So what is it about John 3:16?
For years, the words “John 3:16″ appeared behind home plate a baseball games, in the end zones of football stadiums, and behind the benches at basketball courts. Those not familiar with the Bible must have wondered what this name and numbers meant, and why it seemed so important. The most recent appearance was several years ago when Broncos Quarterback Tim Tebow had the words painted into the ani-reflective black eye paint under his eyes, prompting a new rule prohibiting such “advertising”.
So what’s the deal with Jobn 3:16? A big deal. This verse, and those that follow it, though probably not uttered by Jesus in his conversation with Nicodemus (most modern translations omit the quotation marks at John 3:15), summarize early in John’s gospel what it, and the gospel of God, are all about. John indicates at the end of the gospel that he wrote the gospel so that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, and that, believing, you might have life in His Name (John 20:31). And so here, in 3:16, John says that God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son [to be the Christ, the Savior of all people for all times for all the world, in His being sacrificed on the cross to atone for their sins, and in His being raised from the dead to demonstrate the hope for new life] so that everyone who believes in Him may not perish [be lost today and forever because of the cumulative effect of their sins] but may have eternal life [enjoy a wonderful life with God now, and forever]. In a very real sense, this sums up the heart of the gospel: it begins with God, who loves us and all people so much that He sacrifices Himself on our behalf, and it ends with a proposition, that believing in Him and in what He has done for us, believing not only in heart but in mind, soul, and action, results in a whole new way of life for anyone and everyone who will do so.
Yes, this is a big deal, for the planet, and for you and me.
Has John 3:16 become important for you, in terms of your life? Is it important for those whom you love? And though you’re not expected to carry it to the places you live or work or play, nor are you expected to wear it on your body, are you carrying it in your heart, and can you carry it forth on your lips, and in the way you life your life?
