John 3:16, 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.
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| To Part 1 |
Looking
at Jesus, the Summit looked very challenging and imposing to Nicodemus given the
soaring spiritual heights and the majestic size of the mountain. Misconceptions
abounded on how to get beyond the clouds or having to give up the accouterments
of the world to get up there was daunting then as it is today; we want our cake and eat it, too!
That is the perception of a work-salvation mindset (Titus 3:5) and a love for the world (1 Jn 2:15). So worried about falling and the dangers lurking on the pathway during the ascent, they remain at the base looking up but never going beyond the horizontal plane, hoping to circumvent the summit and trusting that their good outweighs any wrongs instead. Grace through faith remains meaningless to them (Eph 2:8-9).
That is the perception of a work-salvation mindset (Titus 3:5) and a love for the world (1 Jn 2:15). So worried about falling and the dangers lurking on the pathway during the ascent, they remain at the base looking up but never going beyond the horizontal plane, hoping to circumvent the summit and trusting that their good outweighs any wrongs instead. Grace through faith remains meaningless to them (Eph 2:8-9).
The
Son of Man is on that summit, He is the Summit, and unless God the Father is
drawing you to Jesus you will not be able to make the ascent as an unbeliever
(Jn 6:44), which explains why Nicodemus never got past base camp while he was
there. “What would people think if I took that harrowing pathway to the summit?
I will lose everything, possibly my life!?” Nick was facing the internal questioning,
“How bad do I want to see the kingdom?” “What if Jesus is right, and
everything I have been living for was a lie?” “No one can deny the miraculous
things He had done in Jerusalem?”
Nick
had to have wrestled with so many things at base camp confronting the Summit, which
is why he left in the dark until he came to the light sometime later. So many wants
to ascend, but the cares of the world keep them at the base and go no further.
The trek to the top is very narrow but at base camp, there is a broad way that
leads to an end quite different than the summit, and many are content with
that, but they don’t realize it leads to an extremely dangerous precipice, until
it is too late.
This
is not only a summit for salvation but a summit of sanctification involving
spiritual growth, maturing in the faith, and daily fellowship with the Son of
Man, the Lifted One. Genuine believers are given a choice to come and go as
much as their heart desires. The world only sees a summit that is misunderstood,
no reason to ascend for there is nothing there, there, and an undesirable environment
anyway, if there was, but what is hidden from them is once one is born from
above, the ascent is effortless and priceless spiritual treasures are to be
found there. The more time spent on the summit; the greater the desire is to be
there as the things of this world growing strangely dim.
Honestly,
the challenge is in the growing to be more like the Son of Man for we are
opposed at every turn by our sin nature, the world-system, and the devil. Being
like Christ demands perspiration, a desire to be like Him, to be with Him, and
to live for Him below the summit. In reality, this is quite impossible to do
without His help (Php 4:13). Oddly to say, the Summit is within you (cf. Lk
7:21. Note within
you, entos
hymon, is referring to within
the heart, not to the Pharisees generally. Its character is internal, spiritual,
and external, physical in nature; an oxymoron? Yea.).
Now, we are beckoned to return as often as our desire of Him, to spend time with Yahweh, learn from Him, to understand Him, to enjoy fellowship with Him, and to walk in His ways on terra firma, the kingdom of God is within you. There is no glass ceiling.
Now, we are beckoned to return as often as our desire of Him, to spend time with Yahweh, learn from Him, to understand Him, to enjoy fellowship with Him, and to walk in His ways on terra firma, the kingdom of God is within you. There is no glass ceiling.
Alas,
there are those cares of the world that are too bulky and heavy to carry with
us up to the summit. For some reason, we are not able to leave them behind to
ascend. So, many believers simply spend all of their time at the base of the
summit, living life mostly on a horizontal plane, feasting on pre-digested
sermons from the pulpit at best, their only spiritual diet, having no appetite
to go to the source of biblical truth due to poor time management, lack of
discipline, or love for the dainties of this world than love for God.
So
many attend churches, lifting their hands and singing praises to God, then walking
out, with heads never looking up, nor arms lifted in praise, their voices are silent
while on the horizontal plane until the next visit at a local church. They never
spend any time on the summit at all. They go through life as practical atheists,
living on the horizontal plane similar to non-believers.
Spiritual
superficiality is their summit until exposed by an OMG moment where the love of
God is usually challenged! It is not difficult to discern those who do put
forth any effort to spend time on the summit. How do we know that? The fruit of
their lifestyle reveals the tree (Lk 6:43-44).
