John 3:16 is widely considered the most well-known and famous Bible verse in the world. It is often referred to as "the gospel in a nutshell" because it summarizes the central tenets of the Christian faith in a single sentence. Jesus makes this statement to Pharisee (religious leader), named Nicodemis during a conversation about Jesus and His teachings. So, in the discussion about being born again, Jesus tells Nicodemis, “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).
If you are questioning God’s love take a good look at this verse. Jesus, the only Son of God, came down to earth for one reason. You! God sent Jesus into this world to save sinners such as myself, and you. God’s love for us is so great that He willingly sent His Son to die a horrendous death on a cross. How many of us would give the life of a child to save someone who had wronged us? Yet, that’s exactly what God did. We are guilty of sin. We have wronged God. “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8). God could have left us alone and condemned us with no way to redemption. However, that’s not what He did. Through Jesus, God provided a path to redemption. Jesus makes restoration possible. God’s love didn’t allow Him to give up on us. Instead His love reach down to us in the person of Jesus. Now that’s love. A love greater than anything we can ever experience from the world. God loves us so much that He didn’t want to be separated from Him.
The benefit for those who believe in Jesus is eternal life. Never will we perish. Don’t get me wrong, our earthly body will perish. One day we will all breathe our last breath and eternity awaits us. Our belief in who Jesus will determine where we spend it. We can spend it basking in the glory of God’s love, or we can be eternally separated from God. We are the only one who can make the decision as to where we’ll spend eternity. God, in His great love for us, wants to spend eternity with us. He wants us to forever be with Him. God sent His Son, Jesus, to make this possible. God doesn’t want to lose us. He wants to restore us through Jesus. Our beliefs about Jesus make all the difference. Condemnation or restoration? Eternally basking in God’s love or forever separated from the love of God.
Who is Jesus to you? A prophet? A teacher? A good man? The Savior of the world? Maybe none of these. Our belief in who Jesus is determines our eternal existence. It also tells us how we view God and HIs love for us. Don’t shun God’s love for you. Read John 3:16 and see how much He loves you. It’s a love so great that God gave His one and only Son, Jesus, so we can have eternal life with Him.
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