. . . should not perish . . . John 3:16
Jesus
taught about God the Father by showing God’s wrath against sin. “But what about
John 3:16?” asks someone. Listen to John 3:16, my friend. “For God so loved the
world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believeth in him should
not perish”—but apart from Him they would have perished; that is the only way
to avoid perishing. Indeed, we also find in John 3 a statement that if a man
does not believe, “the wrath of God abides on him” (verse 36).
Part of
our Lord’s teaching about the Father is that the Father is absolutely holy,
that He hates sin and had pledged to destroy it and punish it with everlasting
destruction. “Blessed,” He said, “are the pure in heart: for they shall see
God” (Matthew 5:8). No one else can see God because only the pure in heart
could stand the sight of Him. To look at God is hell to a man unless he has
been made pure in heart—“. . . holiness, without which no man shall see the
Lord” (Hebrews 12:14). So He revealed the character of the Father as a holy
Father.
But
Christ also told us about the Father’s love and compassion. That is why, He
tells us, He came into the world—it was because of the love of God. He shows us
this same love and compassion in His life. That is why He worked His miracles, not
simply to heal the people, but to reveal, to manifest, His glory and the love and
compassion of God. He said in effect, “If you do not believe My words, then as
I do these things, see the Father in Me.” For this holy God is a God of love
and compassion. As our Lord went about healing the sick and doing good, He told
us that God is like that.
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