The Strand Study Bible

JOHN 3:8

JOHN 3:25

1718

17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18 He that believeth on him is not 7 condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than 8 light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. 22 After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized. 23 And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized. 24 For 9 John was not yet cast into prison. 25 Then there arose a question between some of John’s disciples and the Jews about 10 purifying.

8 The 1 WIND bloweth where it 2 listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the SPIRIT . 9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? 10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? 11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? 13 And 3 no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heav- en, even the Son of man which is in heaven. The promise of CHRIST’S crucifixion (Fulfilled - Jn 19:18 - AD 32) 14 4 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, 5 even so must the SON OF MAN be lifted up: P 15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten 6 SON , that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

1. or, “Spirit” – Ezk 37:9

2. or, “wills” 3. Prov 30:4

4. Num 21:5-9 5 . Fulfilled -

Jn 19 : 18 (Christ’s Crucifixion) 6 . Isa 7 : 14 & 9 : 6 & Prov 30:4 7. Rom 8:1 8. Note - Ever since Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden; their offspring have inherited a dislike for truth. Like nocturnal animals that naturally avoid the light , all of Adam’s children are born with an uncomfortable sensitivity to light . 9. Mt 4:12 10. Num 19:7

3:8 Just as the wind produces observable effects as it blows (though its source and future movements remain hidden), so the HOLY SPIRIT also produces observable effects (visible evidences of His presence) for everyone to see ( Acts 4:13a ). NOTE – The physical is often a reflection of the spiritual ( Jere 14:1 ). 3:10 Though Nicodemus was a master teacher of the OT Scriptures, he failed to understand the doctrine of salvation and the new birth ( and knowest not these things ). From God’s point of view, salvation involves the raising of spiritually dead men and women to life ( Gen 2 :16- 17b ). However, before God could give life to the dead, He had to totally eradicate that which killed mankind –sin. Praise God that He accomplished that through Christ and the cross on Calvary. 3:16 a Whereas Islam is a faith in which Allah requires your sons to die for him, Christianity is a faith in which God “ so loved ” the world that He required THE SON to die for you . NOTE – God has done everything in His power to bring about salvation to the human race ( For God so loved the world ). If a man goes to Hell, it’s because he sent himself ( Gen 4 :1- 7 , Acts 1:25 , Rom 9:22 and II Pet 3:9 ). Because God has done everything in His power (He so loved the world) to bring about salvation to the human race, God supports what He helps to create ( Gen 3:15a 3:16 b Sadly, the Mormons think GOD THE FATHER here “sired” ( only begotten ) GOD THE SON . They actually teach their people that Elohim ( Gen 1:1c ), which they believe to be God the Father, “sired (or, fathered) Jehovah ( Gen 2:4b ), which they believe to be God the Son, and they try to use this verse to prove that belief. However, their teaching couldn’t be further from the truth. When it says “ he gave his only begotten Son ,” the term “ only begotten ” is the Greek word µονογενη ( monogene ) and means “only, unique, one of a kind.” It is a term of endearment, not birth, and indicates that as the Son of God He was the “sole” representative of the Being and character of the One who sent Him. It therefore has nothing to do with the birth of CHRIST and must not be taken to mean that Christ became the Only Begotten Son by Incarnation. 1 3:17 Contrary to all our guilty expectations, God is not mad at you ( For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world ); He’s mad about you ( but that the world through him might be saved ). God did not send Jesus into the world in order to send the world to Hell; He sent Jesus into the world to save the world from Hell ( Gen 4:7 and Jn 12:47). 3:22 According to John 4:1-2, it appears that Jesus’ disciples did most of the baptizing. Though important (because baptism symbolizes what Jesus did for us on Calvary - Rom 6:4-5), baptism is not part of the saving Gospel ( I Cor 1:17 & 15:1,2 a,b, 4 ). Only the Gospel saves. 1 Vines Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words . Old Tappan, NJ, Fleming H. Revell Co., 1940. Print. – point #2). It says, “ For God so loved the world that he gave … ” THE ADAGE IS TRUE: You only support what you help to create