Lenten Devotional - Day Eight

Scripture: John 3:16-17

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:16-17)

  My first memories of life were growing up in the church and being taught to memorize John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” Knowing these words, personally, made it an even more strange and difficult experience for me to understand that others I met later in life had no experience with the church, scriptures or Jesus. They had no basic understanding of God, which I had taken for granted for years.

  Some have never heard this … They did not know nor had anyone tell them that God loved them. They never had someone to tell them the stories of scripture that told of God’s abundant love. They had never heard about Jesus Christ and how Jesus tells us so much about our lives and how we could better live our lives. They have never heard of grace, mercy, forgiveness and all the joy these could bring to their lives.

  Some have heard and don’t believe it … I met others who had been told about God and did not believe it was something they could embrace. The reasons could be numerous for their disbelief. Some heard that the story was not for them and they were not included in God’s story. Some were told a story with too many conditions and rules for them to follow.

  Some think they tried it and it didn’t work…. Some were told God would do all the heavy lifting and when God did not, they concluded that it did not work. Some found it did not work because they were expected to give up too much or do things they found too difficult.

  Some have heard it and don’t believe it applies to them because of their many sins…. Some were told their belief would not matter, because their sin was too great. They were told grace, love, forgiveness and mercy simply passed them by because they choose poorly.

  Too many people have believed too many false narratives, when God through John clearly tells us, “God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (v. 17)

Lee McDermott, Contributor

Remember in Prayer: Churches seeking to discern how God will help them be welcoming and hospitable to those struggling with addiction.

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