Well, good morning again. Yeah. Here we are at the end of our study of John 3 16. 26 powerful life transforming words that continue to change the world. John 3 16. 26 powerful words brief enough for us to have memorized them on the tablets of our hearts when the Holy Spirit came to write them there, and yet powerful enough to help guide us through the most intense trials of our lives. John 3, 16. 26 powerful words that are indeed God’s treatment plan for what ails the heart. So, as we have done every week, I’m going to invite you to join your voices together with mine as we read together the sermon text for today, which is John 3, 16. You’re going to find the words up on the screens. 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. The word of the Lord. Let’s pray. Dear Father, thank you for your love given to us when we least deserved it, given to us when we needed it the most, given to us by the salvation you secured for us through the death and resurrection of your son, Jesus. Father, may we never tire of learning more about your son, your son, Jesus, that you gave to the world. And Jesus, thank you for coming. Jesus, help us not leave this study unchanged. Instead, send your Holy Spirit to help us discover the power of your grace. Especially today as we turn our attention to the study of your word and holy spirit come and take me out of your way We pray in Jesus name. Amen John 3 16. Do you remember the first time you heard it? Do you remember the first time it became important to you and it started? to be a core belief in your Christian faith. If you ask my husband Rich, who’s sitting over here, he’s going to tell you about the day I shocked him. Now, he doesn’t shock easily, but I shocked him when he found out I had never heard these words before.

If you ask him, he’s going to tell you, we were scared. In an aisle in Kmart? Yes. In 1999, back when I was 39, they still had Kmarts around and at the same time, back then, if you remember, there was a WWF wrestler. His name was Cold Stone Cold, Steve Austin. You remember him? His T-shirts. He had his big old face on there, and then underneath it said Austin three 16. Well, here we are walking in Kmart and I see one of those t shirts, to which I said to Rich, 316, 316, how stupid, what is this 316 about anyway? I remember the look on his face. I won’t ever forget it. He stopped dead in his tracks and he said, what? Are you serious? You don’t know what John 316 is? To which I said, John 3, 16, who cares anyway, he did. And it almost ended our young three week relationship right there in Kmart. But instead, praise God, Rich began what would be about a five hour long conversation about John 3, 16. And in that conversation, he told me who God was. He helped me understand I was worshiping the wrong Jesus. And he helped me understand that how in the world, if I was professing to be a Christian, I had never heard this core verse. After all, if you read it all the way to the end, and we did today, you will notice that it says, if you don’t believe, you’re going to perish. That brings us to the bad news of the gospel. And yes, there’s bad news in the gospel. It says, it’s our first point apart from Christ. We will spend eternity in hell.

That night, Rich pulled out his Bible and he helped me understand. I was one of those people who did not believe in Jesus. And because of that, I was headed to eternal perish. Like so many other people in the world, I had rejected God’s invitation to believe in his son Jesus and enjoy everlasting life. And my friends, it should be sobering to us as Christians to realize that every day God issues invitations to millions and millions of people, inviting them to come to him and live differently than what they are living. And yet every day. Millions run from Him. They turn from the Father when He calls their name. Every day in our society, and in the world in general, we mock God. And what He says about marriage, and what He says about money, and what He says about sex, and what He says about the value of human life. Every day. Millions regard God’s only begotten Son, Jesus, as a joke. And they look at the cross in mockery as they think it’s just utter foolishness and folly. Just as John, or Paul, uh, the Apostle Paul warned us in 1 Corinthians. And you know what? At that point in my life, back in 1999, I was living as the world does. And I was telling God, in essence, leave me alone. I And you know something, if I had died back then, he would have honored my request. You know, it’s really easy for us to understand why we don’t like sermons on hell. We don’t like that old fire and brimstone that makes us squirm in our seats. All you have to do is Look into the pit of hell and you will know why it is an unpleasant, awful place. The Bible says is filled with fire and pain and wailing and gnashing of teeth. But Jesus is here and he’s speaking to our hearts and he is saying listen to me folks I have one word of caution perish You know, there will be many who will perish in this physical place. Yes. It’s a physical place called hell It’s a place out side It’s outside the boundaries of heaven. It is outside the voice of God. It is outside the love of God. It is outside the goodness and the mercy and the grace of God. So no, we don’t like to hear about it, but knowing about it, there are many of us, even Christians, not just the world, but there are Christians who say, how could a loving God do that? Send a sinner to hell. If you’ve ever asked that question, or if you asking it now, let me invite you to listen to what C. S. Lewis wrote about that question. He said, I willingly believe that the damned are in one sense, successful rebels to the end. That the doors of hell are locked on the inside.

