God Gave

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave.”

These 26 words form the favorite Bible verse of millions of Christians around the world, because they communicate the love and care of our Almighty Father to, by His grace, provide a way, at His sacrifice, to rescue the world, dead in sin. A verse profound enough to change all of history and split time in half (B.C. means Before Christ, an epoch used in dating years prior to the established birth of Jesus Christ & A.D. stands for Anno Domini, which is Latin for “year of our Lord” and means the number of years since the birth of Jesus). The sovereign Creator of the Universe had no obligation, and the sinful world has no merit, yet God chose out of His character of love, justice and mercy to give. God’s relentless love provides hope, in faith, that is instilled in all our lives. Pastor JJ continues our church’s Sunday Sermon Series, based on Max Lucado’s book and associated Study titled, John 3:16. Here are my notes & thoughts for you. 

Proverbs 3:9 “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase.”

God has always asked for our “best”, and nothing less. God does not want our left-overs”; what’s left after we spend our resources (time, money, thoughts, etc.) on what we want. He wants our “firstfruits”. There needs to be a priority in making an offering to the Lord, our God. Does God need money? No, it is we who need the character attribute of the general principle discipline of “giving” in our lives, not reluctantly, but willfully, graciously and cheerfully, as God gives and as God gave to us. A heart attitude towards giving as our response to God. God gave; we give. So, the question is: What are we giving? The “best” or the “left-overs”? God only gives his “best” and expects the same from His children. He doesn't settle for anything less and neither should we. Why? Where are we without salvation? What are we “saved from” and what are we “saved to” and how? Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” God gave.

John 3:16 “He gave His one and only Son.”

Out of the overflow of His character, our heavenly Father gave a piece of Himself. Out of His love and mercy, He sent His one and only Son as a sacrifice for us. God gave His very essence and presence in Jesus – the Christ, the promised Messiah, the Savior of the world. 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

Jesus is God Himself; one and the same. The Greek word translated as “one & only” or “begotten” is μονογενής – monogenēs, “of one gene”. John 10:30 “ I and the Father are one.” Genes are passed down from parents to children. God says, “I want you to know me”, so He sent Jesus that we may know the Father through the Son. All truth is God’s truth, but God must reveal all truth. Jesus said in Matthew 11:27 “All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” And in John 14:9-11 “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.” God chose to reveal Himself to us in Christ.

God gave it all up for us. He gave of His very “best”. Ephesians 1:4 declares, “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. God gave “the best”, the Good Shepherd that lays down His life for His flock, so we could have life and life abundant (John 10). Will we give our “best” for Him? Have we bough into the lie that the Christian life in this world is to be naturally comfortable and organically peaceful? The child of God is to reflect the goodness of God revealed in Christ and His gospel.

Have we been “holy as He is holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16)? Have we loved out of “selfless” love in church and community? We must live out the reality that “God gave”, in every part of our lives, with strength and courage to face it. It is time to “step up our game”, beyond our comfort zone. Proclaim the name of the Lord in this land, this world, and this culture in His ways, that all may come to a “saving” knowledge of Jesus Christ and live … really live! God freely gave and God freely gives today.

Ephesians 2:1-5 “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.” God gave.

In Christ, Brian