Let’s
look at a snapshot of the summit again,
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.
This
has got to be one of the most beautiful and spectacular summits of Scripture to
behold! Once my eyes were open to its spiritual reality, it was and remains
simply breathtaking! Can you not see why it is good to be up on the summit!? To
read this description, to have experienced the joy of those life-giving words at
spiritual regeneration is to truly appreciate what a privilege it is to be up here
though are feet are firmly planted on terra firma! Selah!
While
you and I are on this summit together, there are some things I want to share
with you, heavenly things. You know them if you have spent any time up here.
There is joy in the sharing, and the more times you come up here, there are
those surprising discoveries of heavenly things unseen heretofore. It is a different
experience for each of us. There is so much to point out, but I will limit my
excitement. Some I have already mentioned but will add a little more info about
them.
1. For God
For
(Gk., gar)
– This conjunction is believed to be introducing an explanatory comment by
John, and therefore, some interpreters conclude that Jesus is no longer the
speaker after v15. In other words, they are saying that John, not Jesus, spoke
these words in vs. 16-21 and should not be red-lettered if you have a
red-lettered Bible.
They
will cite grammatical reasons, for instance, the usage of gar in John’s
Gospel (Jn 2:25; 4:8; 5:13, etc) or the absence of the personal reference to the Son of Man, etc. It is rather interesting
that those who believe John is reflectively speaking rather than Jesus speaking
to Nick and His disciples also mention in the same breath that there is something
uncharacteristic of John here in v16 with his first mention of love (agapao)
in his gospel account,
“Nowhere
else in John’s Gospel (or anywhere else in the New
Testament!) is God explicitly said to ‘love’ the world…” (NICNT).
And yet, here we have this atypical thing of John
saying it, not Jesus, by citing Jn 1:10, 11, 29; 4:42. Maybe it is because
Jesus is still speaking, eh? Actually, this whole discussion of, “Is it Jesus or
is it John,” is patronizing and a moot point due to the inspiration of Scripture.
John is being superintended by the Holy Spirit as with every single writer of
Scripture. These are the words of Yahweh if we want to get downright technical (2
Tim 3:16; 2 Pet 1:20-21). There are a growing number of interpreters siding with the idea
that Jesus is the speaker, not John, uttering these words in v16-21.
For (gar) connects v16
to the previous verses to explain the reason behind the whole discussion of
being born again (v3), a reason behind the reason, if you will. The reason for
the Son of
Man to be lifted up (v14) is to offer a
way for the sons of Adam (you and me) from perishing and failing to see the
kingdom of God (v15). The main reason supporting that effort was God’s love for
people. That love is connected to the cross (Rom 5:8). Amen! Undeserving of His
love, He loved us still, the author [originator] and finisher [perfecter] of our faith, who for
the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has
sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Heb 12;2; cf. Heb 1:3). Glory to God
in the Highest! I like it up here!
Jesus
willingly traded joy and exaltation in glory with the Father for suffering and degradation
on our behalf on terra firma! I know the Bible declares a profound love God has
for us, alien to our constitution before salvation (cf. Rom 8:9). By the grace
of God, I accepted His offer to spend eternity with Him, but Yahweh knows after
all these years as a believer, I still don’t get why He would leave the
splendor of heaven to rescue someone like me, and not only me but for the
world of the sons of Adam. We are so undeserving of the least of His favors.
You
only have to see your need of being rescued and reach out for His help, that whosoever believes
in Him should not perish but have everlasting life, and you are
automatically on the Summit that where I am, you may be also, spiritually speaking,
if you please, but one day, physically speaking (cf. Jn 14:3)!
God
– the article
is present in Greek, literally, ὁ
θεός, For the God (the
Father is indicated). In English, if the article was included, the structure
would be awkward which is why translators leave it out, For [the] God so loved the world,
cumbersome, yes? For God [the Father] so loved the
world.
2. So loved (agapao)
So
– in such
an infinite degree, in such a manner. This phrase is found in one other place,
1 Jn 4:11. In Jn 3:16, we see this love manifested by God the Father who gave His only
begotten Son. In 1 Jn 4:11, we see that
this love is revealed in our love for one another (ought to love or keep on loving). Also cf. 1 Jn 3:16.
Loved – This is the first
appearance of the verb agapao (love) in John’s Gospel. It is the
explanation for the verbs lifted up and gave, the main reason on why we have a way to be redeemed; we are loved. This was God the
Father’s motivation. This love is not a natural love or of poor human affection
quality. This love loves the unlovely (Rom 5:8). Interestingly, you will not
read of its noun form (agape) in John’s Gospel account.