How could a loving God send a sinner to hell? He does not. We volunteer. We volunteer to walk past the yellow caution tape that God has placed on the porch of hell. We walk past the hundreds and hundreds of red placard signs saying, don’t enter. Don’t enter. Caution. Caution. You know, just like danger will. Robinson, don’t go there, but in order to get there, you have to go past these things in order to spend eternity in hell. You must first descend the stairs by covering your ears and blindfolding your eyes. And most of all, you have to get there by ignoring the epic sacrifice of history. Christ suffering on humanity’s cross. Crying out from that blackened sky, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me as the sins of humanity include all of ours as well, fell upon our dear Redeemer and Savior. Praise God. There’s good news in the gospel. Praise God. And the truth found in John 3 16 gives us the sweet Assurance of our salvation. It brings us to our second point. All, all who believe in him will have everlasting life. Knowing we don’t want to end up in hell. Some may wonder, do we want to go to heaven? Is it going to meet our expectations? Is it going to deliver on its promises? Will we be satisfied being one of the whosoever that gets to go there? Those are questions that have been asked from the beginning of time. And our Savior on the night in which he was betrayed, he tried to, to give us some assurance. He said to his disciples in John chapter 14, it’s recorded. Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me, Jesus said. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If that were not so, would I have told you that I’m going to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me, so that you also may be where I am. Jesus has gone to prepare a place. Just like hell, heaven is a real, tangible, physical, glorious place filled with the wonders of God.

Filled with the gardens and plants and trees and animals of all kinds. When we get there, we will find that Jesus went to prepare a place void of pain and suffering. No more divorce, no more death, no more grief, no more addiction, no more disease. It will all be gone. Those creaky joints that we have now, those achy parts of our body will be gone. We’ll be able to run and dance and climb stairs again. It’ll be joyous. It is not going to be what the media tells us or what the movies tell us. We’re not going to go cloud jumping and have eternal sing alongs as we play the flute forever. No! We’re going to go there and we are going to be with Jesus! And we’re going to serve our God when we get there. It’s going to be a place with God’s glory. It’s a place with his love. It’s a place with his peace and his joy and his perfect light and his perfect son lives there. And so do our loved ones who have gone before us. There are days when I know I don’t want to leave yet, but I can’t wait to get there. Dear friends, in my position here at the church, I am privileged and honored when you call me and you ask me to come to your bedside at the hospital because something’s gone wrong. I get the honor of holding your hand and praying for you in the darkest times of your life. In those times, you and I have conversations about faith. And we have conversations, deep conversations about Jesus. Because in those moments, you need to know if he was really telling the truth. And in those conversations, we get to talk about the times when you needed him the most and he showed up in the most powerful way that just blew your mind. And we get to talk about the times when you questioned is god just one more person is going to let me down And do I even have the strength to believe in jesus? And can I believe that he did what he promised? And do I really have eternal life you see when jesus said don’t let your hearts be troubled I go to prepare a place He told it not just his disciples. He told us to Because you know what every single person is going to face It is the only thing in life I’ve ever been able to figure out is assured we’re gonna die and when we do Will Jesus be welcoming us home to the place that he at he went to prepare for us in the conversations I’ve had with you. We’ve explored John 14 3 and When everything is ready I will Come and get you so that you will always be with where would be where I am now At times just to bring levity into the conversations You and I have joked about well, what’s he waiting for? And you’re not going to find this in the bible, but maybe he’s just ruffling the curtains and Sweeping the floor one last time. Maybe he’s got the welcome mat that he’s putting out. It isn’t time yet You’ve still got stuff here, but there is gonna come a day When he’s gonna call your name on this side of heaven and you’re gonna open your eyes for the first time In heaven and it’s going to be glorious as his arms are going to be waiting to see you and hug you

First peter Tells us this, though you have not seen him, you love him. This is what you hang your faith on, right? We haven’t seen him yet, but that doesn’t matter because the Holy Spirit’s given us the ability to love him. Even though you do not see him now, you believe in him. Hang your hat on that. Live that out in your life. You should be filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy right now. Because you have received the end results of your faith the salvation of your souls Brings us to the last word in john 3 16 life And it leads us to our last point as believers. We have been given new birth into a living hope through The resurrection of jesus christ from the dead. You don’t get there on your own you get there through jesus He said that Read john 14 a little bit Farther and he said, you know the place i’m you know how to get there and thomas says well lord We don’t even know where you’re going So, how do we know how to get there and jesus says you do know the way i’m the way i’m the truth I am the life you get to the father through me and the world doesn’t like that, but that’s god’s truth There’s only one way there and it is through the death and resurrection Of our lord and savior jesus christ What kind of life does he offer us? Jesus offers us not like the world offers life. He offers us life as God has it. Life intensive. And when he’s talking about eternal life, it’s not about the duration. It’s more about the quality, and the vitality, and the energy, and the fulfillment of eternal everlasting life. Jesus gives us a new kind of life.

