Today’s verse is:
“For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.” – John 3:16
Pretty much all of us know this verse by now and can recite it when quizzed on it. This verse says so much though, that I don’t think we really take the time to appreciate all that comes through in this familiar verse.
“For God so loved the world” – God doesn’t just love you and me. God also doesn’t just love believers either. God loves every single person who was ever born! Every single one. God loves the world. I think there is a tendency for a lot of people to see believers as exclusionists who think that there group are the only people going to Heaven and the only people God truly loves, but that is far from the reality. Jesus was known to spend much of his time with the sinners because after all, it was them who needed Him more than the saved. God loves everyone, everywhere no matter race, creed, religion, believer or non believer.
“That He gave His only begotten Son” – If you truly believe this part of the sentence, then you are “in for a penny, in for pound”. This means that you truly believe that the virgin Mary became pregnant with Gods Son via the Holy Spirit and she gave birth to your personal savior if you have been baptized and are a believer. More simply put, you have faith! But really think about that sentence. God didn’t just give Jesus up for adoption. He gave Jesus up to a world that hated and despised Him so very much that they chose to put Him to death in the most vile, violent way that had ever been thought of. And He was sinless!
“that whosoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life.” – This part of the sentence means everything to the believer. Sure we are going to die just like everyone else, even the non-believers. But the difference is that believers have no reason at all to fear death for a second. When our time comes, we will pass on from the Earth and instantly stand in the presence of Jesus who will welcome us home for all eternity. No more pain, suffering, hurt, shame, crying, loss, crime, evil, wrong doing, back stabbing, one upping, sarcasm, or bullying. We will have perfect bodies for a perfect home. Not because of what we did. Because of what Jesus did for us.
It’s time that we took a closer look at John 3:16 and truly understand the amazing meaning and gifts that this little verse holds in store for us, and see it as a huge reason to once again thank Jesus for His work on that cross at Calvary.
I pray that you will have a very blessed day and may God continue to bring His joy and peace into your life!
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