Prayer of the Day: O gracious God, who so loved the world that You gave Your only-begotten Son, grant that we may always begin with You, rejoice in Your undeserved love for sinners, and cherish the promise of everlasting life through faith in Christ. Open our lips to share this Gospel whenever and wherever we can, that many more may believe and be saved; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. ESV

In Christ Jesus, our precious Savior and Lord, dear fellow redeemed:

I would imagine that for as long as there have been schools, there have been favorite teachers. I have been particularly blessed in that way, for I have three such favorite teachers. Professor Roland Gurgel taught me the love of history—a passion I have enjoyed throughout my life. Professor Clifford Kuehne taught me the love of the Greek language—a tool I have employed throughout my ministry. And Professor C.M. Gullerud, together with my parents, instilled within me a love for Jesus—who is the center of my faith and the Source of all my hopes for an eternal future in heaven. Among the many courses I took at Immanuel Lutheran Seminary under the tutelage of Professor Gullerud were three years of homiletics, the study of preaching. One of the bits of advice that Professor Gullerud gave us seminary students—with just a hint of a smile on his face—was that, were we ever to lose our place in a sermon manuscript, we should just begin reciting John 3:16, for he said, “That verse is always appropriate!”

My dear friends, for this final sermon of my regular ministry, I have chosen to share with you a series of thoughts arising from that very precious passage of Scripture. Yes, let us consider today these precious words of Jesus, shared originally with Nicodemus but recorded also for our benefit, as I encourage you to CONTINUE TO SHARE THE GOSPEL WHENEVER AND WHEREVER YOU CAN! Always begin with God! Then focus on God’s love for sinners in Christ Jesus! And, finally, cherish God’s promise to all those who believe!

I.

Jesus begins this verse with the words “For God…!” Let us always begin everything—every conversation about religion, every time of worship, everything in life—with God! We are living in what many describe as a post-Christian society and world. The thought behind that description is that Christianity and the Bible are no longer relevant in people’s lives. That thought is not true and never will be true, for whether people acknowledge it or not—it remains a fact that every human being is dependent upon God. As the apostle Paul proclaimed in his sermon on Mars Hill in Athens in Acts 17: “In Him (that is, in God) we live and move and have our being” (Verse 28a).

So, let us always begin everything with God! It is interesting to note that recent surveys on religion within our society reveal that people have begun to realize that the promises made by post-Christian secularists have simply not come true. Their atheistic philosophies have failed to improve the lives of those embracing them and have, rather, left those lives bankrupt. Among Millennials and members of Gen Z, those surveys have revealed a significant increase in the number of these young people returning to and exploring Christianity.

Why might that be the case? The reasons really ought not surprise us, for they are as old as the writers of the psalms. David, 1,000 years before Christ, wrote: “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Ps. 14:1). David also writes: “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork” (Ps. 19:1). It is reasonable to believe in God’s existence, if for no other reason than to explain the complex nature of the world He created—the world in which we live, and which we can observe! Beyond that, our consciences affirm the reality of God and direct us to God, for they reveal our responsibility to Him. The apostle Paul writes that “the work of the law” is written on our human hearts, so that our consciences bear witness to that fact of our responsibility to Him by either “accusing or excusing” our actions before Him (cf. Rom. 2:14-15). We are witnessing today two generations of young people educated in large part to deny the existence of God, or at least to ignore the presence and authority of God. They have come to the realization that without God, life becomes meaningless. Therefore, CONTINUE TO SHARE THE GOSPEL WHENEVER AND WHEREVER YOU CAN! Always begin with God!

II.

Then focus on His love for sinners in Christ Jesus! Jesus says: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son!” The questions immediately arise—why did God love the world, and why did God give up His only begotten Son for the world? Some might suggest that God loved the world because He created the world. While it is true that God created the world and delighted in the world He created, yet, as you read the history of this world recorded in Genesis, you will find that God at one point destroyed the world in view of the wickedness of human beings. Having corrupted the world created by God, the wicked of this world were summarily condemned and destroyed. Oh, yes, they were given time—120 years in fact—to repent and return to God, but they did not. They rejected God in unbelief. The fact that God created the world did not prevent, in the end, His righteous judgment from falling upon them.

God did not and does not love the world, nor did He give up His only begotten Son, because the world was or is so lovable or so worthy of that sacrifice! Even after God had destroyed the wicked of the world through the flood and only Noah and his family remained, God’s observation was still: “The imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Gen. 8:21c). My dear friends, God loved the world, despite the evil and rebellion which fill the world, in view of His grace and His mercy! The Bible affirms for us that God’s love for us and for all mankind is completely undeserved. His mercy is showered upon us despite our sins. His love, an agape love, the highest form of love, saw our need as fallen human beings. In that love He determined to meet that need, so that our souls might be delivered from our sins and their consequence—death. This God did by sending Jesus: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son.”

By grace, we have been saved. By the grace of God, continue to grow. Grow in our love for God and for each other as we continue to focus on God’s love for us sinners in Christ Jesus! Indeed, CONTINUE TO SHARE THE GOSPEL WHENEVER AND WHEREVER YOU CAN! Always begin with God, and then focus on God’s love for sinners in Christ Jesus!

III.

Finally, cherish God’s promise to all those who believe! Jesus said: “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.” There are three things about our Savior God which should inspire within each of our hearts a profound sense of hope, joy, and confidence. Those three things are His presence among us, His power exercised for us, and His promises to us—all of which are featured in these words of Jesus. Our Savior God does all three! When we are led by the Spirit of God to believe what God has done for us and what God has planned for us, our hearts fill with those blessings—hope, joy, and confidence!

Our text begins with God! He is omnipresent—present with us here and now! Think of Jesus’ final words to His disciples prior to His ascension: “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Mt. 28:20b).

Think then of the words of Jesus, which begin His great commission: “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Mt. 28:18b). Jesus possesses all authority and divine power necessary to exercise that authority! This He uses to bring blessing into our lives. He does so from God’s right hand—protecting and preserving us, defending us from those forces which would harm us, and either preventing evil from entering our lives or using it in such a way as to bring good into our lives.

And think of the promise with which Jesus ends our text: “Whoever believes in Him (that is, in Jesus as our Savior) should not perish but have everlasting life!” “The soul who sins shall die!” That is what the Bible says (Eze. 18:4c). But, happily, that is not where God’s message ends! Jesus has overcome sin, death, Satan, and hell for us! Salvation is ours—the gift of everlasting life in heaven is ours as well! That is God’s gospel promise—a promise that He will most assuredly fulfill! Amen.

—Rev. Paul Nolting

Mankato, MN

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