GOD SO LOVED
For God so lovedG25 the world that He gave His one and only Son, that everyone who believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16 (BSB)
For God so greatly lovedG25 and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.
John 3:16 (AMPC)
The world in this instance means all kinds of people in the world, Jews and Gentiles, from all over the world, living under the fallen “world system.” In other words, sinners of all kinds. Sin is anything that falls short of God’s holiness, whether that is an overt evil act or the omission of performing the good we know to do (James 4:17). God gave His “only begotten Son.” We as believers are adopted into God’s family, but Jesus was actually God’s Son born of the virgin Mary, conceived in her by the Holy Spirit. Believing in Jesus is much more than intellectually acknowledging His existence. It is a complete understanding that we must lean into, depend upon, Jesus for all that we are, all that we have, and all that we ever will be. It is a total surrender of our lives to His care by faith that He is the only way to the Father, the only path to peace with God, the only entry way to spend eternity in the presence of the Lord.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
John 14:16
God loved us so much He “gave” His Son, Jesus, not only to walk among us on earth as a living portrait of that love, but to die in our place to redeem us from the wrath of God and save us from the punishment sinners deserve:
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 3:23
Our redemption is a gift bestowed on us when we place our trust in Jesus. It is free to us and cannot be earned because we can never measure up to God’s holiness. However, it was costly, the most expensive gift we will ever receive. Jesus died an excruciating death on the cross to purchase that gift for us. He was then raised from the grave to take His rightful place at the right hand of God. Those who believe—trust in Jesus—have eternal life. Death here on earth is simply the portal to enter the Lord’s presence forever. If you have never surrendered your life to God by trusting in Jesus to redeem you from sin, there is a more detailed description of how to receive this gift in the back of this book.
Father, we pray for those who will read this book that they will be drawn closer to You through the power of Your Holy Spirit and faith in Jesus Christ.