Why? Because he’s reconnecting our souls with the Father who created us. When we sin, we are separated from the Father and His love. That happened in the Garden of Eden. But Jesus came and He reconnects us with the Father. He reconciles us with the Father. And our souls rejoice that we are once again in the presence of our God. All of this means that when the Holy Spirit gave you the faith you needed to profess Christ as the Son of the Living God, you took your very first breath as a child of God. And ever since then, you’ve been living as a son and daughter of the Most High King of Kings and Lord of Lords. You’re a prince and a princess. With a crown on your head right now on this side of heaven. God has already lifted you up He’s already given you his promise of new birth He’s already given you a living hope that you cling to in good times and bad He has already given you your eternal inheritance that can never perish It can never spoil it can never fade and it can never be snatched away from you And even knowing all of that, even hearing all of that, we still have doubts. Don’t worry, you’re in a good camp if you still doubt. Just look at John the Baptist, when he was about to be beheaded, what did he do? He sent his disciples to say, Jesus, are you really who you said you were going to be? Those are the things that keep us up at night. Is this really true? Don’t look to me, look to Jesus. And he will assure you that everything I’ve said is true. He has replaced death with life. How do we know that? Because he was raised from the dead on the third day. He destroyed death because he’s already died and been resurrected. You may not realize it, but in the end, it was the empty tomb. In the end, it was the tomb vacated when Jesus rose from the dead that convinced the first Christians to cast their light, their lots with Christ. What about you? Have you placed your trust in Jesus? Jesus is the Son of the living God. He is our Savior and Lord. He is our Redeemer. He’s our King.

In those conversations I have with folks, sometimes I hear, well, I hope I’m going. I think I’m going. I should be going after all i’ve been going to church my whole life. I’ve been a christian my whole life dear folks We got to get rid of those words if I come and ask you if you’re going to heaven you Yes, i’m a new child if i’m a child of god, of course i’m going jesus is my lord and savior and I believe it. We don’t get there through coming to church. We don’t get there through our good works. We don’t get there through Good feelings and we get there through the blood of the lamb as we close out Today, I want to leave you with some words from max locato he’s the one he’s the author who wrote the book john 3 16 that we’ve been studying and And preaching from he says this we follow christ because he has been there think about it He’s been to bethlehem Wearing barn rags, suckling milk, and shivering against the cold. All of divinity content to cocoon itself in an eight pound body sleeping on cow’s supper. Millions who face the chill of empty pockets or the fear of sudden change turn to Christ. Why? Because He’s been there. He’s been to Nazareth. Where he was rejected by his own. He’s been to Jerusalem. Where he stared down critics. And stood up against the cynics. He’s been there. Why seek Jesus help with your challenges? Because He’s been to Nazareth, He’s been to Galilee, He’s been to Jerusalem, and most important, He’s been to the cross, and He’s been to the grave, and not as a visitor, but as a corpse. Buried, numbered among the dead, He’s been there.

Heart silent, lungs vacant, body wrapped for burial, and grave sealed with a stone, He’s been there. He died, and He was buried. You and I haven’t died yet, but we’re living on the second half of life, which means we’re closer to death. The cemetery than the cradle. We gotta know. We have to know. It’s imperative that we, beyond a shadow of a doubt, we believe in Jesus Christ. Because He’s been to the grave and He’s the only one who knows the way out. Do you believe it? Do you profess it? Do you live it? In a few moments, Pastor David is going to invite us to stand as we’re able, and he’s going to invite us to confess our faith using the words of the Nicene Creed as he does. I pray that you will look once again inside yourself, ask the Holy Spirit, To give you the assurance of your faith, the assurance of your salvation, the assurance that you are indeed a child of God, paid and purchased by the blood of the Lamb. I pray that 2 Timothy. 110 can become real to you again today. He that is Jesus destroyed death through the good news. He showed us the way to have life and not be destroyed. Praise God. Let’s pray. Father, you brought us to one verse for five weeks for one verse. Through it, we’ve learned the riches of your truth and we’ve grown more confident in your love for us. Thank you for the assurance of our salvation, given not through our work, but through the work of your son. You gave him. He willingly came. He did the work you needed him to do on the cross. You raised him from the dead so we can have hope that our graves are not the end of it. The death is not the end of it. You have given new meaning to life and you’ve given to us. Remind us often father that our identity in you cannot change for we are your Children, Holy Spirit I pray you’ll come and stir us into action stir us into action in our homes in our workplaces in our schools and Communities in our neighborhoods and in our nation and in the world that we may take your truth the truth of your grace The truth of your promise of eternal life through Jesus Christ to others who like I so many years ago Need to know that you god so loved the world that you Gave your only begotten son that whoever believes in him will not perish But have ever lasting life praise god for this verse Let us cling to it in the good times and the bad. We pray in Jesus name. Amen