“God so loved the world that He gave his
only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him won’t perish but will have
eternal life.” (John 3:16, CEB)
Jesus’
death provided salvation for the world at great cost to Himself. An
individual’s salvation is not automatic. The phrase, “won’t
perish but will have eternal life,” of John 3:16 declares that people must receive
His gift to gain eternal life. Receiving Jesus by faith alone allows us to personally
appreciate all He has done for us.
Saving
faith requires a specific object. It affirms more than Jesus as a prophet or
miracle worker. Those of us who did not see Jesus in the flesh can still
believe that He is Lord and God. How could saving faith not involve Jesus?
The Greek word for perish is apollumi, which means “to lose, or to be lost.” John 3:16 is not speaking of an eternal
annihilation of a soul, but of a temporary losing of the soul. It is like the
lost sheep that was later found. It is the same with all the times you see
Jesus speaking of someone “perishing.” such as in John 3:16.
What
we are saved for is a new life lived under Jesus Christ. We have eternal life in the present tense. This means that the
world should be able to look at the church, and see what Jesus looks like. As
Christians, we sometimes live short of all we can be in Christ. What are the results of believing in Jesus?
1.
You
will not perish.
“Sin
pays off with death. But God’s gift is eternal life given by Jesus Christ our
Lord.” (Romans
6:23, CEV)
“Sin wouldn’t be so attractive if the wages were paid
immediately.” (Anonymous)
2.
You
will have eternal life.
“But as the Scriptures say, no eye has ever seen and no
ear has ever heard and it has never occurred to the human heart; all the
things God prepared for those who love Him.” (1
Corinthians 2:9, VOICE)
“The heavens will not
be filled with those who never made mistakes but with those who recognized that
they were off course and who corrected their ways to get back in the light of
gospel truth.”
(Dieter F. Uchtdorf)
“The Bible
gives me a deep, comforting sense that
things seen are temporal and things unseen are eternal.” (Helen Keller) [i]
[i] Inspired
by the sermon “Christmas in a Nutshell: We Live” (installment four, final)
Sunday, December 24, 2017 Pastor Dave Jansen CenterPoint Gahanna Church
Gahanna, OH.
Additional
Sources:
·
"What about How the Bible Says that Those Who
Do Not Believe Will Perish?" (http://www.tentmaker.org/FAQ/perish.htm)
·
“The Gospel
According to John 3:16” (http://enrichmentjournal.ag.org/201203/201203_028_john_3_16.cfm)
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