Why did God Send His Son into the World?
John 3:17 “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
Work, Purpose, Results
Most of us who love the Lord love the Gospel as set forth in John 3:16-18. I often say that John 3:16 tells us of the work of God, John 3:17 tells us of the purpose of God, and John 3:18 tells us the results of God’s work and purpose. While we often meditate on God’s love in John 3:16, recently I have been taken by God’s purpose in John 3:17.
Our Day contrasted to Noah’s Day
In Noah’s day the heart of man was only evil continually and there was violence in all the earth. The Lord lost his patience and decided to destroy the earth with a flood and to start over with one righteous man and his family. We read all about the conditions of that day in Genesis 6, but Noah walked with God and found grace in the eyes of the Lord. He believed God when he was told destruction was coming and that he needed to build an ark. Because he believed God, he and his family were saved.
When the Lord was born into this world, I am convinced that the heart of man was pretty much what it had been in Noah’s day. Israel had turned to idols and away from God. Obviously the Romans were a cruel violent bunch using crucifixion as a means of keeping people obedient and subservient. The Jews were more interested in their religious positions than in justice. The Lord could have come to destroy the earth but that didn’t work in Noah’s day. So this time he comes to save and not to condemn or destroy. The Lord who could have called twelve legions of angels to fight for Him when He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, came not to condemn the world but that the world through Him might be saved.
The Lord was the One who turned the other cheek when smitten. He was a peacemaker rather than a man of war. He was meek rather than proud. He was poor and not rich. He showed mercy to sinners and grace to those who didn’t deserve it. He was misunderstood and rejected. He was all that the Sermon on the Mount said that we should be. This was a different approach. Instead of condemning as He had in Noah’s day, He came to save.. Did it make a difference? Did this approach work?
For the most part the answer is a resounding NO!
What is the World like Today?
When I look around I see violence in all the earth. I see men who love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. I see people who are determined to defend their rights. I see a world willing to sacrifice others but not themselves. Money and the power that can go with it are the things that motivate many. The news makes it clear that hearts are still only evil continually. And many who call themselves Christians fall into this description of the world. People use the Bible to justify themselves rather than God. There are all kinds doctrines that we are told are Christian, but in my mind are anything but. I often ask myself, am I that kind of a Christian? What would my friends, neighbors and family say? I hope I am not characterized by the cruelty and the hypocrisy of this present age. .
Individual Blessing
Just as there were eight saved in Noah’s day, there are a few that are saved today. They are not good people, they are sinners. They are not saved because they deserve it, they are saved by grace. The world as a whole will never be saved, but down through the ages there have been a few here and there who not only believe God but who believe in or trust the Son that God sent to save. They believe God when He said He sent his Son to save and not to condemn. They believe God when He says He loves them and that the proof of His love is seen at the cross.
Conclusion
What a joy it is to worship a God who wants to save and not to destroy. I find His desire remarkable when I look at the way most treat Him. They use His name as a curse word. They question the reality of His miracles, and they question His divinity. They change His moral principles to meet the desires of a changing society which hasn’t changed at all. The imagination of the heart of man in general will always be evil. But God still sent His Son to save and not to destroy. I’m a believer in the Lord and I am glad that I can be sure that I am saved from coming destruction. God’s patience has to be wearing thin with a world that He came to save but that by and large has cruelly rejected Him
Bruce Collins
Meditation for the week of May 11, 2014