John 3:16 * October 27, 2002 * Festival of Friendship * Pastor Pagels

In the name of Jesus Christ, the sinner’s greatest friend:

John 3:16 is perhaps the best known, most quoted passage in the entire Bible. And the reference, “John 3:16,” can be seen draped over fences or waving in the stands at just about every major sporting event in the United States.

Did you ever stop and ask yourself why that is? Of all of the passages in all of the books of the Bible, why is this verse singled out? What makes John 3:16 so special?

Martin Luther called it “the heart of the Bible—the Gospel in miniature.” Its message is so simple that a child can understand it; yet it condenses the deep and marvelous truths of God’s love into just a few words.

One preacher boasted that he had developed 600 sermon outlines based on this verse. Another pastor claimed that he used this verse as his sermon text every time he preached. Yet another preacher went to the opposite extreme: “This is a text I never attempted to preach on,” he said. “When I have read it, there is nothing else to say.”

If I polled everyone here this morning and asked you what you consider to be the greatest verse in the Bible, I imagine that John 3:16 would get some votes. In fact, I would not be surprised if it came out on top. But the greatness of this verse does not come from the words themselves. John 3:16 is a great Bible passage because of the God who stands behind it.

This is my first sermon based on John 3:16. I will admit that I didn’t uncover any new revelations in my preparation. And I don’t hope to give you some new insight into the meaning of this verse either. My goal this morning is simply to get out of the way and let God’s Word speak to you as it lays out…

GOD’S GAMEPLAN FOR GREATNESS

I. The greatest gift

II. The greatest miracle

III. The greatest promise

Most of us have heard John 3:16 dozens, hundreds, maybe even thousands of times. But imagine for a moment how Nicodemus must have felt when he heard those words. Imagine that you were there with him when Jesus uttered those words for the first time.

Nicodemus was a respected leader, a member of the Jewish Council. He followed the dictates of his religion, a religion that was based on works. Under this kind of spiritual system, the motivation to do good and avoid evil is very strong because your eternal life depends on it. If you do what God wants, he will reward you. If you do what God forbids, he will punish you.

By all outward appearances, Nicodemus was on the right path. So why did he come to see Jesus at night? Or why did Nicodemus need to see Jesus at all? Nicodemus needed Jesus because he could see what the people around him couldn’t see. Nicodemus needed Jesus because he realized that he didn’t look nearly as good on the inside. Nicodemus needed Jesus to fix his broken relationship with God.

Nicodemus’ problem is not unique. Many people, including many religious people, are convinced that their hope for the next life depends on what they do in this life. God is the judge who will make the final decision, but he does not get all that involved in the soul-saving process. That is up to you.

This might sound fair. This might sound reasonable. At first, this might even sound possible. There is one major problem, however. Sin. Sin destroys friendships. Sin breaks up marriages. Sin devastates families. But even worse than any of those things, sin separates people from God.

Nicodemus was probably a good person. Nicodemus might have even been a very good person. But it didn’t matter because Nicodemus was not a perfect person. God doesn’t ask people to do just a little more good than bad in their lives to tip the scales in their favor. God doesn’t tell us to do the best we can and that will be good enough. God isn’t even satisfied with 99%.

God’s law demands perfection. God demands total obedience. God’s holiness demands 100% purity in our thoughts and words and actions. Nicodemus couldn’t do it. No one can do it. No matter how much we do, no matter how hard we try, no matter how far we are willing to go to make excuses for our imperfections, we still fall short. We still sin. And in God’s book, the wages of even one sin is death.

I don’t know exactly what was going on in the mind of Nicodemus when he sought out Jesus that night. Perhaps he saw the futility of trying to earn his way to heaven. Maybe he was deeply troubled by his sins. As serious as his problems were, Jesus had the solution: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son…”

Even though we are unlovable sinners, God loves us anyway. And it isn’t just a matter of saying the words, “I love you.” Our God demonstrated his love for us when he sent his Son to save us. Jesus lived a sinless life on this earth. He never cheated, never lusted, never hated. Jesus obeyed the commandments perfectly for us, but that is only half the story.

Jesus also died for us. Even though he was the only person in history who didn’t deserve to die, Jesus gave up his life on the cross to take away the sins of the world. Not just the sins of Nicodemus. Not just the sins of the so-called “good people” in the world. Jesus sacrificed himself as payment for the sins of every person who ever lived.

Whether Nicodemus realized it or not, he was looking at the greatest gift of all time. It wasn’t wrapped in fine paper. There were no shiny bows or ribbons on top. It looked rather plain on the outside, but it was and still is priceless. Jesus Christ is God’s gift to a sinful world. And Jesus is God’s gift to you.

When Jesus walked on this earth, part of his ministry consisted of miracles. He changed water in to wine. He made a crippled man walk. He stilled a storm on the Sea of Galilee. He even raised people from the dead.

Maybe Nicodemus witnessed some of those miracles. Maybe Nicodemus saw the power of God at work in this man. Who knows? Maybe Nicodemus was drawn to Jesus because of his miracles. No matter what he had seen, no matter what kind of reports he had heard, Jesus told him about an even greater miracle.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish…” What could be more impressive than feeding 5,000 with only five loaves of bread and two small fish? What could possibly be greater than calling a dead Lazarus back to life after four days in the tomb? What is the greatest miracle of all? The miracle of FAITH!

How could anyone believe that a carpenter’s son from Nazareth was the Savior of the world? It was a miracle. How could anyone possibly put their trust in a man who was executed like a common criminal? It was a miracle. How could anyone believe the disciples’ reports that the tomb was empty on Easter morning? It was a miracle. How can we be so sure that a man named Jesus lived and died and rose again two thousand years ago to save us? It is nothing less than a miracle.

Maybe you saw the news reports this week about a recent discovery in Israel. Normally people wouldn’t get so excited about a box, but some archaeologists are claiming that this is no ordinary box. The controversy is over a stone ossuary (a burial box for bones), or more specifically, over the inscription on the side of the box that reads: “James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus.”

Could this inscription be a reference to Jesus of Nazareth? If so, it would be the first archeological evidence that Jesus lived on this earth. Some are claiming that this proves the Bible to be true. Some are even hailing this as the greatest archaeological discovery of all time.

It would be nice if this discovery turns out to be legitimate. It would be nice if archaeologists could prove that this inscription does in fact refer to the Jesus of the Bible. Finding Jesus’ name etched in stone after so many years might even qualify as a minor miracle.

But it is a much greater miracle that Jesus has chiseled his name on our sin-hardened hearts. Through God’s Word the Holy Spirit creates faith where none existed before. God makes his enemies into his children. God makes the spiritually dead alive. God allows the spiritually blind to see. There is no greater miracle than the miracle of faith.

God’s game plan for greatness is not complex. It is actually quite simple. God has given the greatest gift, the gift of his Son. God has performed the greatest miracle, the miracle of faith. And in the final words of John 3:16 God makes the greatest promise: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

In effect, Jesus was saying: “Nicodemus, forget about yourself. Nicodemus, look to me. Look to me, and I will give your rest. Look to me, and I will give you hope for the future. Trust in me, and I will give you eternal life.”

With the same beautiful words, God makes the same beautiful promise today. To every person who is burdened by sin, to every hurting soul that is weighed down with guilt, Jesus says: “It doesn’t matter what you have done. It doesn’t depend on what you do. It really isn’t about you at all. I love the world. I sent my Son. I create faith. And because I have made good on all of my other promises, I will certainly make good on this promise, the promise of eternal life on heaven.”

Is John 3:16 the greatest verse in the Bible? That can be debated, but there is no doubt that these words clearly communicate God’s plan of salvation. To close, let’s take one more look at this verse word by word, phrase by phrase, so that we can appreciate just how great God’s game plan is…

“God”…the greatest lover.

“So loved”…the greatest degree.

“The world”…the greatest number.

“That He gave”…the greatest act.

“His one and only Son”…the greatest gift.

“That whoever”…the greatest invitation.

“Believes”…the greatest simplicity.

“In Him”…the greatest person.

“Shall not perish”…the greatest deliverance.

“But”…the greatest difference.

“Have”…the greatest certainty.

“Eternal life”…the greatest possession.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” Amen.