The "Crown Jewel" of Scriptures

One of the greatest verses in all of the Bible is John 3:16. It gives us the gospel in a nutshell. Let’s break it down:

"For God so loved . . ."

Many picture God as some kind of "cosmic killjoy" out to ruin our lives. But the reality is that God loves you! He misses you. He wants a relationship with you. Look at the Lord in the garden after Adam’s fall, calling, "Adam, where are you?" (Genesis 3:9).

". . . the world . . ."

The world? That includes dictators and criminals. It includes adulterers, cheats, liars, even murderers.

The thief on the cross was probably a murderer or terrorist, but Jesus extended His loving forgiveness to him.

". . . He gave . . ."

We can talk about love all day long, but God demonstrated His love for us in a tangible way. Romans 5:8 says," But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us," and Romans 6:23 tells us that "the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Jesus came to this world not to come down on people, but to reach out to people. While religion tells us what we must do to reach up to Heaven, God reaches down from Heaven in sending Jesus and pulling us out of quicksand.

". . . His only begotten Son . . ."

This does not mean "one of many," as in "So-and-so begat So-and-so." A better translation is "His one and only Son" or "the only Son of His kind or class, unique in kind."

". . . that whosoever believes . . ."

To "believe" does not merely mean you intellectually accept something to be true. The Bible says, "Even the demons believe—and tremble!" (James 2:19 NKJV). To believe is to "adhere to, commit to, have faith in, rely upon, trust in." The choice is ours as to what we will do with this wonderful gift of God. We can gladly accept it, or reject it. If someone offers you a gift, you either take it or you don’t. You can’t say, "I’m neutral on this. I can’t decide."

". . . should not perish . . ."

Revelation 20:15 says, "Whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire" (KJV). If you are included in the "whosoever" of John 3:16, you won’t be included in the "whosoever" of Revelation 20:15.

". . . but have everlasting life."

Not "hope to have," but "have." It becomes the immediate possession of the child of God. 1 John 5:13 says, "These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life and that you may believe on the name of the Son of God" (NKJV).

Jesus will receive and reveal Himself to any person who will come to Him honestly, heart to heart. Jesus said, "He that comes to me I will in no way cast out" (see John 6:37).

I’ll be presenting the life-saving message of the gospel at AT&T Stadium tomorrow night! Will you pray for all of the last-minute details of Harvest America? Join us in person, or watch online at harvestamerica.com. It’s not too late to invite a friend!