How Does God Love Us? Series

How does God love us?

John 3:16-21

Introduction

- The gospel of John screams of the faith that we should have in Christ

-- It is the clearest example of living life FOR the one who redeemed you and I

Last time:

- Nicodemus has come to talk to Jesus one evening

-- Nicodemus as a Pharisee would’ve had money, and power, and influence

-- But, Jesus turns the conversation to spiritual things – gives honest truth

-- APP: Sugar-coating was not something Jesus did with anyone’s questions

- However, Jesus’s answer is probably not what Nicodemus wanted to hear

-- There is a bit of a challenge in Nicodemus’s position to contend with

-- (v10) “you are Israel’s teacher, yet you don’t know these things?”

- Couple of take away’s from their conversation:

1) First, we see Jesus cutting to the chase and engaging honestly (v3)

2) Second, we see Jesus pointing only to what God has done (v6)

3) Third, when presented with a challenge, Jesus directs back to the truth

- So how do we witness? By presenting the things of God honestly!

-- We need to know what we know, and be willing to show that to others!

-- If we won’t, then who will … and if we don’t, what can it cost them?

- This brings us to a critical passage in John; prob. most known in the whole Bible

- Read John 3:16-21 / Pray

∆ Point 1 – Believers and Non-Believers

- People have always wanted to add too and complicate this passage (v16)

-- IMP: The fact remains … what Jesus said on that day still stands true today

- For us, salvation comes as a free gift; but we must believe it and receive

-- Nicodemus had great intellectual knowledge; but no spiritual knowledge

-- Re: This helps us understand why Jesus also spoke these verses (teaching)

- If you notice, Jesus uses variations of the word believe four times

-- But Jesus actually does something incredible here for us to understand

-- He separates humans into two categories: believers and unbelievers

- We know that the Gospel contains the whole story of reconciliation to God

-- We see the birth, the ministry, the cross, death, and (IMP) the resurrection

-- The entire message of Christ is affirmed in the key word: believe

- Now, notice the incredible mercy we are given by God

-- God has given you and I a gift … a gift to choose how we will live

- TRANS: However, there is even more to this verse we need to see

∆ Point 2 – Agapao, Monogenes, and Ekthetos

- In order to fully grasp this verse we have to look at a little Greek

-- These three words in Jn 3:16 give us tremendous insight to Jesus’s method (this is the HOW)

-- Re: He was direct with Nicodemus, and the Bible is still that direct today

- John uses the word “agapao” quite liberally in this book; 36 times

-- This is almost twice as much as any other book uses the same word

-- Literally, it means to love dearly … as the Father loved the Son (Jesus)

- Because of God’s love for us, we were GIVEN the Son as a gift

-- The love God has for us has no limits that He’d give His Son so freely

-- The decision we have here is what do we do with it? We accept or refuse!

-- APP: We do not get the opportunity of “deciding later”; it may never come

- Jesus used the phrase “one and only”, which translates to “monogenes”

-- In referencing Jesus, we were given God’s one of kind Son to redeem us

-- It is a picture that we must grasp when we refer to Christ today

- APP: Mono (only) and genos (the only of its kind)

-- Truly, there is no other like Christ, and God gave Him freely for us

- Finally, we have the word “ekthetos” – commonly translated as perish

-- Critical: This word actually means to cast out; to be offered for destruction

-- The word phrasing is clear: Those who refuse will be alienated from God

- TRANS: In context, v16 speaks much louder than what’s on the surface

∆ Point 3 – God gives us a Way out

- There is no way to really grasp impact of Jn 3:16 without v17-21 supporting

-- APP: Why? It gives us purpose …

- God’s purpose was never that humanity would be condemned; or cast out

-- Ref 2 Peter 3:9, “It is God’s desire that none should perish …”

-- We were created to worship; to praise Him - Re-read v15-18

- Jesus as we see, is the central theme in these verses: