FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD John 3:14-21 Key Verse 3:16 "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. First, Just as Moses lifted up the snake (14-15). In the previous passage, we learned about how Jesus tried to help a ruler, named Nicodemus." Jesus gave him his divine counsel, saying, I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. Nicodemus could not see the kingdom of God because he was not born again. He was empty despite his great success morally, socially, politically and intellectually. He must be born again through water and the Spirit; he must really turn to God in repentance. But Nicodemus kept talking back instead of accepting Jesus words because of his pride and unwillingness to repent. It seemed there was no way to help him out. But Jesus did not give up on him. Instead, he rebuked him, and now, in today s passage, he showed Nicodemus God s amazing love for lost sinners like him. Look at verses 14 and 15. Let s read these verses together: 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. This event, in which Moses lifted up the snake, is recorded in Numbers 21:4-9. It was 40 years after the Israel people came out of Egypt. During this long period of time, the Israelites had wandered in the desert, and all men who were over 20 years old when they came out of Egypt had died in the desert because of their unbelief and rebellion. Now, the new generation had grown up and was serving in the community. They saw how God had guided their way with the pillar of fire by night and of cloud by day, and how God had provided them with bread from heaven every day in the desert, and also how God had destroyed the former generation because of their rebellion. 603,550 soldiers died in 40 years. It means, each and every day, about 40 people who were able to handle weapons for battle died; if we add the women of the same generation, then, everyday, 80 people died. Yesterday 80 people died, today 80 die, and tomorrow again, 80 will die. Every day, there were 80 funeral services. It was really horrible. This new generation of Israelite soldiers saw all this, and they knew why such a horrible thing had happened it was because of their fathers unbelief and rebellion against God. So they should have learned a lesson. But when they grew impatient on the way to the promised land, they too spoke against God and against Moses and said, Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food (Num 21:4,5)! Like their fathers, they, too, had no gratitude to God for His salvation grace and generous provision of bread from heaven in the desert. They described manna, which God gave them every day as this miserable food. This sin made God angry. So He sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died (Num 21:6). Then, only after having been punished, the Israelites came to their own senses. They came to Moses and said, We have sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us. So Moses prayed for the people (Num 21:7).
How did God answer Moses prayer? God said to him, Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live (Num 21:8). It was a strange direction. Surely, God could have gotten rid of the snakes from the Israel community as he had sent them, or he could have killed all of them in one second; or he could have shown the people how to catch the snakes. But, God s way of salvation was different. He didn t remove the snakes from them as they had prayed for. Instead, he asked Moses to make a bronze snake and put it up on a pole so that people who were bitten by snakes might look at it and live. This instruction is very interesting. Once you are bitten by a venomous snake, what should you do? First, you must tie a string tightly above the bitten spot; second, you must enlarge the wound with a knife and suck up the poison; and third, you must go to the hospital as soon as possible. Also, you must look down on the ground so that you may not be bitten again. How would you act if ten venomous snakes were here in the sheep pen? You would watch the floor carefully and hop and hop continuously to avoid snakes. Looking up at the bronze snake on the pole was not difficult at all; even a 5 year old boy could do so; simply, you lift up your head and look at it! But when the venomous snakes are attacking you, it is a totally different story. In that situation, only those who believe in God s promise, anyone who is bitten can look at it and live, can look at it. While others who did not have faith in God s promise were hopping and dying, while many venomous snakes were attacking them, those who believed God s promise stood firm, looked up at the bronze snake, and they lived. When we think about God's way of salvation, we can see that what God wanted from them for their salvation was not some works or activities, but simply their absolute faith in His promise. This incident shows us the principle of God s salvation, that is, by faith in God s promise, not by man s works or efforts - God wants us to trust in him even while terrible enemies are attacking us. Jesus death on the cross is the embodiment of God s promises found in the Scriptures. Whoever believes in God s promise will be healed and live. Here, Jesus describes Nicodemus, a prestigious and successful man, as one of the Israelites bitten by venomous snakes, dying moment by moment, and thereby needed God s salvation. In Jesus eyes, Nicodemus was bitten by snakes and was suffering from the ill-effects of venom: emptiness, sense of meaninglessness, insomnia, depression and nightmares. In this way, Nicodemus was dying moment by moment. So far, he tried to heal himself, save himself in many ways