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Scripture: John 3:1-21

1 John 3:11-24
 

John 3:16 has been called the gospel in a nutshell. It could also be called God's love note to us, and is, without doubt, a succinct summary of the good news

It is part of Jesus' conversation with a man named Nicodemus a secret disciple, and the fact that he came to visit Jesus under cover of darkness, is used to support that claim, but there could have been other reasons for coming at night. Perhaps he may have wanted a long talk which would have been difficult in the daytime with the crowds around Jesus. Another possibility could be a sense of urgency: maybe he couldn't wait for the morning. In any case, we should not fault him for being secretive. As a teacher in Israel, he did have a reputation to protect & was merely being careful. In the end, however, he openly professed allegiance to Jesus & his cause

In John 7:51, as a member of the Jewish ruling council, he asks simply,

"Does our law condemn anyone without first hearing him to find out what he is doing? "That's a reasonable question, don't you think ? He had checked out Jesus & must have sensed that he was indeed telling the truth. But notice their reaction to this perfectly reasonable question . They replied, "Are you from Galilee, too? "

Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee. " They are really calling Nicodemus backwoods. They have their minds made up & they don't want to be confused by the facts.

But the last mention of Nicodemus shows him to be no longer a secret disciple but openly professing allegiance to Jesus' cause. He accompanies Joseph of Arimathea as they request the body of Jesus. "Better late than never" would apply at this point. Bear in mind that Jesus' other disciples were behind closed doors, cringing in fear, but Nicodemus openly professed his love for the Master.

Nicodemus seems to have been very discerning. He sensed that Jesus was somebody different. He felt that he was a teacher come from God because of the miraculous signs he had performed. And yet, in spite of all his wisdom & learning, he was still in kindergarten. But as we read the account that John has given us, we too are instructed in the spiritual realm. We have, as a result, a kind of catechism, or series of questions and answers designed to lead us to a deeper understanding of the gospel. The sixteenth verse, therefore, becomes the focal point. The preceding verses lead up to it & the verses that follow throw more light upon this all important verse. As we will look at these questions & answers, we can see that there are several focal points but they are all designed to make the main point, namely the amazing love of God.

This past Friday was Valentine's Day, a celebration of human love, it is fitting to pause & to rejoice in & yes to celebrate God's wonderful love.

The different concepts that Nicodemus had trouble with were (1) the Kingdom of

God (2) the work of the Spirit & (3) the new birth. And underlying all of these is the foundational love of God: the heart of the gospel.

The Kingdom of God

Nicodemus is introduced to us as a member of the Jewish ruling council. He , along with others, wielded power over people, but he was, at the same time, fascinated by Jesus' power - a power in a realm of which he seems totally ignorant. "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.", Nicodemus begins. This was no doubt intended to be a compliment, but Jesus wastes little time getting to the heart of the matter, which is the matter of the heart. If Nicodemus is to change his mind, he must first have a change of heart. He must enter into a whole new realm & become part of the Kingdom of God..One author describes it as "the upside down Kingdom".Those things that are considered of great value in the world are useless garbage in the Kingdom of God. The rich and the famous are idolized in the worldly realm but Jesus focused upon the poor & the humble in heart. Nicodemus had to come to realize that all of his political & religious power was of little value in God's eyes. He spoke of the impossibility of our re-entering the womb to be reborn but Jesus showed him that he had to become like a little child if he were to enter the kingdom. A preacher once described this as the 180 concept, that is making a 180 degree turn or an about face. On one occasion Jesus called a little child & had him stand among the people. "I tell you the truth," he said, " unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." And here he says to Nicodemus, "I tell you for certain that you must be born from above before you can see God's kingdom" And further elaborating upon this new thought , he adds "I tell you for certain that before you can get into God's kingdom , you must be born not only by water, but by the Spirit." Nicodemus' question, "How can we be born when we are old ?" shows that he is only thinking on the human plane. He has not begun to understand what being born again, or born from above, really means. Jesus has to lead him along to talk about ...

The Work of the Spirit

Because to understand the kingdom of God, or more importantly to enter the kingdom of God, we must enter the realm of the Spirit. And to put this concept across, Jesus uses the simple illustration of the wind. We cannot see the wind but we can most certainly see what it does. When we witness the devastation left in the wake of a tornado or a hurricane, we stand in awe of the power of the wind. The same Greek word used to describe the wind also means breath or spirit. Jesus is telling Nicodemus that if he cannot understand the mystery of the wind, he cannot understand the mysteries of the Spirit either.

The New Birth

This brings up the subject of the new birth , that is birth from above or being born of God. Clearly, what Jesus is saying to Nicodemus is that it is not enough to make over what is old. We must make a fresh start & this cannot be done on a purely human plain. We not only need God's help, indeed he must do a work of grace in our hearts. Peter makes this very clear in his first letter to Christians scattered by persecution. He explains what Christ has done for our redemption.

"For we know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last days for your sake ." (1 Peter 1:18-20)

This verse in Peter's first letter serves to remind us that we are children of God, that through the new birth we have come from God, that is we have been born from above. but also that he is our final destination. Paul puts it this way at the end of Romans chapter 11 " For from him and through him & to him are all things. To him be glory for ever. Amen" The New English Bible neatly sums it up in three words : "Source, Guide & Goal of all that is - to him be glory for ever. Amen." (Romans 11:36) Jesus is taking Nicodemus to ...

