John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

(16)  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son,   God's love and concern for mankind motivated Him to send His only begotten Son into this material world.  John's first epistle tells us that "God is love."  John further explains that man's highest concept of love in its best expression is too meager to be compared with God's love toward us. "In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins." - 1st John 4:10

Man's pitiful and helpless state moved God with such compassion that the Son was compelled to lay aside His glory and to put on the fleshly shroud of humanity.  Let us review the Apostle Paul's account of Christ's incarnation.

 

Though he was God,

he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.

Instead, he gave up his divine privileges,

he took the humble position of a slave

and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,

he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
and gave him the name above all other names,

that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father. - Philippians 2:6-11 NLT

 

God has revealed the story of His love throughout the pages of the Bible.  The love experienced by the Father was symbolized by Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac on Mount Moriah.   By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, "In Isaac your seed shall be called," concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense. - Hebrews 11:17-19

 

And God's determination to intercede on the behalf  of man in his helpless condition is illustrated by Isaiah 59:

 

For our transgressions are multiplied before You,
And our sins testify against us;
For our transgressions are with us,
And as for our iniquities, we know them:

In transgressing and lying against the Lord,
And departing from our God,
Speaking oppression and revolt,
Conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.

Justice is turned back,
And righteousness stands afar off;
For truth is fallen in the street,
And equity cannot enter.

So truth fails,
And he who departs from evil makes himself a prey.

Then the Lord saw it, and it displeased Him
That there was no justice.

He saw that there was no man,
And wondered that there was no intercessor;
Therefore His own arm brought salvation for Him;
And His own righteousness, it sustained Him.

For He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
And a helmet of salvation on His head;
He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing,
And was clad with zeal as a cloak. - Isaiah 59:12-17
  

The fulfillment of God's zeal is also recorded by Isaiah:

 

For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. - Isaiah 9:6

 

The writer of the Book of Hebrews records the Son's resolve to offer His body as a sacrifice for our sins:

 

Therefore, when He came into the world, He said:

"Sacrifice and offering You did not desire,
But a body You have prepared for Me.

In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin
You had no pleasure.

Then I said, 'Behold, I have come -
In the volume of the book it is written of Me -
To do Your will, O God.'" - Hebrews 10:5-7

 

The Crucifixion - Fra Angelico

 

That whoever believes in Him  The love of God has sent the Lamb of God to rescue man from sin and death.  For it pleased the Father that in Him[Jesus] all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. - Colossians 1:19,20  God has done everything so that man can be reconciled to his Maker.  However, not every man desires to be rescued.  Some are determined to remain alienated from God.  Often in their defiance they argue that God has no right to judge sinners since He gave man freewill and allowed sin as a choice.

 

They fail to observe that, at a great price, God has provided complete restoration and reconciliation through Christ; in essence placing every man in the position of Adam - to choose obedience and life, or independence and death.  Everyone must make his, or her, own choice.  When Jesus was born, Simeon told Mary, "Behold, this Child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."  And the thoughts of the heart are revealed by our response to the Savior.  Wouldn't everyone want to believe their Creator loves them enough to save them from their own destruction?

 

Should not perish  The Greek word, "perish", is ἀπόληται (apolētai).  A more accurate rendering of the Greek would be, "should not be being destroyed."  "Being destroyed" describes an ongoing process.  Jesus described Hell as a place where "their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched."  Sin causes corruption.  So those who choose eternal disobedience will experience eternal corruption.  The Bible is clear that Hell exists as the final  place of judgment for Satan and his fallen angels.  God "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." - 1st Timothy 2:4

 

But have everlasting life  Life implies thriving, growing, learning, and maturing.   Eternal life, is life with God. And God is good.  And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding, that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, in His Son Jesus Christ.  This is the true God and eternal life. - 1st John 5:20

 

The words of Moses to the Children of Israel as they entered the Promised Land are also applicable to the choice between Heaven and Hell.  "I announce to you today that you shall surely perish; you shall not prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to go in and possess.  I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the Lord your God, that you may obey His voice, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days; and that you may dwell in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them." - Deuteronomy 30:18-20

John 1:17 Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

 

For the law was given through Moses.  Until the time of Christ the canonical Old Testament writings consisted of the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms.  Most of the Psalms were composed by David and Asaph.  Seventeen different prophets are identified as the source of the prophetic books.  But all of the laws in the five books written by Moses are ascribed to Him.

