WHAT DOES JOHN 3:16 REALLY SAY?

It is one of the most popular verses of the Bible. It has been used by preachers, exponents of the Gospel and missionaries of all ages to draw men to the faith. And if there is one verse that most people can recite from memory and even in their sleep, it will be these simple, soothing ,yet powerful and  majestic words: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

But what does this verse really say? Is it about a free unconditional gift to the world? Is the “world” expected to do anything at all? What does it mean to believe in the Son?

Today, I respectfully and sincerely urge you to go over the words again but this time, read it with this at the back of your mind: the Almighty does not need us but rather we need Him!

No doubt if we re-read the words from this standpoint we will realise that the Eternal One sent His Son into the gloomy and dark world to bring light into the souls of human beings. There is one condition however: it is those who believe Him and act in accordance with His words who will rediscover the right way leading to God. It is such people who will pass in the Judgement that will one day come upon the world.

Next, what does it mean to believe in the Son of God? To believe Him simply means we trust in His words and are convinced of the truth of His words. He who believes then needs to live according to what is believed. Confessing His Name, empty faith, the illusory belief that Christ has done it all for us, we are to do nothing at all, expecting miracles from Him and so on will not help! Nothing else will help other than trusting His words and because of this we then live our lives based on His words. We are to live the words in actual deeds! Those who call Him Lord, Lord, and do not do His Father’s Will, which is obedience to God’s Laws and Commandments will still be regarded as failures during the Judgement.

Let us realise the great love extended from above to us through Jesus and from now on thank the Almighty with how we live our lives, indeed with every breath we are permitted to take through His inestimable love!