“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 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. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:14-18

Why is it that some will be saved and have everlasting life in heaven while others will be condemned to everlasting torment in hell? Those who are saved have forgiveness for their sins and everlasting life entirely because of God’s love and mercy in Christ Jesus. Those who are condemned are so entirely by their own fault for rejecting God’s grace and mercy in Jesus Christ.

Jesus said, “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” (John 3:16). And, as Jesus said, God’s only begotten Son was “lifted up” for us on the cross and paid in full the just punishment for the sins of the whole world (cf. Num. 21:4-9; John 3:14-15; 1 John 2:1-2). Therefore, because of Jesus’ atoning sacrifice, whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.

It is as John writes: “He that believeth on him — on Jesus Christ, God’s only begotten Son, who died for our sins and rose again — is not condemned.” The one who, by the grace and mercy of God, hears God’s Word and believes and trusts that, in Jesus, atonement has been made and his sins are paid for in full is not condemned but is forgiven and has everlasting life.

But, the one who does not believe and place his trust and confidence in the atoning sacrifice of God the Son “is condemned already.” Why? Not because his sins are worse than those of others and not because Christ Jesus did not pay in full for his sins when He suffered and died on the cross for the sins of the world; rather, it is “because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

Jesus is the only source of salvation. When God sent His only-begotten Son into the world to fulfill all righteousness for us and then pay the just penalty for all our transgressions, He was and is the only way provided for lost sinners to be saved (cf. Acts 4:12; John 14:6). Those who do not look in faith to Jesus and His cross will not be saved!

It is just that simple. God, in love, “gave his only begotten Son” as a true man, born of the Virgin Mary, to suffer and die for the sins of all. Those who, by the grace of God, look to Jesus and rely on Him for forgiveness are not condemned but have everlasting life! Those who do not look to Jesus and trust in His atoning sacrifice for their forgiveness are condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s only-begotten Son, the only Savior of lost sinners!

In his first epistle, John says it this way: “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life” (1 John 5:11-12).

So, if by the grace of God, you look to Jesus for forgiveness and trust that He has paid in full for all your sins, you are not condemned but have everlasting life.

If, on the other hand, you do not look to Jesus and His blood shed on the cross for the forgiveness of all your sins, you are condemned already, not because your sins are too great or because Christ did not pay in full the just punishment for your sins, but because you have not believed and placed your trust in the only-begotten Son of God, the only Savior of the world!

Dear Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God and Son of man, grant that I repent of my sinful ways and trust in You alone for the forgiveness of all my sins and for life everlasting, and so be saved. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

“In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)” John 7:37-39

We think little of the importance and need for water. We just turn on the faucet, and water flows. It wasn’t so in Bible times, especially in the arid regions of the Middle East. Water was a precious commodity, and obtaining all the water needed was a continual task and concern.

Think of the Israelites in the wilderness (Exodus 17). They had no water to drink and thirsted. They complained against Moses, accusing him of bringing them out into the wilderness to die of thirst. God commanded Moses to strike the rock with his rod and water gushed forth, meeting the needs of God’s people. And the Bible tells us that God provided water for the people from the rock on more than one occasion (cf. Num. 20:8ff.; Deut. 8:15).

Now, it was the Feast of Tabernacles, the last day of that great feast in which the people dwelt in tabernacles to remind them of their living in tents in the wilderness for 40 years. On each day of the feast, the priests drew out a vessel of water from the Pool of Siloam, and the people sang psalms as they returned to the temple to pour out the water into a basin there on the side of the altar — a reminder that God had given them water from the rock in the wilderness.

Then, on the last day of the feast, Jesus cried out in the temple, “If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.”

That rock in the wilderness pointed to Jesus Christ. As God satisfied the thirst of His people in the wilderness with water from the rock, so Christ offers to meet the spiritual thirst of God’s people with living water, water which continues to flow and meet all our needs and to quench the thirst of those around us as we point them to Christ, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world by means of his sacrifice upon the cross (John 1:29).

As Jesus offered living water to the woman at the well in Samaria (John 4:10,13-14), so here He offers it to all who had come to the temple in search of God’s mercy and blessing. And, He offers it to you and to me, as well!

How does Jesus quench our thirst? He offers and gives us pardon and forgiveness for all our sins when we come to Him in faith, trusting that He indeed is God’s Son and our Savior and that He has satisfied the demands of God’s law for us and suffered the full and just punishment for all our sins and is risen again (cf. Eph. 1:6-9; 1 Cor. 15:3-4; Rom. 3:21-26).

