John 3:16

John 3:16 contains some of the most familiar words in all the Bible, “For God so loved the world, that he sent his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

 God so loved a rebellious world. The gospel writer John is not talking about a world so big and full of people, but a world of people who have turned away from their Maker. God made the world very good (Genesis 1:31), but the people of the world have rebelled against God.

God loves this rebellious world lavishly. When Jesus told us to love our enemies, he was not speaking in hypotheticals. He spoke what he was at that moment actively doing.  

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