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A SERMON FROM JOHN 3:16(REVISED AND CONDENSED FROM A SERMON BY DR. HYMERS by Mr. John Samuel Cagan A sermon preached at the Baptist Tabernacle of Los Angeles |
Please stand as I read John 3:16. You don’t need to turn to it. Just listen as I read it.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
You may be seated.
Lara and Timothy asked me to speak at their wedding. Both Timothy and Lara are my personal friends. Tonight I am honored to speak to you about Jesus.
Many people are miserable. They live for the good times, but the good times are over quickly. Many people do anything they can to avoid the bad times. But bad times always come. Some people wonder why life is so hard. But there is good news. The good news is that “God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16 is one of the most famous and loved verses in the Bible. Almost everyone has heard it before. I think it will be helpful to let John 3:16 answer three questions: (1) Who is Christ? (2) Why did Christ die? (3) How can you be saved by Christ?
I. First, who is Christ?
There are many ideas about Christ. Some say He was a martyr. Others say He was a great prophet. Others say He was a good teacher. But the Bible itself says that Christ is the “only begotten Son” of God. What does that mean? It means that Jesus is the Second Person of the Trinity. He is God the Son. He is of the same essence as God the Father. He is begotten, but not created. That may seem very complicated. Let me make it more simple. God exists in three Persons. Jesus is the Second Person. He has been “the only begotten Son of God” for all eternity past. In the fullness of time
“God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law” (Galatians 4:4).
Jesus existed as God the Son before He was conceived in flesh in the womb of Mary. Jesus was then born in a human body. Yet, Jesus Christ is, and always has been, the “only begotten Son of God.”
“For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one” (I John 5:7).
It is extremely important for you to know who Christ is. Otherwise you can never understand what He did on the Cross. If He was only a man, then His death on the Cross has little meaning today. But while He was a man, He was more than a man. He was God in human flesh. “The only begotten Son of God” – the Second Person of the Trinity – God the Son.
II. Second, why did Christ die?
There are many theories of why He died on the Cross. Some say Jesus was a victim. But Jesus did not die on the Cross by accident.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son…” (John 3:16).
Focus on the words, “he gave his only begotten Son.” Jesus was not crucified as a martyr. God “gave his only begotten Son”! The Roman soldiers drove nails through His hands and feet. The priests and Pharisees cried “Crucify him! Crucify him!” It is true that they did those things. But they were only instruments of God! God did not just allow Jesus to be crucified. God sent Jesus to be crucified.
“It pleased the Lord to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin” (Isaiah 53:10).
That is what the Bible means when it says, “he gave his only begotten Son.” That is what the Bible means when it says “It pleased the Lord to bruise him.” God Himself put Jesus on the Cross! God put Jesus on the Cross for you and for me. The Bible says,
“Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures” (I Corinthians 15:3).
God sent Jesus to die for our sins because there was no other way for our sins to be forgiven. Through the Blood of Jesus our sins are forgiven and forgotten.
“Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood” (Romans 3:25).
With sorrow and pain in his heart, God the Father sent Jesus Christ to the Cross to pay the penalty for your sins.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son…” (John 3:16).
III. Third, how can you be saved by Christ?
Christ died on the Cross to pay the full penalty for our sins. However, we must accept His salvation. Some people think they can receive salvation by being good. Others think they are saved by experiencing the Holy Spirit. Many people think they receive it by saying a prayer or “coming forward.” Still others think they receive salvation by believing the plan of salvation. But the Bible contradicts all of those ideas. The Bible tells us exactly how to be saved. Our text says,
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
“That whosoever believeth in him should not perish.” Salvation comes by believing in Jesus. Christ suffered on the Cross to pay the price for our sin. Therefore there is nothing left for us to do except trust Him! Trust Jesus by faith! Believe in Him! Trust Jesus and be saved! I pray that will happen soon. Amen.
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(END OF SERMON)
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Solo Sung Before the Sermon by Mr. Benjamin Kincaid Griffith:
“What a Friend We Have in Jesus” (by Joseph M. Scriven, 1819-1886).
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THE OUTLINE OF A SERMON FROM JOHN 3:16 (REVISED AND CONDENSED FROM A SERMON BY DR. HYMERS by Mr. John Samuel Cagan “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). I. First, who is Christ? Galatians 4:4; I John 5:7. II. Second, why did Christ die? Isaiah 53:10; I Corinthians 15:3; III. Third, how can you be saved by Christ? John 3:16. |