Aug 8, 2013 4 min read

I have moved on to a new ministry in Indiana and another pastor has replaced me, but I wanted to leave you with one last message. This message has eternally changed my life and will yours as well.

John 3:16 is the most quoted, familiar and memorized verse in the Bible. It is the most concentrated statement of the gospel of Jesus Christ in the Bible. It is God’s “love note” to all mankind.

When you receive a love note or card from your spouse or lover, you read it very slowly, savoring, analyzing and contemplating every word. You want to know not just what it says, but also what it is saying to you. Let’s do the same with God’s love note.

For God – Which God, you ask? The creator of us all as well as our world and universe, Jehovah or the living and eternal one, the “I am” with no beginning or end, the one and only God (Isaiah 44:6 and 8) and heavenly father.

So loved – God’s nature is love, not just what he does. The love mentioned here means seeking another’s highest good, love expressed especially in actions over emotions no matter what the response is to that love. It is seeing a need and meeting it in a self-sacrificing way.

The world – You and me, plus the billions of human beings who have ever lived – even those who have sinned against God (Romans 3:23) or are spiritually separated from God (Romans 6:23).

That he gave – If God’s nature is love, then his love is shown through giving and bestowing goodness and grace on his creation. Not only does he give to us life, breath and all things (Acts 17:25), but he also wants to give us the greatest gift of all (Ephesians 2:8; 2 Corinthians 9:15). The word “give” suggests “grace,” or that which is totally undeserved, unearned and unrepayable. In this case, God sacrificed for us the one dearest to him.

His only begotten son – God cared enough to give his very best for us. Jesus Christ the eternal son, died on calvary’s cross to pay the debt of sin for all mankind (I John 4:10; Romans 5:8). Ephesians 5:2 tells us that he loved us and gave himself up willingly for us on the cross. We would be neglectful not to mention that he also rose from the grave after three days and is in heaven awaiting the day of his return.

That whoever – Everyone and anyone, no matter what or how many sins one has committed.

Believes in him – Believing is not a mere mental acknowledgment of the facts of Jesus, but an active commitment, faith, trust, confidence and reliance in Jesus Christ. It’s one thing to believe a man could push another across a tightrope over Niagara Falls in a wheelbarrow; it’s quite another to get into the wheelbarrow and be the one pushed across. Believing admits that he is the way, the truth and the life, and that no one comes to God the father except through him (John 14:6), making all other ways dead ends (Acts 4:12).

Should not perish – To perish is to miss heaven and all that is good, separated from God in a place called the lake of fire (Revelation 20:15), something God never wants for anyone (2 Peter 3:9).

But – It is one of the greatest words in the Bible. Here it suggests a day-and-night contrast.

Have everlasting life – Forgiveness of all sin, total reconciliation and peace with God, inclusion in his family as well as an eternal home in heaven. All of us have eternal souls and destinies. Our response to God’s love note determines our eternal destiny. Everlasting life is to be saved, born again (from above) and redeemed.

How can you resist such love? I hope that I will see you in heaven some day. Thanks for listening. It was a pleasure and privilege to serve in Washington. God Bless You!

Bob Kulp was pastor of Grace Brethren Church of Washington.