 

As a preface to our examination of the difference between the law and grace, we should recognize the authority of Christ, our fountainhead of grace.  The late Risto Santala spent much of his life in Israel studying the ancient Hebraic writings.  The Rabbinical Fathers attest to the fact that Christ would indeed augment the words of Moses.  The following excerpts may be accessed at http://www.ristosantala.com on the page titled "THE MESSIAH AS THE SECOND MOSES"

 

[The Midrash literature on Moses speaks of the 'First' and the 'Last' Saviours. Midrash Rabbah on Ecclesiastes relates how R. Berechiah said in the name of R. Yits .hak, who lived before the year 300 AD, that:

"Just as there was a First Saviour so there will be a Last. Just as it is said of the First Saviour (Ex. 4:20) that 'He took his wife and sons and put them on a donkey', so it is said of the Last Saviour that 'He is lowly and riding on a donkey'(Zech. 9:9). As the First Saviour provided manna (Ex. 16), as it is written, 'Behold I will pour out bread from heaven upon you,' so will the Last Saviour, as it is written (Ps. 72:16), 'Let corn abound throughout the land'. Just as the First Saviour opened a fountain, so the Last Saviour will provide water, as it is written (Joel 3:18), 'A fountain will flow out of the LORD'S house'."]- Midrash Qoheleth Rabbati 1. 

Be sure to access Risto's webpage to learn how he derives the following conclusion. 

[We have seen that in the light of the old Jewish literature the Messiah is to be a "Second Moses" and the "Last Saviour"; he will be called by the name "Lord"; grace and truth will be united in him; he will be conceived by the Holy Spirit; he will speak and act in the name of God, and that will be his distinguishing "sign"; in this way he will show himself to be Moses "redivivus". All of these features apply to Jesus.] - Emphasis added

but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.  God gave us both the law and grace, therefore, both are good and beneficial.  Jesus countered the accusation that He had come to abolish the law by responding; Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.  For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law till all is fulfilled. - Matthew 5:17,18

 

The law was given for the necessary purpose of maintaining order in the midst of a fallen world.  But the law also confronts imperfect man with a perfect standard which reveals to us our inner defect caused by the corruption of sin.  We are convicted by our inability to live up to God's standard, leaving us with an unsolvable delemma as to how we might withstand the judgment of a holy God.  The Apostle Paul said it is this predicament that points us to grace as the only solution.

 

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God.  Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. - Romans 3:19,20

 

In Galatians 3:21-25, Paul explains that law and grace are not in opposition to one another.  Is the law then against the promises of God?  Certainly not!  For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law.  But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.  But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed.  Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.

 

You see, the corruption of sin has stained every man with the defect of inner corruption; a stain which can only be removed by living a perfect life in obedience to every law of God - a life that no one but Jesus has lived.  But God has made a way that the stain might be removed through the sacrifice of His Son on the cross.

 

"Come now, and let us reason together,"
Says the Lord,
"Though your sins are like scarlet,
They shall be as white as snow;
Though they are red like crimson,
They shall be as wool." - Isaiah 1:18

 

And even though this divine salvation from sin is supernatural, it is not beyond reason.  For this commandment which I command you today is not too mysterious for you, nor is it far off.  It is not in heaven, that you should say, 'Who will ascend into heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?'  Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, 'Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?'  But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it. - Deuteronomy 30:11-14

 

So how might we understand the mechanics of salvation?  Some have used the acronym for grace: God's Riches At Christ's Expense.  Others have called it "The Great Exchange, as described in 2nd Corinthians 5:21; For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.  This gift of grace bestowed upon those who believe in Christ is the complete forgiveness of sins, and the appropriation of God's righteousness - it is the righteousness of God imparted as a gift upon those who are incapable of righteousness on their own.  It cannot be earned.  It can only be accepted.  It is not based on our personal merit.  It's based on the perfect sacrifice which Jesus offered for us on the cross.

