God's Love Will Blow Your Mind

 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” – John 3:16

It’s the most famous verse in the whole Bible: John 3:16. But no matter how well you THINK you know this verse, I promise, there’s always more to learn. Even though I’ve known this verse since I was a little kid, as I was studying it recently … it blew my mind. Let’s hold this verse in our hand like a precious gem and take a closer look at each part of it.

“For God so loved the world ...” The New Testament was written in the common Greek language of Jesus’ day, which had seven or eight words that can be translated as “love.” Three of them appear in the New Testament: “Phileo,” the tender love between friends or brothers; “Storge,” a love for one’s family; and “Agape”—unconditional, self-sacrificial love. Even when Agape love isn’t appreciated or responded to favorably, it always works for another’s greatest good. It’s the purest and highest form of love. Not surprisingly, this is the word for love we find in John 3:16. God’s love for lost and dying people is the purest, highest kind of love. Nothing you think, nothing you say, nothing you do can stop God from loving you. Notice in John 3:16 WHO God loves. Not just Israel. Not just His chosen people. Not just those who believe in God and follow His laws. “For God so loved … the world.” That’s a REMARKABLE thing for Jesus to say.

“… that He gave His one and only Son …” It would have been easy for God to SAY He loved everyone. But God proved His agape love for the world as “He gave His one and only Son.” John 3:16 makes it clear that God took the initiative. Not me, not you. Before you and I ever thought of God, He was thinking of us. Before we ever loved Him, He loved us. When we were still lost and dying in our sins, God loved us and gave us the greatest gift in the universe. Because God’s love for the world is Agape love, He gave us the most precious gift He had to give: His one and only Son.

“… that whoever believes in Him …” Just as faith in God was the key to being saved from the deadly effects of venomous snake bites in Numbers 21, faith in Christ is the key to being saved from the deadly effects of sin in eternity. When Nicodemus came to talk with Jesus, he had spent his entire life trying to be good enough and religious enough to make it into Heaven. If Nicodemus came to Christ with a heart filled with pride and arrogance, Jesus’ teaching about saving faith would have disappointed him. But if he came with a heart that was humble and teachable—as I believe he did—Jesus’ teaching about salvation through faith would have brought him great relief. After so many years of obeying hundreds of Jewish laws, Nicodemus had no guarantee that he would make it to heaven. But now he understood, through Jesus’ teaching, that he could have assurance of eternal life by God’s grace through faith. 

“… shall not perish but have eternal life.” In this verse, the word “perish” is a translation of the Greek word “Apollumi,” which means “to be destroyed, to be utterly lost.” If you believe and trust in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, you will be given the gift of eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. But if you DON’T believe and trust in Jesus Christ, you will eternally perish in hell. According to Revelation 21:8, hell—the eternal lake of fire—is the second death. So, it bears repeating: You will either be born twice and die once, or you will be born once and die twice.

Now, at this point some critics ask: “If God is loving as Jesus makes Him out to be here in John 3:16, how could He possibly condemn anyone to hell?” Good question. And there’s an even better answer: In a very real sense, God doesn’t condemn anyone to hell. People condemn THEMSELVES.

Years ago, a rather arrogant man was given a guided tour of a famous art gallery filled with priceless masterpieces by Michelangelo, da Vinci, Rembrandt and Picasso. After the tour, the man told the museum curator, “I think those old pictures are ugly, and looking at them was a waste of my time.” The curator calmly responded, “Sir, I would remind you that these pictures are not on trial, but those who look at them are.” All that the man’s reaction had done was show his own foolish blindness. 

F.F. Bruce says it so well: “What is true in the realm [of art] is equally true in the spiritual realm. The man who depreciates Christ, or thinks Him unworthy of his allegiance, passes judgment on himself, not on Christ. He does not need to wait until the day of judgment; the verdict on him has been pronounced already.” William Barclay says it equally well: “God sent Jesus in love. He sent Him for the salvation of those people; but that which was sent in love has become a condemnation. It is not God who has condemned them; God only loved them; the people have condemned themselves.”

God so loved the world that He gave us the most precious gift He ever could have given us: part of Himself … the Son of God. Through Him, God has provided a way for ANY person—male or female, young or old, black or white, Jew or Gentile, religious or irreligious—to be snatched from eternal perishing in hell and be brought into eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. That is the highest form of love in this world AND in the world to come. It’s a love that is indescribable, unimaginable … mind-blowing. And that’s the kind of love God has for you and me.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church. Join us at our new worship location in Apple Valley (16209 Kamana Road), now meeting at 8:30am and 10am. You can also join us livestreaming online at Facebook or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

 

What Does “Born Again” Really Mean?