religiously, morally and politically, but nothing worked. To him, Jesus said, Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. Through this, Jesus showed him what God had done for him, God s way of salvation for him. For him, soon Jesus would be lifted up on the cross, so that he may be healed and have eternal life. Nicodemus did so many good looking things, but nothing could save him from his life of emptiness and meaninglessness. Now Jesus helped him to turn his eyes to what God had done for him, what God suggested him for his salvation from such a meaningless and empty way of life. It was the time that Nicodemus, instead of focusing on what he had done or how good he had lived, or what he had achieved, should see what God had done for him, and put his trust in God's promise of salvation. Jesus said to Nicodemus, "So the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." Jesus was going to do this much for Nicodemus so that he would enjoy eternal life, called zoe, a truly fulfilling life. Nicodemus should stop making excuses. Instead, he should open his heart to Jesus and accept his love for him! He must secure this gift of Jesus - eternal life. How? By repenting and turning to God! By being born again
through water and the Spirit! How much Jesus hoped that Nicodemus might enjoy his gift, that truly fulfilling and happy life! No one should reject this gift of God when Jesus did this much for them. No one should make an excuse of not repenting and turning to God. No one should reject Jesus' love for them. "So the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." Second, For God so loved the world (16-18). Look at verse 16. Let's read this verse together: "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. This is one of the most famous Bible verses. Some people think that they are saved because they memorized this verse. In this verse, Jesus proclaims God's love for the world. God loves the world so much. How can we say that? Because there is an evidence. He sacrificed his one and only Son for the world! The expression, "his one and only Son" means "his most precious treasure," or simply, "the highest price." Also, the way of sacrificing him was to crucify him to the cross - the most painful way of death. It was not like killing him on an electric chair - just a few minutes, or with poisonous gas, but the most painful way of death. God did this much for the world, willing to sacrifice his most precious treasure for it, willing to pay the highest price for it, willing to endure the greatest pain for it - how much he valued the world that he was willing to go this much for it! He valued the people of the world so much that he was willing to do anything for them. Nothing could stop him from pursuing them. He would go to the end! That was the expression of his love for them! It seems that the world was really precious, beautiful and lovely to him that he pursued it this much. But actually, it was not! The world was not lovely at all, but in constant rebellion against him. The first man Adam sinned by disobeying God s command even in paradise. Even though God gave him everything even his wife, he teamed up with his wife and betrayed God; God was really hurt. And his son, Cain, was rebellious. When God gave him his divine counseling service not to sin, in rebellion, he did a more terrible sin than he had done before he murdered his younger brother who was more righteous than he was. During Noah's time, people became nothing but flesh just like animals, losing their dignity as human beings that God had to punish them with the flood. Then, after Noah s flood, people gathered together and built a city and a tower. Through this, they tried to get rid of the memory of God from human society and enjoy a beautiful life all by themselves. And today still people try to deny the fact that God exists. God s eternal wisdom and power are well manifested in nature so that all people can acknowledge the work of God. But people suppress the truth deliberately and say that there is no God. Instead, they say that in the beginning was amoeba, and amoeba created all things. Using all their intellect and knowledge, people struggle hard to twist the truth and say, In the beginning was a big bang. These days people struggle hard to establish laws and regulations that are against God. These people somehow try to get rid of God s name from human society. What human beings do is so disgusting. Once Martin Luther said that he would have destroyed the world ten times a day, had he been God. God loved this world! For this world, so disgusting, He gave up his one and only Son to the cross. God wants to bring back the world to Himself this much; today, still God seeks the
world, for He loves it. He sacrificed His one and only Son for the world! He gave his Son to the world. This is the expression of his love for them - this much he is willing to go for them. Romans 5 says, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rm5:8)." This is the evidence of God s love for us, which cannot be denied. Many people are sad and depressed because they do not earn money as much as they desire, do not have a house as big as they wish, and things do not go as they hope. They complain to God, saying, God, what can you do for me? When will you bless me? They doubt God s love because God has not given them what they want. But God gave them the best gift, Jesus Christ, and God cannot give them anything bigger than this gift. If anyone asks God to prove His love by giving him a gift better than this one, God is speechless. His best gift, his best effort is rejected. Anyone who rejects Jesus Christ, rejects God s best gift, hurling