Friday 27 Jul 2018

July 27: John 3:16-17

Key Verse: John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Devotion:
I don’t think I will ever get tired of reading or saying out this verse! It was the first verse I learned at church and it has stuck with me ever since. The priest who taught it to me did try to explain what it meant, but I never quite got the explanation; not until I heard the gospel explained in a friendlier way and learned that my sins were keeping me away from God. That was when these verses began with a whole new meaning to me. I can remember a senior at school giving us a short lesson on just how much love there is in these two verses – that was in a “scripture union” meeting we had (only had about 6 people attending at the time) between lunch time and sports time!

These sorts of memories remind me of the importance of continuing in God’s Word and continuing to encourage others. I cannot remember the names of the seniors who were in charge of the scripture union, or which one gave the lesson, but I can remember it because my bible had different text to theirs. We also used to meet for a 10-minute prayer meeting every break time near the cricket pavilion – we had to go there so we would get some peace and quiet and not be berated by all the other guys in our boys only school! But that sort of action built up a love for Christ which would not leave me. I may have left Christ out of my life when I left school and went through university, but coming back to His open, patient, loving arms was just as good as the day I was saved.

Christ did not come to condemn us. If He had done that, then I would have been in deep, deep water when I turned my back on Him and followed my earthly ways. If He was a God who punished us for our sins, I would have probably not survived university – never mind the next 10 years of my life! But I can stand on these verses, knowing they are true and knowing God is always with me. I don’t have to be in church, nor do I have to do His work. I do them now because I love Him, and I want to. I do things like this because He showed me such wonderful love in the beginning and again when I was willing to admit when I had gone astray. Our God loves us all and wants us all to believe in Him so He can look after us as our loving father.

Points to Ponder:
What was the first bible verse you learned?

How much do you depend on God’s Word?