 “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” – John 3:3

If you’re reading this article, one thing is for sure: You’ve been born. But here’s a more important question: Have you been born again?

One of our nation’s most famous founding fathers was Ben Franklin. Not only was he a great statesman, he was also a brilliant inventor. He invented all sorts of things: swim fins, bifocals, a more effective wood-burning stove, and, of course, the lighting rod, which came in handy with his experiments on electricity.

Well, one day Franklin received a letter from the popular British evangelist George Whitefield, who wrote: “As you have made such progress in investigating the mysteries of electricity, I now humbly urge you to give diligent heed to the mystery of the new birth. It is a most important and interesting study and, when mastered, will richly repay you for your pains.” Brilliant as he was, as far as we know, Ben Franklin never took George Whitefield’s advice.

I hope and pray that you don’t make the same mistake. Unless the rapture happens first, you will either be born twice and die once … or you will be born once and die twice, once in this life and once more in eternity. I guarantee you: The first option is a whole lot better. In John 3, Jesus reveals how we can be born twice and live forever.

Jesus was approached by a man named Nicodemus, a Pharisee who belonged to the Jewish ruling council. In other words, Nicodemus was not only a very religious man, but also a LEADER of very religious men. Yet he addressed Jesus very respectfully: “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him” (v. 2). Calling Jesus “rabbi” and “a teacher who has come from God” was no small thing for a member of the high council to say to a traveling teacher who hadn’t been formally trained as a Jewish rabbi. Nicodemus also acknowledged that Jesus had been performing miraculous signs.

But instead of saying, “Thank you!” to Nicodemus’s compliments, Jesus skipped the small talk and cut to the chase: “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again” (v. 3). Now, the idea of being “born again” actually wasn’t a new idea to the Jews in Jesus’ day. Rabbis used the term to refer to Gentiles who converted to Judaism. But Nicodemus would have been baffled by the idea that he himself—a devout Jewish Pharisee who followed God’s laws to a “T”—needed to be born again. So he responded: “How can a man be born when he is old? Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!” (v. 4).

You can almost hear the spiritual hunger in Nicodemus’ voice. In his heart, he must have known that something was missing. He obeyed all the laws, but he knew he was still a sinner. Nicodemus believed he would make it to heaven after he died, but he had no assurance of it. Eternal life was more a hope than a promise.

Jesus responded, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (vs. 5-6). In other words, anyone who is ever going to enter the Kingdom of God is going to have to be born twice: once physically, through his or her earthly mother; and the second time spiritually, through the Holy Spirit.

Entering hell is simple. You just have to be born once. And that qualification is easy to meet. Entering heaven isn’t so easy. You have to be born twice. And only the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ can grant you that second birth.

There is so much to draw from this passage, but here are just two Life Lessons:

Life Lesson #1: Even those who know the most ABOUT Jesus still need to come TO Jesus. When they met, Nicodemus probably knew more about Jesus than most people in Israel. He knew the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus. He had heard some of Jesus’ teachings and had probably witnessed some of His miracles. But knowing ABOUT Jesus isn’t enough. It doesn’t matter how much you know ABOUT Jesus ... the question is, do you really KNOW Jesus?

Life Lesson #2: Hell will be full of very religious, “good” people. If you found 100 people who knew Nicodemus well and asked them, “Is Nicodemus a good man?” there’s no doubt they would have all answered with a resounding, “Yes!” But Jesus told him point-blank in verse 7, “You must be born again.” It didn’t matter how “good” Nicodemus was compared to others around him. Like everyone else on this planet, Nicodemus sinned and fell short of the glory of God. And neither his good works nor his religion could pay the high price for his sin. So, if he were to die without being born again, Nicodemus would have spent all eternity in hell. That’s the bad news that most people don’t understand today. Hell will be filled with very religious, so-called “good” people who refused to be born again. Don’t be a “good” fool. You MUST be born again.

It bears repeating: Unless the rapture happens first, you will either be born twice and die once—OR you will be born once and die twice. Which will it be for you? Humbly come to Jesus, and be born again.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church. Join us at our new worship location in Apple Valley (16209 Kamana Road), now meeting at 8:30am and 10am. You can also join us livestreaming online at Facebook or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.