“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
What does John 3:16 mean? This is a very important question. Even people unfamiliar with the Bible know this verse. It tells us how much God loves us. The world is every person. We’re all perishing, but because God loves us, He gave us His dear Son to rescue us from our inevitable fate. That escape, that salvation, is for “whoever believes in Him (Jesus).”
The verses before and after this verse help us understand God’s promise.
God’s Son came from Heaven
“No one has ascended to heaven except He (the Son of God, Jesus) who descended from heaven, even the Son of Man who is in heaven” (John 3:13).
This verse tells us that Jesus alone qualifies as the Savior of the world (see also Revelation chapter 5, where a thorough search is done for someone worthy and only Jesus qualified). God sent His Son to save the world, and He’s the only One God has sent. God’s Son alone was in heaven with God from eternity past. God’s Son knows God, is God, and He has finished His saving work by dying on the cross for our sins and rising from the dead. He’s also returned to heaven, and Jesus is honored at the Father’s right hand.
God’s Son was Lifted Up
“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up” (John 3:14).
This verse recalls the time the Jews murmured against God and Moses. It happened when they wandered in the Wilderness on their journey from Egypt to their Promised Land. Because they sinned, God sent deadly serpents among the people, and they cried out to Moses for deliverance. Moses cried out to God, and God provided a way:
“The Lord said to Moses, “Make a poisonous serpent (out of brass) and put it on a pole, and it will be, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, will live” (Numbers 21:8).
Saved by Faith
John, the author of this Gospel, used this historic incident to illustrate Jesus’ saving work and how we receive eternal life by believing in Him. Jesus was lifted up on the cross like the serpent was on the pole. And just like the people who looked on the raised serpent were healed, so those who look to Jesus—the look of faith!—are saved from perishing and receive eternal life:
“That whoever believes in Him should not perish, but may have eternal life” (John 3:15).
How God Loved Us: He Gave Us His Son
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
We Judge Ourselves
When John says, “God so loved the world,” he’s telling us how God loved the world. God’s love saw our need and took action to save us from otherwise unavoidable destruction:
“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:17).
In the end, we decide our eternal fate. Because everyone is a sinner, we’re all condemned. But God has provided salvation—available to all—because Jesus died for us and rose again. Since Jesus died in our place, we’re saved when we believe in His Name:
“He who believes in Him is not condemned. But he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18).
John 3:16
John 3:16 tells us how God loved the world. Without Jesus, everyone in the world is doomed. We can’t save ourselves. But the Father loved us by sending His dear Son, who was lifted up on the cross, to die for our sins and who rose again so we might have eternal life by believing in Jesus.
Invitation to Accept God’s Gift of Salvation
So, we determine our eternal fate. We judge ourselves. We receive eternal life by believing in Jesus, but we’re condemned if we don’t believe. We condemn ourselves when salvation is provided without cost. Why refuse God’s loving gift?
We invite you to watch the Great News video on this page for more about accepting God’s free gift of salvation through Jesus Christ. You can be saved today!
