Tag Archives: darkness

John 3:16-21

Belief and Unbelief, Judgment and Salvation, Light and Darkness

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son,
that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,
but in order that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned,
but whoever does not believe is condemned already,
because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world,
and people loved the darkness rather than the light
because their works were evil.
For everyone who does wicked things hates the light
and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.
But whoever does what is true comes to the light,
so that it may be clearly seen
that his works have been carried out in God.

Overall comment

Most translations present this as part of Jesus’ response to Nicodemus’ question about spiritual rebirth in verse 9. However, the last statement by Jesus that is undeniably part of this dialogue is in verse 11.  After that, it’s impossible to tell from the Greek where Jesus’ words end and John’s words begin.

In the verses we are looking at today, the flow of thought seems to have shifted from responding to Nicodemus to laying out some of the key reasons why the Son of Man / Son of God came down from heaven. Although this could have been part of Jesus’ response to Nicodemus, this section reads as though it were addressed to a wider audience. It may well have been crafted by John, written from a post-Resurrection perspective as a commentary on why Jesus came to earth. This is, after all, why John wrote his gospel (see John 20:30-31).

vs 16

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son 

  • God’s mighty acts of creation and redemption are both motivated by love
  • He created the world because of love.
  • He desired a love relationship with us from the beginning.
  • This is a love that cost God something. He is emotionally invested in us.
  • He has compassion on us in our lost condition. Psalm 103:10-13
  • God gave his Son – knowing He would suffer greatly – because He desired our freedom.

That whoever believes in him should not perish

  • like the Israelites who perished by snakebite in the incident recorded in Numbers 21:4-9
  • those who looked on the bronze serpent on the pole did not perish
  • See vs 14-15

perish

eternal life

  • literally “age-long life” – i.e. the life of the age to come (Hebrews 6:5).
  • Life in fellowship with God. John 17:3, John 17:20-24
  • We can enter into this life now by faith.
  • We will experience the full glory of that life when that age begins.

vs 17

God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world

  • Condemnation was not the purpose of his coming – though for some it is the result or outcome of Jesus’ coming

but in order that the world might be saved through him

  • Salvation was the reason he came

vs 18

Whoever believes in him is not condemned

  • Whoever believes in the innocent Lamb of God
    is treated by God as innocent because of the Lamb’s sacrifice

whoever does not believe is condemned already

  • has been judged in advance

because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God

  • Unbelief (rejection of Jesus) results in rejection by God

vs 19

this is the judgment

  • judgment = verdict, decision

the light has come into the world

people loved the darkness rather than the light

  • spiritual darkness and blindness are the predominant human condition in this age.
  • This condition seems normal to us because we are used to it.
  • We grow to prefer what we are used to.
  • Faith in Jesus seems strange to us until our eyes are opened.

because their works were evil

  • Light exposes our lost condition and the darkness of our ways.
  • This is why people reject the light. See 1 John 1:5-10.

vs 20-21

hates the light … does not come to the light

  • if we are used to living in darkness, the light hurts our eyes

lest his works should be exposed

  • living in the darkness breeds a mindset of fear. We start to fear the light.

whoever does what is true comes to the light

that it may be clearly seen

Prayer

Let’s ask the Lord for courage to walk in the light (for ourselves and others)

 

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John 1:1-14

Verses 1-5 The Word (Logos)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

  • Who is John talking about in these verses? (John 1:14)
  • According to these verses, what is the identity and origin of this Word?
  • John also affirms that this Word became a fully human being in Jesus
    ( John 1:14, 1 John 4:2)

Truth #1 : the Word is both human and divine.

  • What was the Word (who is Jesus) doing in the beginning, at the time of creation?
  • Can anything exist without him? ( John 1:3, Hebrews 1:3)

Truth #2 : the Word was directly involved in creating us and the world, and sustains us and all creation even now.

  • What did Jesus do about the darkness of human life?
  • Can the darkness understand the light? (John 1:5 NKJV)
  • Can the darkness overcome the light? (John 1:5 ESV)
  • How does the light overcome the darkness?

Truth #3: Jesus is the light of the world

Verses 6-8 The Witness

There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

  • What was John the Baptist’s perspective on his relationship with Jesus? (John 3:25-30)
  • What can we learn from this?

Verses 9-13 The Light – rejected and received

The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

  • Why did some people not receive Jesus? (2 Corinthians 4:4)
  • What does Jesus do in the lives of those who receive him? (John 1:12)
  • By whose power are believers born again?

Verse 14 The Word takes on human form

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Consider the bold claim made in this teaching. The Word (logos, eternal life-giving truth) that was with God at the beginning, the One who made all things, the One who made us and knows us through and through – this One has come to “pitch his tent among us” (buy a home in our neighbourhood). Amazing.

Consider the author of this simple, elegant yet profound teaching.

He was a fisherman, the son of a fisherman (Mark 1:19-20). He was unschooled (Acts 4:13). Yet he had been with Jesus. He spoke from personal experience when he said We have seen his glory. He had looked on Jesus and spent time with him, and he had been changed.

Takeaway thought

By identifying Jesus with the eternal Word who was with God at the beginning, John is highlighting that Jesus is the Father’s message to His creation. He embodies all the Father’s truth, intelligence, wisdom and love. His life, laid down so that we could become children of God, is the Father’s love letter to us.

You were created and redeemed by the One who is at the Father’s right hand. He came into this world, lived and died so that you could be reborn as a child of God. 

Despite all our failures He is unfailingly good. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

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