What John 3:16 Does Not Say!

There is a very popular, and often misused, passage from the third chapter in John’s Gospel . 16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 

The meaning of this small verse often gets missed if it is the only verse presented. 

And yet, verse 16 is the only one ever presented on posters at sports events, and on city street corners.

Now, to be sure, John 3:16 is most precious truth!  I have no qualms at all about that.  Nevertheless, when taken out of the context of the entire passage, this verse can be used as a point of judgement.  Suggesting that one needs to “believe” in a most specific way.  Must “believe,” that is, the way the poster-holder “believes.”  

It is a belief with conditions!  

And!  If your beliefs don’t live up to the poster-holder’s, then you most probably won’t have  eternal life.

An extremely subtle message that they are more than willing to point out to you! 

However, What they are ignoring is verse 17:

"Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

The God of condemnation and judgment was the Old Testament God.  

Remember?  He came in Jesus’ skin to change the game plan.  He came so that he, and his followers, could find a new — closer, more trusting — relationship with God.

Let me just say: It is always, always, risky to remove one verse from the whole passage.  

And yet, if the truth be known, I am guilty of that from time to time myself.  However, when I do that I give the reader the entire passage to read along with it. And most usually make an explanation of the entire context of the message.

The two verses, I am inviting you to think about, come out of a conversation between, a man named,  Nicodemus and Jesus.  A conversation about being born from above!   Nicodemus is wanting Jesus to show him a sign that he is who he claims to be.

The conversation quickly turns to the possibilities given through the Holy Spirit.  Being “born,” other than, through the workings of the human anatomy.

What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 

That is, having another source of life that give us a closer connection with God the Creator of all life.  

Then the passage gets sticky! 

There is a verse that gives the poster-holder a tighter hold this issue of belief. It comes in verse 18:  Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

This verse is referring to Nicodemus.  Who, we are told, is a leader of the Jews. It is about men like him, who has been raised with a hope of a coming Savior.  The promised Messiah! 

The point?  Nicodemus is in the very presence of this Messiah.  Face to face!  Eyeball to eyeball!  And yet, doesn’t  believe him.  So, he asks for A sign in the very presence of The Truth he is asking for.

It is a contextual thing!  

A cultural thing!

We in the twenty-first century do not have the same, up close and personal, information that that ancient culture possessed!

And the painfully hard facts are: there are people in todays culture who have very little information about that promised Savior.  Many of those people wonder about who this Jesus is, that they hear so much about.  Some of them even seek more information.  Those people are the people who are at risk of being told:   “If you don’t believe (my way)”  then you are in big trouble. They are told, you will most likely end up in hell!

I call that kind of assuming testimony, of the greatest story ever told, a tragedy!  

Destructive!

Catastrophic to any one who wants to know who Jesus is;  and what he is about!  

Someone who is searching for information about Jesus is treading on fragile ground.  Then need people who can allow them time to get to know Jesus.  Get to know the precious message of grace he came to bring. 

Their questions need to be honored and respected!   

Not judged!

1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." 3 Jesus answered him, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above." 4 Nicodemus said to him, "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother's womb and be born?" 5 Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, "You must be born from above.' 8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." 9 Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" 10 Jesus answered him, "Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? 11 "Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 "Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. 20 For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21 But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God." John 3:1-21)