“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” John 3:16-17

As Jesus explains in these well-known verses of the Bible, He did not come into the world to judge and condemn the world “but that the world through Him might be saved.” And Jesus’ words and purpose apply to His church in this world, as well.

Had God sent His Son into this world to judge this world, as it says in Psalm 130, verse 3, “O Lord, who could stand?” All of us would be found guilty! Not a single one of us has kept all that God commands in our thoughts, desires, words, and actions. Ecclesiastes 7:20 says that “there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.”

So, how thankful we can be that Jesus was not sent into the world to judge the world but, instead, to live a holy life for us and then atone for our sins by suffering our punishment when He was crucified and died on the cross! And that’s what He did when He came into the world. He died for our sins — for the sins of all — and rose again on the third day that we might repent of our sins and look to Him and His cross in faith and be counted just and righteous in God’s eyes, pardoned, forgiven, and made acceptable in His sight!

As Christians, we sometimes forget this and think God has left us in this world to exalt ourselves and condemn others. The Bible is quite clear when it tells us that Jesus will be coming back to judge the world. He will condemn those who do not repent and look to Him for pardon and forgiveness but continue on in their sinful ways. As Apostle Paul wrote to the Thessalonians (2 Thess. 1:7-8), “The Lord Jesus [will be] revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Our job as followers of Jesus Christ is not to write off and condemn people to hell because of their sins but to warn them of that coming judgment and to call upon them to repent of their sinful ways and look to the cross of Jesus for pardon, forgiveness, and life everlasting. Yes, that demands we teach what it is God calls sin and what He says of sin, but the goal is that all would repent and look to Jesus in faith and be spared in the judgment which is soon to come.

Followers of Jesus, like Jesus, call what is sinful sin and warn of sin’s consequences; but followers of Jesus also proclaim the only way of salvation: faith in Jesus and His cross. Indeed, “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Instead of condemning the world, we point people to the cross of Jesus so that the people of this world might be saved through faith in His name!

Dear Lord Jesus, let me see in Your Word Your love for all people and Your desire that all repent of their sinful ways and look to You and Your cross for pardon and forgiveness. Grant that I not condemn the world but warn others that they might turn from their sinful ways to You for mercy and not be condemned on the day You return in judgment. Amen.

[Scripture is taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

“Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.” Romans 4:23-25

Why was it written in the Bible that “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Rom. 4:3; Gen. 15:6)? Not just for Abraham but for us also, for those of us who believe the Gospel promises of God and trust in Him who raised up Jesus from the dead to forgive our sins and accept us as His own dear children through faith in Christ Jesus and His atoning sacrifice on the cross.

What has Jesus accomplished for us by His innocent sufferings and death and by His glorious resurrection? That is shown to us by the words which the Holy Spirit moved St. Paul to write to the believers in Rome.

“Jesus our Lord … was delivered up because of our offenses.” Jesus was delivered up unto death on the cross on account of our sins — yours and mine. Jesus was holy and just. We are unjust sinners. We justly deserve God’s eternal wrath and punishment for our disobedience and sin, but Jesus was delivered up for our sins. He bore our punishment.

It is as St. Peter wrote in his first epistle: “For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit …” (1 Peter 3:18; cf. Isaiah 53:6).

Jesus “was raised because of our justification.” Jesus’ bodily resurrection on the third day proves that God the Father accepted the sacrifice of His Son as full payment for our sins and the sins of the whole world. “Jesus Christ the righteous … is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world” (1 John 2:1,2).

If His sacrifice were not sufficient, Jesus would not have been raised from the dead and we would still be dead in our sins. But He has been raised — He lives — and we have forgiveness through faith in His name! (Cf. 1 Cor. 15:12-20.)

And Jesus died for our sins and rose again in triumph that we might look to Him in faith and be justified and made acceptable in God’s eyes. When we believe that “Jesus our Lord … was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification,” we receive God’s pardon and are justified by faith. We then possess peace with God — the peace won for us by the holy and precious blood of Christ shed for us on the cross. It is as the apostle writes in the very next verse: “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ …” (Rom. 5:1).

Instead of being enemies of God, through faith in Christ, we are reconciled to God (Rom. 4:10-11). The sin which separated us from God has been taken out of the way, being nailed to Christ’s cross (Col. 2:13-14; cf. 2 Cor. 5:18-21).

