3:16
Nov 19, 2024 by Addison Crissone
For God so loved the world,
that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes
in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
- John 3:16
that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes
in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
- John 3:16
John 3:16.
It is the Bible's most beloved and widely known verse of 31,102 verses. Why?
Because it is the Bible encased in one verse- it is the Gospel in a nutshell. The message of John 3:16 is the message of the Bible as a whole.
More than this, it is the inexhaustible declaration of the love of God for the loved of God.
"For God so loved the world..."
Loved.
Agape.
This is a pure, spiritual love that won't let go. It is unending and unfathomable. It is a love that longs to give, longs to protect and longs to rescue. It does not depend on the worthiness of the one who is loved but on the nature of the one who loves.
God does not simply desire to love us; He is love Himself. Furthermore, He desires a relationship with His creation. He doesn't need it, but he longs for it. Because He is love.
And He loved the World.
It is vital to remember that when the Bible says the world, it does not mean that God loved the ways of the world nor the sins of the world; no, the Bible was referring to all the people in the world. All people of the world.
Deitrich Bonhoeffer put it this way-
It is the Bible's most beloved and widely known verse of 31,102 verses. Why?
Because it is the Bible encased in one verse- it is the Gospel in a nutshell. The message of John 3:16 is the message of the Bible as a whole.
More than this, it is the inexhaustible declaration of the love of God for the loved of God.
"For God so loved the world..."
Loved.
Agape.
This is a pure, spiritual love that won't let go. It is unending and unfathomable. It is a love that longs to give, longs to protect and longs to rescue. It does not depend on the worthiness of the one who is loved but on the nature of the one who loves.
God does not simply desire to love us; He is love Himself. Furthermore, He desires a relationship with His creation. He doesn't need it, but he longs for it. Because He is love.
And He loved the World.
It is vital to remember that when the Bible says the world, it does not mean that God loved the ways of the world nor the sins of the world; no, the Bible was referring to all the people in the world. All people of the world.
Deitrich Bonhoeffer put it this way-
"God loves human beings. God loves the world.
Not an ideal human, but human beings as they are; not
an ideal world, but the real world."
Not an ideal human, but human beings as they are; not
an ideal world, but the real world."
The Gospel that is proclaimed in both the entire Bible and summarized in John 3:16 is for every person. The gospel is not limited or confined- the word of God cannot be chained (2 Tim. 2:9)- to a certain group of chosen and special people. It was meant for all who would believe in the name of the Son.
God's love for this world (His Children) has never had a beginning, nor will it have an end. There was never a time when God's love did not exist, because there was never a time that God did not exist.
We can rest assured; God's love reaches to Eternity, and there will never be a time will he will cease to love us.
If this were not true, then His sending Jesus would have been in vain.
"that he gave his one and only Son..."
When man fell, there were only two ways of atonement; that man would be sentenced to eternal flames, or that a perfect sacrifice would be made to satisfy God's wrath.
As flawed and sinful human beings, there is no way that man could have provided this 'perfect' sacrifice.
So rather than see His creation- His children- pay for their sins by fire and brimstone, God sent His one Perfect Son to pay the price of the sacrificial atonement.
Jesus' death was sufficient for the sins of the world, and it satisfied His Father to lay down his life for the world.
When Jesus was sent to this earth to die on the cross thirty-three years later, it was God's love in action. Jesus was fully man, yet perfectly God.
This was the only way for forgiveness.
As man, He could step in as a substitute for the death we all deserve as wages for sin.
As God, His sacrifice was perfect. It Satisfied God's holiness. Through Jesus, the Father can declare everyone righteous who believes in His Son.
"...that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
God has given every person the capacity and ability to believe. But many choose not to.
Oftentimes, it seems that this world is blind and bitter toward God. So they choose to instead turn to the serpent of old, the devil. This world is dark, and evil. It is a place of oppression and persecution for those who follow Christ. But we must remember that no matter how dark, this is still the world God so Loved.
And we are the ones that He sent His Son to save.
God's love for this world (His Children) has never had a beginning, nor will it have an end. There was never a time when God's love did not exist, because there was never a time that God did not exist.
We can rest assured; God's love reaches to Eternity, and there will never be a time will he will cease to love us.
If this were not true, then His sending Jesus would have been in vain.
"that he gave his one and only Son..."
When man fell, there were only two ways of atonement; that man would be sentenced to eternal flames, or that a perfect sacrifice would be made to satisfy God's wrath.
As flawed and sinful human beings, there is no way that man could have provided this 'perfect' sacrifice.
So rather than see His creation- His children- pay for their sins by fire and brimstone, God sent His one Perfect Son to pay the price of the sacrificial atonement.
Jesus' death was sufficient for the sins of the world, and it satisfied His Father to lay down his life for the world.
When Jesus was sent to this earth to die on the cross thirty-three years later, it was God's love in action. Jesus was fully man, yet perfectly God.
This was the only way for forgiveness.
As man, He could step in as a substitute for the death we all deserve as wages for sin.
As God, His sacrifice was perfect. It Satisfied God's holiness. Through Jesus, the Father can declare everyone righteous who believes in His Son.
"...that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life."
God has given every person the capacity and ability to believe. But many choose not to.
Oftentimes, it seems that this world is blind and bitter toward God. So they choose to instead turn to the serpent of old, the devil. This world is dark, and evil. It is a place of oppression and persecution for those who follow Christ. But we must remember that no matter how dark, this is still the world God so Loved.
And we are the ones that He sent His Son to save.
