled.
John 12:31
“Now judgment is upon this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out."

I hope this short journey was helpful. What other topics and themes have we seen in John that you would like to explore in your own study?