John 3:16 ~ For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life

The Light of the World rises in the East.

Being Holy Week - let's look at 3 statements of God's Word.


John 3:16
For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.

This is a huge God sized Mission. And considering the "People" Jesus associated with - man, anyone could confuse "This". The Pharisees really didn't like the Tax Collectors, even if they worked for the same people. Herod picked through the priests to see harmony with Rome was acceptable. And fishermen - not the hob-knobbers of Jerusalem. Not the committees of lawyers for the Jerusalem Temple. Not the Sanhedrin Council. And a Zealot against Rome. Jesus didn't please them with His Crowd.

And today - we do the exact same thing. God's grace is so plentiful to the lousy disciples - we surely can be ok with what we do. Those lousy ol' guys ran out on God's Son. So...

Human Nature only changes so far. Eve was guilty of wanting to be God and decide. Not looking to what God Said - His Word.



And then we can fall back on God's Word to save us. Right? Jesus said this -

Romans 10:13
For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

This worked for the apostles - right?

Except Romans 10 and a lot of verses say, "Examine your heart, are you the Light of Christ? Have you brought your soul to being part of God's Mission to bring people to Him eternally?"

1 Thessalonians 4:13
Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.


Let's not be uninformed. Let's not sleep in Death. Let's not grieve our Father God to be grieved for our loss of life eternal. Let's not stay in - no hope really.




Romans 10:13 is not 'the' float-the-boat-lifesaver.

There was a godly appearing King of England. He was a warmonger out of necessity. He loved his wife. He conquered lands and houses and castles. What he needed - he took. Rarely did he commit adultery - but every now and then... well. And his wife found out and sent a note for him to meet his lovely barmaid. He did and found his wife had cut off her head and in particular had cut out her tongue and in her hand was a note from him to meet her. Ok. William the Conqueror. A godly King. And yet his real opinion of God's Grace was: talk a lot about God, get your agenda met, get the crowd to believe you are going His direction, take what you want, be the person you want to be, and at the very, very end - make your last confession and say "Ooops, sorry, so sorry, Jesus." At this point, if you are preaching this - you might as well say "Ooopsie so sworrwie Jesthus." These grapes are called - cheap. The King instructed those around him about this "Get out of Jail Free Card." This is - horribly - bitterly - cheap grace - to instruct others this is A Ok.


If William the Conqueror had read all of Romans Chapter 10, he would have seen this:

Romans 10:9
If thou shalt confess with thy mouth Jesus as Lord, and shalt believe in thy heart that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

Paul was copying? No, the Holy Spirit was repeating a great eternal truth.

Joel 2:32
And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the LORD Will be delivered; 
For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, 

As the LORD has said, Even among the survivors whom the LORD calls.




Jesus tells us the Truth. Jesus says there is wheat and there is chaff. Chaff blows around and creates a lot of stir, but in the end is not edible, is not part of credible food and is to be destroyed.



Now that brings us back to God.

What does God want? If you read Revelation, you will find chapters of God grieving the second death. It is NOT in the nature of God to leave souls in Hell. We can all understand Ted Bundy and Hitler are not going to grace Heaven Jesus has just spent His Blood and Heart and Sweat and Pain and Life to purchase a New Heaven. The second death says that after sleeping and meeting with the Lord - some will die forever.

Acts 1 explains this succinctly. Judas "turned aside to his own interests." Judas was not interested in Jesus being Jesus. Judas was interested in using God's good for Judas being advanced. Judas didn't care what happened to Jesus really. He didn't care what happened to Mary, James, Joseph (Joses), Judas (Jude) and Simon as brothers of Jesus. Judas had stayed in houses of the Lord's family, eaten from the table and seen what Jesus could do. Cash and position were going to happen for Judas.


What about what cannot be undone?

Now what about mistakes of the past?

John saw Jesus and was in awe. Nothing about Jesus was going to let John abandon Jesus. John has something to say for the times we failed and tried. The times where we need a Savior. The times we could not help another child of God. The times we spoke too soon or too harshly. The times we deeply regret.


Who knew these times we just failed to please ourselves and then realized in true sadness we had failed God. Paul. And Paul had this solution and said this is what you can do...

Ephesians 3 - Thank God!

According to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is
able to do far more abundantly
than all that we ask or think,
according to the power at work within us,
21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus
throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.



This is for whom?

Ephesians 3

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth


How?

Ephesians 3: 12

In Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. 

Actually, if we have faith and call on the Lord Jesus with all our heart - He will be there. He promises if we seek - we will find. Revelations also assures us Jesus is going to sort all of this out - as we have been told in Jesus all our lives. Heart, soul, deeds, words - matter. And what matters more is Jesus.

John lives to be old, old, old having done all he was able to please Jesus. And John is effusive about this. John has a unique viewpoint from being the one who understood fully with words and deeds - Jesus is God.



1 John 3

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.

2 Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.

10 By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother.

18 Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.

19 By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20 for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.

21 Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22 and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.

23 And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24 Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.

John 3:16

For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life

Luke 7
 And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.”

Ezekiel 37
5 Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. 6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the LORD.”

Abba, our Abba,

Jesus did not come to abolish the law - every Word of God. Jesus came to fulfill what we could not do. Jesus came to bring the idea to worship in Spirit and Truth. Not what we shrugged and did any way. Not what everyone else does. Jesus is not our waiter. Jesus is the Son of God.

God loves this world. God loves His People - All People. God repeated "God saw that this was good" so many times to remind us to see what is good, what is noble, what is pure. Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow the earth and it's fullness belong to God. And His Banner over us is Love.

And because of His Majesty, we can give Him all our concerns and rest all that is dear and important to us in His Care. Jesus is God. 

We Thank You Jesus for what You have done in Your Love - Forgivness, Mercy, Grace, Encouragment, Goodness, Peace. Our Jesus is our Amen.

 ♔ Lord Jesus Saves †