Most likely you found this website from one of two bookmarks that have been distributed and shown on the first page. All of the bookmarks show one verse on the reverse:

John 3:16

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son [Jesus], that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (KJV)

    This verse is probably the most well known verse in the entire Bible — and it really summarizes the whole Book.

    While I have heard that some pastors have given a series of sermons on this one verse, my comments will certainly be shorter.

    In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. 1:1). And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (Gen. 1:26-27) And God saw every thing that he had made, and behold, it was very good. (Gen. 1:31a)

    Why these verses from Genesis? To show you that God so loved the world that He created us in His own image. Did you notice that in Gen. 1:26 God is plural? Jesus was with God since the beginning.

    Many passages in the Old Testament prophesy that Jesus would come to the world. Isaiah 52:13 - 53:12 depict the coming Saviour as a servant that would go through many sufferings. Why did God give His Son, Jesus? Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors: and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors. (Isa. 53:12) As the end of this verse states, "he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." So, He, Jesus, was taking our sin (the many) and made intercession (was our substitute) to His Father, God! When He died on the cross at Calvary, He was dying for our sins as a substitute, because we would never be able to repay God to forgive us of our sins on our own. How can we pay God? (He has everything!) We can't! Only Jesus can be an acceptable substitute for our sins.

    So, God gave His Son, Jesus, as a substitute for our sins. Now we know that. So can I go to heaven, now that I know that? NO.

    What's next? 

    "that whosoever believeth in Him"

    But I said I understood that Jesus died for my sins. That isn't good enough? NO.

    "whosoever believeth," that's anyone who truly believes that Jesus did this for them, personally, in their heart, not in their mind, in your heart, absolutely, totally, with everything that you could possibly commit to - it must be in your heart. Something that you TRULY believe in. — THEN you "believeth" that Jesus died for YOUR sins. 

    "should not perish, but have everlasting life".

    Now that you truly, truly, believe in Jesus as your personal Saviour, who died for your personal sins, you have been born again in the spirit. As the Holy Spirit enters your life, your confidence increases and you know that you are now a part of a new family of believers. A new feeling overtakes you, and you know you are different. Things on the outside look the same, but inside you know something "happened." Your hope increases partly because you know that you will be with your Saviour, Jesus, someday.

    The best is yet to come! "and have everlasting life." Sometimes "everlasting," or eternal life is the hardest to describe. How can we comprehend it? Forever, without end, a million, million years? While you are reading this in a few minutes of an hour of a day of a month of a year of a decade of a century of a millennium . . . that's nothing to compare with FOREVER! Imagine having enough time to do everything! All because you committed to Jesus back when you were alive on earth.

    The verse John 3:16 has everything that we need for eternal life. The decision has to be made before leaving earth.

    Don't wait - if you haven't made the decision yet, do it today, NOW! Life could end tomorrow and then it will be too late.

DRM           2/13/2003