And we need not doubt our salvation. It is as sure as Christ’s death for our sins and His glorious resurrection on the third day. Since Jesus bore our sins and died in our stead, and since God the Father raised Jesus up on the third day, we have peace with God through faith in Christ Jesus, our Savior!

We thank You, dear Lord Jesus, for bearing upon the cross the just punishment for our sins and for rising again in triumph that forgiveness and life eternal might be ours through faith in Your name. Amen.

[Scripture is taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

“…Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God … unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” John 3:3,5; Read John 3:1-8

When Nicodemus, a Pharisee and ruler of the Jews, came to Jesus by night, Jesus told him that, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3). And so also today, unless one is born again, he isn’t able to see or understand what the kingdom of God really is.

When Nicodemus questioned Jesus about how a grown man could be born again, Jesus told him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:5,6).

It wasn’t enough to be a descendant of Abraham or to be a part of a strict religious sect of the Jews; a spiritual rebirth was needed. Nor is it enough today to be born into a religious family or to be a member of a church denomination or organization; one must be born of God!

In John 1:10-13, we read of Jesus, the eternal Word made flesh: “He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”

As the Greek text of John 3:5 makes clear, this rebirth of which Jesus speaks is “of water and the Spirit” (EX UDATOS KAI PNEUMATOS); it is “the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” (Tit. 3:5) and “the washing of water by the word” (Eph. 5:26). It is the gracious working of God’s Spirit through God’s Word and the waters of baptism to offer and guarantee to the penitent sinner who looks in faith to Christ Jesus and His cross the forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation which Jesus purchased with His blood, shed upon the cross (cf. Acts 2:37-39; 22:16).

The Pharisees had rejected the counsel of God and did not repent and receive the baptism of John the Baptist for the remission of their sins (cf. Mark 1:4; Luke 7:30). Nicodemus, a Pharisee, needed to acknowledge his own utter sinfulness before God and be baptized into the name of Christ Jesus for the forgiveness of his sins, and God’s Spirit would work in him a new spiritual life and make him a part of God’s eternal kingdom through faith in Christ.

And, of course, nothing has changed today. Jesus’ Word is still true. Unless you acknowledge your utter sinfulness before God and turn to Him and receive the forgiveness of sins that Christ won for you on the cross and which God offers and gives through the word of the Gospel and Christian Baptism, you, too, cannot enter into God’s eternal kingdom.

It is as Peter testified on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:38-39): “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.” It is as the Apostle Paul was told by Ananias (Acts 22:16): “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.”

Only through faith in Jesus can one receive the forgiveness of sins and life everlasting! Repent and be baptized in His name!

Dearest Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and have not lived according to your holy and perfect will for me. I have broken your commandments and deserve everlasting punishment in hell for my sins. Graciously forgive me and wash away my sins for the sake of your holy and precious blood, shed on the cross for me. Amen.

[Scripture is taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

“Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.” John 2:23-25

Many, at the Passover feast in Jerusalem, believed that Jesus was the Messiah when they saw the signs and miracles which He worked among them. But though they had come to believe that He was the Messiah, Jesus did not entrust Himself to them because He knew what was in their hearts.

These few verses contain an important truth for us to consider. It is not enough to just know and believe the facts about Jesus. We, too, have heard and read of His mighty miracles. We have heard and read of His sufferings and death and of His resurrection on the third day. And we believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the promised Messiah and Savior. But do we know Him and trust in Him as our own Savior? Have we entrusted our very hearts and souls to His keeping?

Jesus searches and knows our hearts! This can be a frightening thought since, as the Scriptures testify, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings” (Jeremiah 17:9-10). Yes, the Lord Jesus Himself searches our hearts and tests our minds. He knows our every thought and desire. And, certainly, not a single one of us deserves that the Lord Jesus should commit and entrust Himself to us.

Yet, through His Word and the enlightening work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus does reveal and entrust Himself to those who look to Him in faith. He first reveals our utter sinfulness and unworthiness before God, bringing us to confess and agree with God’s judgment that we are sinners deserving of His eternal wrath and punishment. But then, Jesus, through His Word, also reveals to us His great love and mercy. He so loved us that He went to the cross to suffer and die in our stead and take our punishment. He rose from the dead in victory, and He gives to us His mercy, forgiveness, and acceptance when we trust in Him for life and salvation.