insults at God, and thereby stands condemned. Nicodemus must bend his pride and accept God s love in Jesus Christ. The next expression, Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life, shows us God s purpose in sending Jesus to die on the cross. God loves the world - that's undeniable truth. So, what did he do? He gave his one and only Son to the world. For what? So that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. With the word, perish, Jesus describes the real condition of all peoples in the world. "Perish" means to be destroyed or ruined or simply, to die. Eggs are perishable, so they are perishing. Llike the Israelites bitten by venomous snakes, people are perishing. Some people are perishing because of sorrow; some people are perishing because of anger and hatred; some people are perishing because of their lust and immoral life; some people are perishing because of the fear of future security; some people are perishing because of their greed for more money; people are perishing because of their good looking desires, and some others are perishing because of their bad looking desires; the more they live, the more they perish. Since Adam s fall, all men are disconnected from God, the source of life, and become like a cut flower in a vase. The flowers in a vase are beautiful, but are really perishing moment by moment, and soon, they will be thrown into a trash can. In verse 18, Jesus says that whoever believes in him is not condemned. Here the word, condemned means, to disapprove of strongly or to declare guilty. In other words, perishing means being extinguished, and condemnation means although we live, we live as cursed beings. Both words are terrible, and these two words explain fallen man s condition precisely. Nicodemus was living this kind of life cursed, condemned and perishing. That s why no matter what he did, he was suffering from the elements of death; simply, he was perishing, dying and decaying moment by moment. Jesus loved Nicodemus, so he wanted him to have eternal life in him instead of perishing. God s purpose in sending Jesus to be lifted up on the cross is to save the people of the world from this terrible status, and, instead, to give them the life that does not perish, but is eternal - no more gloom, or emptiness, but hope and vision, no more void, but a meaningful and fulfilling life. God sent Jesus so that we may stop living the life that is perishing, but live the life that is everlasting. No more life that is perishing, but life that is everlasting! For this, Jesus Christ our Lord died on the cross. He was lifted up on the cross for this. When we think about verse 16 carefully, we can see that God's ultimate desire for us is that we may enjoy eternal life, called zoe - this is what God wants us to have in Jesus Christ.
This is what John's gospel is talking about from the beginning to the end. John 1:4 talks about this life, zoe, saying, "In him was zoe, and that zoe was the light of men." Jesus says in John 4, "Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life." (Jn 4:13,14) In John 5, he says, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty (Jn 5:35)." He says in John 7, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him (Jn 7:37,38)." He also says, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (Jn 8:12) Then, on the cross, Jesus finally said, "It is finished!" and he breathed his last. (Jn 19:30) With his death on the cross, all the preparations that must be done for people to have eternal life had been completed. The author John concludes his book in John 20:31, "But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life, zoe, in his name." God wants you to enjoy eternal life, the very life you have dreamed about and pursued. For this, he did so much, even sacrificing his only son to the cross. This is the expression of God's love for us. We must not reject this love of God for us any longer; instead, we must respond to this love of God by repenting of our sins, turning to him and securing this eternal life. Anyone who rejects this offer by making excuses or by still seeking happiness and fulfillment in something else or someone else in the world rejects God's love. Such people stand condemned already, for they reject God's one and only Son, and God's best gift for them. Then, how can we have this eternal life, zoe? Jesus says, Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. We must believe in Jesus; we must believe in God. As we live as Jesus' disciples, we come to have many challenges - difficulties, hardships, sufferings, and even temptations. Sometimes, we suffer financially; sometimes, we suffer academically; sometimes, we suffer even physically, so exhausted or even suffering from fatigue and illness; sometimes, there are persecutions at home and schools; sometimes, there are temptations for relationships or future security matter. Sometimes, we feel like many venomous snakes are attacking at us from every direction. In those situations, when we do not believe in Jesus, we lose our spirit, strength, passion and vision, and there, we perish; when we do not believe in Jesus, we are defeated by those challenges and thereby, perish. But when we believe in Jesus, we rise above them like eagles soaring on wings. Despite our present difficulties, we believe that Jesus is with us, then, we become passionate and powerful; we believe in God's promise that we will be the fathers of many nations, mothers of many nations, then, we soar on wings like eagles and do God's work mightily. When we believe that God will make us fishers of men, our spirit is renewed and we become strong in Jesus Christ. When we believe in him, we can enjoy this new life in Jesus, zoe, freely. That's why God defines Christians' way of life in one sentence, saying, "The righteous will live by faith from first to last (Rm 1:17)." The righteous live from faith to faith. This is how God's people live their life. This is how we can enjoy eternal life continually. Also, we must not give into sin because sin damages our relationship with God; we must fight against sin. The apostle Paul says in Romans, "Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation-- but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,..." (Rm 8:12,13) If anything or anyone causes you to sin, get rid of it; even if it is your eye