The Heart of the Gospel

(A)GOD SO LOVED

In spite of all the questions that Nicodemus has in mind, he is led by our Lord to the heart of the gospel which is John 3:16. And the heart of the gospel is the powerful love of God for a lost world.. "God so loved the world "... this phrase explains the motivation, the compelling love that moved the Father to put into action a plan whereby lost sinners could be saved. There were some translators who had a problem expressing John 3:16 to a group of people who had no word for love in their particular language. But as they talked with those who spoke the language , they hit upon the phrase "God so hurt in his heart that he gave his only Son." Isn't that the truth ? When our love becomes so compelling & so powerful, we actually hurt in our hearts. And the pain is particularly acute if the one who is loved is in danger or going astray. That was most certainly the case with us. That kind of love, of course, was in the heart of Jesus. When the rich young ruler came to Jesus asking how he could receive eternal life, we read in Mark's account that our Lord "looked at him & loved him". How the Saviour's heart must have hurt when he saw him leave without committing his life to God. The young man also hurt in his heart or as Mark puts it, "(his) face fell, (and) he went away sad, because he had great wealth." (Mark 10:22)

But the love that God experienced is more than a feeling, for...

(B) GOD SO LOVED THAT HE GAVE...

So often people speak of love as being a feeling or an emotion, and it is that but if it remains only that, then it can become selfish or self-centred but the tremendous love of God for us had to find its expression in action. He so loved that he gave & what did he give, or perhaps we should ask whom did he give ? The answer , of course, is ...

(C) HIS ONE & ONLY SON

I read again the account of Abraham's testing, when God said to him "Take your son , Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there ...on one of the mountains I will tell you about." (Genesis 22:2).Was God really calling for human sacrifice? Certainly not, especially when he detested the sacrificing of children to the pagan god Molech. They were actually placed in the arms of the idol & burned. Or Micah makes clear what God requires when he asks, "With what shall I come before the Lord & bow down before the exalted God ? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings... with thousands of rams (or) ten thousand rivers of oil ? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? (No) " Micah continues, " he has shown you ...what is good.... to act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God."

The testing of Abraham is all about our loving things & people more than God. It is most certainly good to love our children, but if loving them or anybody else comes before our love for God, then it is wrong. Jesus felt so strongly about our love for God that he actually spoke of hating mother & father. That's not evil hatred but it does mean not allowing them to come between us & God.

The King James Version says that God gave his "only begotten" Son. This is an accurate translation of the Greek word used but it doesn't quite make it as contemporary English. The New International Version translates it as "one & only Son" to stress the uniqueness of the Son of God to the Father. The Greek word refers to the action of the male parent & is yet another way of saying that Jesus was begotten of God, or we would say born of God, although Mary bore Jesus & the Father begot him. The important reality is that Jesus was & is God, as the Nicene Creed rightly states he was of the same substance or essence of God.

Just as surely as we carry in our bodies the genes of both our parents, so by virtue of the new birth, we have received the very nature of God. John writes, first of all , in his gospel that " to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husbands will , but born of God."(John 1:12,13) And God's love is the theme in John's epistle as well. He exclaims at the beginning of chapter three of First John:

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us,

that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are !

... what we will be has not been made known. But we know that

when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure."

If God is truly the Source, Guide & Goal of all things, then surely the hope that we have is a purifying hope. The gospel chorus puts it this way: "This world is not my home, I'm just a passing through . My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. The angels beckon me from heaven's open door & I can't feel at home in this world anymore."

To recap, we have seen that the tremendous love that was in the heart of God, prompted him to take action on our behalf. That action was the giving of his one & only Son that...

(D)Whoever believes in him ...

shall not perish but have eternal life. Let's just pause for a moment on that word "whoever" .It's an open invitation. Whoever believes, receives. And to believe does not mean only to accept in one's mind but to fully trust in God in one's heart. All those who cling to God whole heartedly shall not perish but have eternal life. The King James Version translates it as everlasting life, but the emphasis is more on the quality rather than the duration. It is not merely continued existence but life that has purpose & meaning. If our existence is without meaning then we would not want it to go on forever. Christ gives us hope in the midst of despair , meaning in the midst of chaos & confusion.

There is a lot of truth packed into this one verse, John 3:16. It speaks of being saved or rescued from sin, but we must see it in its context. Take, for example, the verses that follow : (John 3:17)

"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one & only Son."

John 3:16 is God's Valentine for us pilgrims on life's journey. It is a reminder that God does care for us. His love has been shown by the gift of his Son upon the cross.

Valentine's Day, is a celebration of human love. It is something precious that God has given us, but we must go beyond human love to grasp the wonder of the love that God has shown to us in the gift of his Son. Paul offers this prayer for the Ephesians & in it he gives the dimensions of God's love:

"..I pray that you being rooted & established in love, may have power , together with all the saints, to grasp how wide & long & high & deep is the love of Christ, & to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fulness of God." (Ephesians 3:17-19)

Let us thank God for family love, let us rejoice in married love, but let us go beyond all of these to experience God's love that has been so powerfully expressed in the gift of his Son.

The Seburn family has had a web site, I once posted a scrolling announcement that began with the words "DIVINE VALENTINE". Then there follows John 3: 16 & 17

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one & only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."

God has sent his valentine. He has given his one & only Son that we might have eternal life. Have you sent your valentine back to him? Have you given him your heart ?

LET US PRAY

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