 

For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another.  But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. - Titus 3:3-7

 

But why does John say that truth came through Jesus?  Jesus often began His statements; "Truly, truly, I say to you. . ."  Jesus spoke with authority from the full knowledge of the Godhead.  And Jesus is the true and only way to be reconciled to the Father.  Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."

 

But the life of God, eternal life, is honest life.  It is a whole and wholesome life that is complete in Christ.  It is true life that sets men free to be who they were created to be.  How broken is man in his fallen state!  How he is held back by his insecurity, by his circumstances, by mistakes and misfortunes.  But all the while he attempts to hide his inner dissatisfaction as he searches within and without for his own identity; only to be more and more disenchanted with the imperfection of his fallen state.

 

But Jesus came to give us life, abundant life; true life, as life was meant to be - free from the corruption of guilt, of sin, and even of the fear of death.  The New Covenant is the covenant of grace and truth.  It has been said that this gospel is so simple that it might be stated in four words; "Christ died for me."

 

Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.  For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?  And for this reason He is the Mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance. - Hebrews 9:12-15

 

If Christ did all of the work, is there anything left for us to do?  Yes; believe it!  How can you indicate that you understand that the only way to obtain righteousness is through Christ - and that you are placing your faith Him?  Consider confessing what you believe to God and to others.

 

 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, "The man who does those things shall live by them."  But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, "Do not say in your heart, 'Who will ascend into heaven?'" (that is, to bring Christ down from above) or, “‘Who will descend into the abyss?'" (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).  But what does it say?  "The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.  For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame." - Romans 10:5-11

John 1:2,3 All things were made through Him

He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

He was in the beginning with God.  John restates the fact that the Son of God was present with the Father at the time of creation.  This second verse is not meant to convey any new information, but it is rather an affirmation or logical conclusion to the first verse.  It might be prefaced with the thought, {Because it has been shown from the evidence presented in the first verse, therefore we understand that} "He was in the beginning with God."

This syllogism takes the form:

The Word pre-existed the beginning.

The Word and the Father abide together and both are God.

Therefore, He [the Word] was in the beginning with God.

All things were made through Him.  Jesus is the Lord of creation.  The celestial bodies were created by Jesus, as credited by Hebrews 1:1,2:  God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds. - Hebrews 1:1,2

All things; both all created things in the physical cosmos, and all created things in the spiritual realm.  The Apostle Paul states in Colossians 1:15-17:

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.  All things were created through Him and for Him.  And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

All people, plants, places, and things; all angelic beings, principalities, spiritual authorities, heavenly creatures, heavenly places, and the ornamentations thereof; all were created through Him.  And just to make sure that it is understood that no created thing exists apart from the Son's direct involvement, John adds:

 

and without Him nothing was made that was made.  The entire work of creation was undertaken through the Son.  And without Him nothing was made that was made.  This truth prohibits any misconception that the Son Himself could be a work of creation.  For either Jesus is eternally begotten, and not made; or else, He would have had to make Himself.  Verse Three simply makes it impossible to acknowledge the existence of Jesus and to deny that He is set apart as Co-Creator; the eternal Son of the eternal Godhead.

This equality of the Son with the Father was prophesied by Isaiah:

For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a Son is given;
And the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. - Isaiah 9:6

Paul records in his continued description of Christ in Colossians 2:9: For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.  And of Christ's humility in taking on bodily form to save us, Paul writes, Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.  And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. - Philippians 2:5-8

As we continue through the Gospel of John we will see that Jesus' words and works testified to His identity as the Son of God.  Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God. - John 5:18

Correctly understanding the deity of Jesus is so important that John opens his gospel by devoting these first three verses to the concise yet sufficient declaration of Christ's true identity.  John's purpose for writing this gospel is that the reader might come to know and believe in Jesus.  Near the end of his book, John writes; And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. - John 20:30,31

All of the treasures of real life are in Christ.  In John 17:3 Jesus prayed, And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  And knowing Jesus begins with knowing who Jesus is.