And, as John explained, when we trust in Jesus, He gives to us His Holy Spirit, who continually works through God’s Word and the comfort of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper to keep us in the true and saving faith. He convicts us of our sinfulness with God’s Law and comforts us with God’s pardon and forgiveness through the message of the Gospel, the good news of His mercy and forgiveness in Christ Jesus (cf. Isa. 55:1ff.; 12:1ff.; Matt. 11:28ff.; Acts 2:36-39; Phil. 1:6).

We are living in a spiritual wilderness. True spiritual water is scarce — we can’t find it on our own. But God has provided it for us in His Son — the Rock which follows us in this wilderness of sin and death (cf. 1 Cor. 10:4; Psalm 36:9). And in Jesus, our thirst is quenched. Our greatest need — forgiveness of sins and fellowship with God our Maker — is met. And when we come to Jesus in faith, which is in itself of the gracious working of God (cf. Eph. 2:8-9; Col. 1:12ff.; 2:12; John 6:44,63), the Holy Spirit is given to us and our spiritual thirst is continually quenched as He sanctifies and keeps us in the true faith in Christ Jesus, our Savior (Rev. 22:17)!

We come to You, O Jesus, to quench our thirsting souls.
Forgive our sins and keep us within Your flock and fold.
And grant to us Your Spirit, and may the rivers flow,
That others, too, may hear us, their Savior come to know. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

“Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth. He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now. He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. But he that hateth his brother is in darkness, and walketh in darkness, and knoweth not whither he goeth, because that darkness hath blinded his eyes.” 1 John 2:7-11

“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” (John 3:16).

Where this love of God for lost sinners accomplishes its end and goal, sinners repent, trust in Christ Jesus for forgiveness and life and, as a fruit of their faith, love God and their fellow man.

Though “love is the fulfilling of the law” (Rom. 13:8-10; Deut. 6:4-5; Lev. 19:18), John reminds his readers of Jesus’ command to love one another. Jesus said: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:34-35).

Those who walk in Jesus’ love, knowing and believing that God loves them and accepts them as His own dear children for the sake of Jesus and His atoning sacrifice on the cross, will love God and also love their fellow human beings because of God’s love for them. They will love others as Christ loved them and gave Himself for them (Rom. 5:5-8; Eph. 5:1-2).

Since the darkness brought about by sin is passing away and the true light of God’s love and mercy is shining on us whenever we hear the Gospel of God’s love and forgiveness toward us in Jesus, we have every reason to share God’s love for mankind. God loved us, and Christ died for us, so we also love others and extend to them God’s love and mercy in Christ Jesus.

Therefore, the one who says he is in the light — that He knows and trusts in Jesus who loved us and gave Himself for us — if he hates his brother, remains in darkness. He does not know or receive in faith God’s love for lost sinners. The darkness of sin has blinded his eyes so that He does not see and walk in God’s love.

On the other hand, the one who partakes of God’s love through faith in Christ and also loves others and shows mercy and forgiveness toward them walks in the light of God’s love.

God grant that we receive in faith God’s love and mercy toward us in Christ Jesus and that Christ’s love for us move us to share in His love for others.

In love, O God, You sent Your Son to suffer and die on the cross to bear our sin and punishment that we might be pardoned and given life in communion with You forevermore. Move us to grasp Your love for us in faith and extend Your love to others. We ask this for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

“For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.” Psalm 86:5

How comforting this passage is for sinners like you and me! Though we have sinned and stand condemned by God’s holy law, we can turn to the Lord God for mercy and forgiveness.

Like the father of the prodigal son (cf. Luke 15:20), our God stands ready and awaits our return to Him that He might shower upon us His grace and mercy in Jesus Christ. He stands ready with open arms for us to return to Him in repentance and faith that He might pardon our iniquity and give to us a place in this everlasting kingdom.

How can a holy and just God forgive us sinners and receive us back as His beloved children? It is because “Jesus Christ the righteous … is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 John 2:1-2). It is because Jesus, God’s Son and our Savior, fulfilled the righteous demands of God’s law for us and then suffered on the cross the full and just punishment for all our sins — even for the sins of the whole world — and rose again in victory on the third day!

And note that the Bible does not teach that all are already justified and forgiven because of Christ’s death and resurrection. It teaches that God, for Jesus’ sake, stands ready to forgive and to show His abundant mercy unto all who call upon Him with faith in Jesus and His atoning sacrifice.

Because of Jesus and His blood shed on the cross for the sins of the world, the Lord is good, and ready to forgive, and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Him.

How comforting this is for lost sinners! Let’s repent and return to our God and Maker through faith in Christ Jesus and His cross!

