From Dream to Deliverance
Thursday, October 7, 2004
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, as I focus on John 3:16-17 today, I thank You and praise You for loving me and the whole world enough to send Jesus! This one act on Your part shows me that I am of infinite worth to You. I praise You for being a loving, caring God, who gives everything to Your creatures. You certainly didn’t owe that to us, and we often reject Your gracious love and care in our lives. Forgive me, Lord, for all the times when I put myself first, even after all You are and do for me! Fill me anew with Your Holy Spirit that I may bring You honor today and always. This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
God's Word For Me Today
John 3:1-21
1After dark one evening, a Jewish religious leader named Nicodemus, a Pharisee, 2came to speak with Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are proof enough that God is with you.”
3Jesus replied, “I assure you, unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God.”
4“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?”
5Jesus replied, “The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven. 7So don’t be surprised at my statement that you must be born again. 8Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
9“What do you mean?” Nicodemus asked.
10Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? 11I assure you, I am telling you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe us. 12But if you don’t even believe me when I tell you about things that happen here on earth, how can you possibly believe if I tell you what is going on in heaven? 13For only I, the Son of Man, have come to earth and will return to heaven again. 14And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so I, the Son of Man, must be lifted up on a pole, 15so that everyone who believes in me will have eternal life.
16“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.
18“There is no judgment awaiting those who trust him. But those who do not trust him have already been judged for not believing in the only Son of God. 19Their judgment is based on this fact: The light from heaven came into the world, but they loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. 20They hate the light because they want to sin in the darkness. They stay away from the light for fear their sins will be exposed and they will be punished. 21But those who do what is right come to the light gladly, so everyone can see that they are doing what God wants.”
Reflecting on God’s Word
What does John 3:16 mean to you personally?
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
What promise does Jesus give Nicodemus in today’s Scripture? (3:16)
What assurance does Jesus give Nicodemus about God’s intentions in sending Jesus? (3:17)
Understanding God’s Word
Why might Jesus have found it necessary to tell Nicodemus that He did not come into the world to condemn it but to save it?
Applying God’s Word to Our Lives
What is the most immediate application of today’s Scripture in your life right now?
Thoughts...For God So Loved...
Jesus’ words in John 3:16 are perhaps the most well-known of all His words! Jesus wanted Nicodemus to understand that Jesus did not come because God felt the world needed to be judged. The Pharisees could be quite stinging in their condemnation of those who didn’t measure up to the Law of Moses. Jesus wanted him to understand that while judgment is a part of the Messiah’s coming that the true purpose of His coming was to bring salvation, healing, eternal life to the people of the world. How important it is for believers in every age to remember this. Jesus came to save, not condemn, to liberate not to judge, and as His people we are called to offer Jesus’ salvation to all!