that is so precious to you, gouge it out and throw it away; even if it is your right hand so useful for you, cut it off and throw it away. Life, zoe is more precious than anything else. We must secure life, eternal life, zoe by any means. Third, This is the verdict (19-21). Let s read verses 19 through 21 together: 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God." It seemed that Nicodemus did not accept Jesus message of being born again because he could not understand it. But Jesus declared to him, The verdict is this: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Nicodemus real problem was not lack of understanding, but his love of darkness. He wanted to have eternal life full of peace, joy and happiness, but he did not want to exchange his wealth, his fame, and his pride for eternal life, because he loved such things more than eternal life. There was a young man who was so successful in his career that, at a young age, he became very rich and a highranking official. Usually, when people become successful like him, they become corrupt, unforgiving, proud, and pleasure seeking. But this man was different. He had deep concern about his salvation and wanted to have eternal life. With a deep sense of problem, from his youth, he had kept the Law of Moses absolutely. But he still felt something was missing. So he asked Jesus, Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? Then, Jesus told him, Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor Then, come, follow me. Now, finally, he had found the way to have eternal life, but it would cost all his wealth. At this, his face fell. He went away sad because he could not accept this deal. Even if he wanted to have eternal life so badly, he did not want to exchange his wealth for eternal life because he loved his wealth more than eternal life. So, he turned down Jesus offer (Mk 10:17-22). When people do not want to repent of their love of the things of the world, they turn to theological arguments, saying, By faith in Jesus, we are saved or I ll go to another church. They must repent of their love of darkness and turn to God so that they might be born again and enjoy a truly beautiful life as children of God. There are many people who want to have salvation and eternal life in Jesus, but many of them fail because they do not want to lose their sinful pleasures in the world. When God offers them a deal to exchange their sinful pleasures for eternal life, they turn down the deal. Between heaven and hell, between eternal life and eternal condemnation in a fiery lake of burning sulfur, they choose hell rather than heaven because they do not want to lose their sinful pleasures in the world. Why do people have so much difficulty to renounce such desires and love for the world even though they know that they are going to hell? Jesus says in verse 19, men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. This means that, when they did what was evil, they began to develop love for darkness. As they keep doing what is evil, their love for darkness grows stronger and stronger until it becomes so great that, even at the cost of being thrown into hell, they cannot reject it. Those who sin a lot go so far away from God that they cannot return. These people hate the light because the light exposes their shameful deeds. Instead of admitting their sinfulness, they hide themselves in darkness.
Jesus says in verse 21, But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God. Here, whoever lives by the truth is the one who admits that he is a sinner. This person accepts Jesus as his Savior confessing his sins. Through this, God s work upon his life becomes very clear. He is a child of light. Anyone who admits himself or herself as a sinner lives by the truth, and accepts Jesus as the Savior. This is the work of God. But Nicodemus did not live by the truth. Instead of admitting his wrongdoings, when the light exposed his folly, he pretended as if he did not understand what Jesus was talking about. Verse 21 shows that it is only by God s grace that we could accept the light and repent of our sins. We too were sinful. How could these sinful people accept the light instead of loving darkness? By ourselves, it was impossible. If we have done anything good such as accepting the light or repenting of our sins, it has been done only through God s help; it was the work of God. In today s passage, we learned of God s love that He sent His one and only Son to be lifted up on the cross so that people in the world can have eternal life. Jesus is the way of salvation God offered for all sinners in the world. How much Jesus wanted Nicodemus to open his heart and accept God s love for him! How much he wanted Nicodemus to have eternal life instead of suffering from a sense of void, depression, insomnia and nightmares! Let s pray to accept this love of God so that we may not wander in the worthless things of the world any longer, but have zoe, eternal life. One Word: Shall Not Perish But Have Eternal Life