Thank you, O God, for the sacrifice of Your Son in our stead and for Your readiness to forgive our sins and show to us plenteous mercy for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]

What would Jesus cleanse from your church, your life?

“And the Jews’ passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: and when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables; and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise. And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. Then answered the Jews and said unto him, What sign shewest thou unto us, seeing that thou doest these things? Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up in three days? But he spake of the temple of his body. When therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this unto them; and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said.” John 2:13-22

All the males in Israel were required to appear before the LORD God at the temple in Jerusalem at the feast of the Passover. In addition to other sacrifices, an unblemished lamb was to be sacrificed and eaten, and temple taxes were to be paid. As a result, the outer courts of the temple became a place where merchants, for a profit, sold animals for sacrifice and exchanged money for the coins needed for the temple tax.

Jesus, when He saw it, made a whip of cords and drove them out of the temple, saying, “Take these things hence; make not my Father’s house an house of merchandise.”

When asked for a sign to prove His Messianic claims and his authority to do this, Jesus told the Jews, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” Jesus wasn’t referring to the temple building in Jerusalem but to His own body. The sign He gave to verify that He is the Messiah and has the authority to drive out those who abuse His Father’s house was His own resurrection from the dead; for, as He said would happen, the Jews destroyed the temple of His body, but He raised it up again on the third day.

The Jews misunderstood His words, thinking of the new Jewish temple, which had been under construction already for 46 years and was not yet finished. But Jesus’ disciples came to understand His words after He had risen from the dead.

What would Jesus do should He walk into our church buildings today? Would He be pleased with our activities and programs, or would He drive them out? Each church should be a “house of prayer,” not a “den of thieves” (Matt. 21:13; cf. 21:12ff. where Jesus again cleansed the temple during the week of His crucifixion).

Would Jesus be pleased with those who use the churches to sell their goods or advance their careers? Would He say it is okay for groups to sell insurance and retirement plans in connection with the church? Would it be alright to hold all manner of sales and raffles to raise money? What about the many fundraisers and campaigns to support the work of the church? These are tough questions that churches must prayerfully consider and answer with the guidance of God’s Word.

But what about the temples of our bodies? The Scriptures tell all who believe: “Ye are the temple of the living God” (2 Cor. 6:16); and, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are” (1 Cor. 3:16-17).

Jesus is zealous for God’s house, as the Scriptures say, “For the zeal of thine house hath eaten me up” (Psalm 69:9). Not only is Jesus concerned for the earthly temples built with our hands, but He is also concerned with the temples of our bodies which He has created and redeemed. What would He cast out and cleanse away in your body or in your life?

Are our bodies a “house of prayer” devoted to the LORD God and seeking His glory? Does “the word of Christ dwell in [us] richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in [our] hearts to the Lord” (Col. 3:16)? Or, are our bodies and lives filled with our own selfishness and greed? Are we living for ourselves rather than for Christ Jesus, who both created us and then also redeemed us with His own precious blood? Do we use our bodies to fulfill our selfish and sinful desires or to bring praise and glory to God?

Is Jesus even welcome in the temples of our bodies, or do we question His authority to come into our lives and cast out what is offensive to Him? Indeed, many do challenge Jesus’ authority to reveal and cleanse what offends Him!

We, by our sins, destroyed the temple of Jesus’ body. He was crucified and suffered on the cross to pay the just penalty for our sins and the sins of the world. He was condemned by God and died in our stead, on account of our sins. But Jesus, God’s Son and our Savior, did rise again from the dead in victory on the third day, as He said! He redeemed us and made full atonement for our sins and the sins of the whole world! His resurrection is proof! It is the sign of which Jesus spoke! Through faith in Him, we are forgiven and promised eternal life with Him in heaven!

Jesus has the authority to cast out what is evil from the lives of those who trust in Him. He has the right to cleanse us, and He is zealous for us and our holiness. He comes to us as believers and dwells in us by His Holy Spirit, and He desires that we be wholly devoted to the will and service of God our Father.

God grant that we do not challenge His authority to purify and cleanse us but welcome His coming and rejoice in the mercy and forgiveness He gives to us for the sake of His innocent sufferings, death, and victorious resurrection!

Jesus paid the full price for our sins, and He forgives and accepts us when we look to Him in faith. At the same time, He also works in us to cleanse us so that we might live our lives for Him. May He continue to cleanse our hearts and souls!

O dearest Jesus, come into my heart and cast out whate’er offends. Forgive me for the sake of Your precious blood shed for my sins, and cleanse my heart and soul that I might live for You. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from the King James Version of the Bible.]