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John 3:16 -- VIII
"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."
We are still looking at the word 'gave' in John 3:16. The meaning of the original word in Greek, can give us information and insight into the plan and purpose of God in the redemption of His creation. This is what we want to consider in this article. We are in no way trying to add too or change the inerrant, infallible Word of God. Our goal as good stewards of God's message, is to be accurate with it, and glorify the One who gave it.
The inerrant, infallible Word of God was the message He originally gave to man. What we use today is a translation, with paragraph markings, words, punctuation, and even phrases added. The mere words of men are not the inspired Word of God. The translations we have today may contain the Word of God, but words have been added to make the sense, or make it flow.
In Jude 1:3 it says, "I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith, which was once for all delivered to the saints." It (the Word of God) was given one time to the men or servants of God. God did not give His original message again in 1611 or 1789. We have translations today made from copies of the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, not the original Word of God as it was given.
Now why am I saying all this? Because someone is going to be offended if I suggest that there is more for us to glean from this verse, than what we were taught in Sunday school. Along with the meaning of the original Greek word for gave in John 3:16, Mr. Thayer gives us this explanation in his Greek Lexicon. "God is said to have given certain men to Christ, to have disposed them to acknowledge Christ as the author and medium of their salvation, and to enter into intimate relations with Him, hence Christ calls them His own."
Is there any factual evidence for this in the Word of God? Actually, the Gospel of John is saturated with this type of theology. John 6:37 says, "All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will in no wise cast out." Verse 39 says, "that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing." John 17:2 says, "as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him." This same teaching is mentioned in John 17:6, 9, 11, and 24.
This theology fits quite well with John 3:16, because the "whosoever" in the verse are the same as "those the Father gave the Son." I John 4:9 says, "that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we (all those who believe) might live through Him." You see, the ones the Father gave the Son, the ones who believe, the bride of Christ, the church, the elect, the chosen, are all the same group of people. God the Father sent His Son to be the Savior of the world, I John 4:14.
Have you accepted Christ as Lord and Savior? Are you going to experience eternal life?
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Lyndon Stimeling, of Richfield, has been writing about faith and family for many years. He has self-published three books, Common Thoughts on The Word in 2016 and Eye of a Needle in 2017 and Common Thoughts on The Word II in 2019. He has also had articles published in The Coming Home Journal and local newspapers and has written a children's book.