Here’s a devotional from An Unfathomable Gift. For more info about God’s amazing grace, click here.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
John 3:16
This verse is one of the most popular Bible verses. During major sporting events, we sometimes see banners promoting this verse, trying to stimulate our curiosity. Why? It emphasizes God’s love for us by giving His Son.
The Bible makes a profound statement about God’s nature: “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:8). What is our picture of God? Is it accurate? When we check out at the cash register and see the tabloids, we can easily fall for what is fictitious. Many depict a sleazy story in order to sell, completely undermining accuracy. Also, in our own lives, we can easily manipulate our “truth” by leaving out important information or adding some drama to it. The Bible is clear: knowing God means knowing “God is love” and reflecting that through our lives.
He who loves little will express little, and he who loves much will express much. Since God is infinite, His love is also infinite. He expressed everlasting love by giving Jesus. Why is that significant? The answer is related to what comes after the comma: “That whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
No matter how healthy we try to live, we’re fragile human beings. Death comes to all! Then, the age-old question arises: What happens when we die? Do we come back in some other life-form as taught in reincarnation? Do we go back to nothingness? Or, is there a God to whom we have to give an account? The Bible is unambiguous: “So then each of us will give an account of himself to God” (Rom. 14:12). The author of Hebrews stated: “And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Heb. 9:27).
We are guilty because of our rejection of God. We’ve gone our own way, indifferent to His word: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way” (Isa. 53:6). The latter part of this verse in Isaiah, however, expresses God’s boundless love: “And the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.” Jesus died for our sins. He suffered the just penalty that we deserve. When we believe in Jesus—who He is and what He has accomplished—we have the gift of eternal life. Why would anyone refuse such a gift?
Sincerely,
Jan
P.S. will you, as a believer, join Jesus’ collective birthday gift? Can you even begin to imagine what can (and will!) happen when Christians unite for such a birthday gift? Click here for more info.
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