A Deeper Look

Most of us would agree that one of our go-to, favorite verses is the wonderful John 3:16.

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

Wonderful! But ... do we go to it too lightly? Just what does it say?

The first glitch I find is that word "so." I've heard and seen the verse say, "For God loved the world so much ..." Because "so" can be used that way. Except, that's not the Greek word used here. The word here is houtō and means "in this way." It is not a quantity, but a quality. We see this when Jesus said, "Let your light so shine before that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven" (Matt 5:16). That's not a quantity of "shine," but a quality. "So that." The same use is in this verse. The statement being made here is in what way does God love the world? Well, He gave His only Son. Like Paul wrote (Rom 5:8).

Now, we all know that the word "begotten" is there (at least in most translations), but don't let that confuse you. In most uses, "begotten" is something made -- specifically, a child by means of reproduction. But the Greek word here is monogenēs, a two-part word with mono for "one" and genēs for "come into being." That last is the root of our "gene" and refers to a type, a kind. So, when speaking of Christ, it would be fair to refer to Him as the "one-of-a-kind Son." Not made (John 1:1-3) like other false sects believe. So, the way God loved the world was to send His one-of-a-kind Son.

The last place we run into difficulty is that word, "whoever." "Whoever believes in Him shall not perish." What does "whoever" tell us? Most people think it means "anyone who chooses," but there's a problem there. There are, biblically, people who cannot make that choice. Jesus told the Pharisees, "You do not believe because you are not of My sheep" (John 10:26). Note the cause and effect appear to be switched -- they're not. We think, "We're His sheep if we believe," but Jesus said that, in order to believe, you first have to be His sheep. Further, Jesus said "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me" (John 10:27) and "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out" (John 6:37). So the sheep are the called, they recognize His voice, and they certainly come. Beyond that, when Jesus was talking about "My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink" (John 6:55), some of His followers had difficulty. So Jesus asked them, "Does this cause you to stumble?" (John 6:61), knowing some of them did not believe (John 6:64). So He said, "This reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father" (John 6:65). The reason some of them did not believe was that it wasn't granted by the Father. So those whom the Father gives will come and those whom the Father has not given cannot.

Jesus here declares that God loves His creation as shown in the offering of His Son. Anyone who believes in His Son will have eternal life. That's astounding! But it isn't a random love or arbitrary. "Whoever" tells us we don't know who they are, but He knows (Rom 8:29). Their names were written in the book of life from the foundation of the world (Rev 17:8; Eph 2:20). "Whoever" then is everyone He knows will come, His sheep are known before they did -- those He calls and who recognize His voice and surely come. A magnificent love that does not fail.