Many people in Jesus’ day believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah because of His mighty works, but they did not know Jesus as their Savior and trust in Him for pardon, forgiveness, and life eternal! And so also today, many believe that Jesus is the Son of God and the promised Messiah, but they do not know and have not partaken of Jesus and His love and mercy for them through faith. Instead, their hearts remain closed, and they continue on in their old evil ways, not seeing their lost and sinful condition or knowing and receiving in faith the mercy and forgiveness God offers and extends to them in His Son, Jesus Christ.

Though Jesus’ many mighty works and signs confirm His identity and authority, He has chosen to reveal Himself to mankind through His Word. Thus, those seeking only signs and wonders and spectacular works are likely never to know Him. But to the ones who sit humbly at His feet, hearing, reading, and studying His Word, Jesus reveals Himself as their merciful and loving Savior!

Dear Lord Jesus, Son of God and Son of man, open my heart to hear Your life-giving Word, to acknowledge and confess my utter sinfulness, and to trust in You and Your cross for my salvation. Amen.

[Scripture is taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.]

Genesis 3:1-13

1 Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”
2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; 3 but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
4 Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.
8 And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.
9 Then the LORD God called to Adam and said to him, “Where are you?”
10 So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
11 And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
12 Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.”
13 And the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

The paradise which God created in the first two chapters of Genesis did not last long, for chapter three tells of the temptation of the devil, a fallen angel, who came to Eve in the form of the serpent.

“Did God really say that that you should not eat from any tree of the garden?” he asked, creating a question in the woman’s mind. And when Eve said the prohibition and warning that disobedience would bring about death — alienation and separation from God — was only in regard to the tree in the middle of the garden, the devil distorted the truth by saying, “You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Thus, he caused her to think that perhaps God was somehow holding out on her and keeping from her and her husband something good and desirable.

Of course, this still happens every day. The devil comes to us through friends and coworkers, through the media and entertainment industries, and in our own thoughts and minds and says, “Does God really expect you to keep all those commandments in the Bible?”

And he works hard to convince us that God is trying to keep us from having fun and enjoying life, or that He is placing an impossible burden upon us, that He really doesn’t expect us to keep all of His commandments, or that breaking just a few of the commandments now and then won’t really alienate and separate us from God — after all, everybody does it.

And, like Eve, when we look at the thing we are being tempted to do, it looks good and desirable to us. We think it will be fun or pleasurable, it will work out for our good, it won’t hurt anything, no one will know.

And so, we rationalize and give in to the temptation and to our own sinful desires, and the result is death! We recognize our nakedness and guilt before God. We may attempt to cover it up or even learn to cope with it, but the guilt remains. We are afraid to stand in His presence. We would rather not hear God’s Word or walk into His house of prayer.

Why? Because our sin, though it may have appeared to be good at the time, brought about spiritual death and separation from God. When confronted with the presence of God and His truth, we hide. When questioned about our disobedience, we make excuses and blame others.

As a result of Adam and Eve’s sin, we are all born into this world sinners — our very thoughts and desires are turned away from God and His holy commandments. What David wrote is true of each of us as a result of that first sin: “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5).

Instead of loving God, trusting Him and desiring to honor and glorify His name, we think only of ourselves, question and doubt God’s Word and seek our own honor and glory. We are born in spiritual death and are alienated from God.

That is why we so desperately need God’s pardon and forgiveness. We need Him to find us, forgive us, cover our shame and nakedness, and give us life again! And God has come to us and reached out to us in love and forgiveness. He desires to free us from our guilt and shame and give us life everlasting with Him!

He did this by sending His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into the world to overcome temptation and sin for us and then go to the cross to be condemned, forsaken of God, and to die in our stead that we might have God’s pardon and forgiveness through faith in His name and not be afraid of God or troubled by our guilt and shame any longer.

In Christ Jesus and His cross, atonement has been made for the sins of the world. And in Christ Jesus, when we trust in Him and His atoning sacrifice in our stead, your sins and my sins are pardoned and forgiven, and we are made acceptable in God’s sight.

O dearest Jesus, Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, have mercy on me, find me, and wash away the guilt of my sin in Your shed blood. And, dear Lord Jesus, grant me a place in Your everlasting kingdom. Amen.

[Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.]