John
through the Spirit expresses it as active, in constant motion (keep on loving),
marvelously stunning (Rom 5:8), supremely sacrificial (Jn 3:16, gave), intense with
authenticity and greatness (Jn 3:16), boundless (Jn 3:16, the world) always giving the
best that it has (Jn 3:16, His Son), a love that helps others to reach for the highest good, to
be like Christ (2 Cor 5:21). Selah. It takes the initiative, a prime mover (Gn
3:21; Jn 3:16; 1 Jn 4:9-10, 19). It loves without reciprocation (Rom 5:10; Col
1:21).
Unlike
natural love, it has godly standards that will not compromise its Scriptural
roots, taking ownership, and expecting accountability to God (1 Pet 1:15-16). There
is this misnomer that when it comes to human love; there are no standards
in love; that it cannot be love if there are conditions. Love (agape) is
unconditional, but that doesn’t mean it does not have standards and expects
accountability.
How
often have we trumped God’s standards for blood when it comes to family? God’s
standards apply to everyone else, but when it comes to family that is considered
a horse of a different color, yes? Because of it, exceptions are invariably made;
violations of biblical standards are rationalized in every name but Jesus! A
love without standards is a natural love, not agape. God honors agape
not human love comprised of natural affection compromised by sin. What sin? Of caring
for loved ones!? No, for not caring about a love for God (cf. Jn 14:15).
Since
God is without origin, the aorist tense of the verb loved indicates it is
sourced in eternity before man existed. If that doesn’t bake your noodle, how
about this; the verb tense also reveals that God the Father gave His only begotten Son
in eternity past before creation ever existed, or man for that matter!
For
argument’s sake, let’s suppose I am right about God the Father loving the world
in eternity past. How could He love us at all before creation? Since we are
finite, this may prove to be a challenge to wrap our arms around it. Given
Yahweh’s perfection of omniscience, in the mind of God, we already existed.
Recall Yahweh’s words to Jeremiah (Jer 1:5)? Yep, my noodle is cooked. What a mind-boggling
truth this is!
In
my way of thinking, this can only be resolved by understanding, if that is possible, Yahweh’s
attribute of all-knowingness; He is never learning, never “evolving.” He is
eternally unchangeable (cf. Mal 3:6). His knowledge is infinite or limitless.
Through that filter, it “makes sense” to me, but I am too finite to grasp it. He
loved me before I was born! He loved me before I knew Him.
In
spite of what I know about myself, He still loves me today! The beautiful thing
is Yahweh can love you or me no less or no more as a child of God! What a
marvelous truth this is to all believers! Now, to say I understand God’s love,
I do not; it is beyond my pay grade. There are things about agape that defy
human logic and run completely contrary to fleshly or natural thinking.
As
an unbeliever, I was as guilty of refusing His reign in my life as those who
wanted nothing more than to crucify Jesus in those early morning hours. I loved
the darkness rather than light as they did (Jn 3:19); darkness was my worldview.
Did I know before being born again that I was an enemy of God? No! I was
spiritually blinded by willful unbelief. I am articulating after the fact.
God’s
love sent Jesus to the cross; my sins tortured and crucified Him there on that
wicked wood. Spiritually speaking, I was there among the mob crying out, “I
will not have this Man to reign over me! Crucify Him! Crucify Him! There is no
king but Caesar!” The devil was salivating and licking his chops the whole time,
for I was spiritually blinded by my unbelief (2 Cor 4:4). I rejected God’s
authority for my own, “Nobody is going to tell me what to think, say, or do” (cf.
Jdg 21:25). Sound familiar? Don’t tell me you were a saint from birth; you ain’t.
Now
that I am born again, does my zealous nemesis continually magnifies my failures
of holiness, worship, and service before Yahweh who already knows my spirituality
at any given moment? You know that Satan prowls on all of us who are believers
(1 Pet 5:8)! This man-eating lion attempts to get us to focus on our failures
or misfortunes at every turn and then tattletales to the all-knowing Yahweh as
the accuser of the brethren day and night (Rev 12:10).
Keep
one thing in mind, my friend; we make it easy for Satan to criticize us before
God when we choose to stay off the summit. Let’s not make it easy for him today
or any day. He goes to and fro throughout the earth looking for an easy kill. It is better for Yahweh to give us
a light meal than to be a meal for the roaring lion of darkness, yes? <><
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| To Part 3 |
