John 3:9-18
Everlasting Life
John 3:9-18 MKJV Nicodemus answered and said to Him, How can these things be? (10) Jesus answered and said to him, Are you the teacher of Israel and do not know these things? (11) Truly, truly, I say to you, We speak what we know and testify what we have seen. And you do not receive our witness. (12) If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how shall you believe if I tell you heavenly things? (13) And no one has ascended up to Heaven except He who came down from Heaven, the Son of Man who is in Heaven. (14) But even as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, (15) so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (16) 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. (17) For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him. (18) He who believes on Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.
Nicodemus is perplexed by the new birth. So Jesus explains that Heaven and Earth are only connected via the “Son of Man who is in Heaven” (verse 13). Jesus is the connection because He can descend from Heaven, and He can ascend into Heaven, and He is in fact always “in Heaven” and the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand wherever Jesus is. So Jesus is the God-Man, who is at home both on earth and in heaven.
Jesus alone of all human beings possessed this dual quality so Jesus alone is able to speak with authority about spiritual things and answer the question of Nicodemus. Jesus is able to testify about Heavenly things because He has been there and seen them: Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak what we know and testify what we have seen. And you do not receive our witness. (12) If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how shall you believe if I tell you heavenly things?
Jesus is unique - there are no other “avatars” or “gurus” who have the same God-Man quality: “And no one has ascended up to Heaven except He who came down from Heaven, the Son of Man who is in Heaven.”
Because Jesus is unique in this way He is the sole source of salvation. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and no one can come to the Father except via Him (John 14:6) and there is no other name under Heaven by which men must be saved. (Acts 4:12)
Since He is the only God-Man, the only “begotten Son” of God, the only bridge between earth and heaven then it is Jesus who must do the work of salvation: “But even as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, (15) so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
On the cross Jesus was literally “lifted up between Heaven and earth” to be an intermediary, and to atone for sin. Jesus did this to open a way for believers to possess eternal life. God sent Jesus into the world to help it to connect to Heaven, and to bring believers into the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus is only mediator between God and Man – Christ Jesus (1 Timothy 2:5) and He gives us eternal life through faith in His Name.
The following verses are among the best known in Scripture: (16) 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. (17) For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.
That they may not perish - those outside of Heaven perish, because only Heaven is truly eternal. Outside of Heaven everything simply decays and perishes forever.
If you think about it there are only two alternatives to eternal life. They are: a) something that is eternal – but which is not “life”, that is eternal death or b) to be life but not be eternal, that is to have a temporary life in some way. So the three options are eternal life, eternal death, or temporary life. Both the latter options can be classified as “perishing”. They are truly dreadful alternatives.
God displays His love in sending His only-begotten Son to die on the cross so that we might be spared from these truly dreadful alternatives and be saved. God wants us with Him, in Heaven, sharing His eternal life.
Because humanity is naturally disconnected from Heaven it is “condemned already” – that is humanity is naturally outside the realm where grace operates in eternal and beautiful ways. If you are outside of grace - then you are in judgment; and given that we are all sinners that means humanity is condemned already. Jesus put it this way: He who believes on Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God.
Believing removes us from condemnation, connects us to Heaven and we receive grace and enter into eternal life. In fact we immediately become citizens of Heaven (Philippians 3:20) and are seated with Christ in the heavenly places. Ephesians 2:6 HCSB He also raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavens, in Christ Jesus,
“He who believes on Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already,” There is no condemnation for those that are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1) so God is always benevolent and good toward you though He may chastise you from time to time (Hebrews 12:5-13). But for those who choose not to believe, the future is bleak.
Blessings in Jesus,
