It’s a Gift

Dick Lucas delves into the profound implications of God’s love and grace presented as a gift to humanity. Lucas discusses how understanding and accepting this gift is crucial for spiritual life and transformation, urging listeners to recognize and embrace God’s grace fully in their lives. The sermon is structured to deepen the understanding of grace and its pivotal role in Christian faith.

The following unedited transcript is provided by Beluga AI.

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Thank you, Jonathan, for your very warm welcome. I love coming to Emmanuel. It’s a great treat for me, and to meet so many old friends and also make new ones, so thank you. A very surprising text today, John 3:16, the third time running, and I hope you will rejoice with me to read this verse. I think we’ll read it together. Theological students who have their Greek New Testament can read that out loud if they want to, but they won’t disturb the rest of us. John 3:16, together from the ESV.

¹⁶ “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, ESV)

Let me tell you what my experience is after three Sundays and preparing to come here on a Sunday morning and talk on John 3:16. I discovered that John is the most relentless and the most determined, the most persistent and the most one-track teacher you can imagine. I found that he won’t let you stray off course for a moment.

It reminds me of those sheepdog trials you see on television, with the sheep wandering all over the place, the dog snapping at their heels, rounding them up, guarding and guiding and driving them to the girl that the dog wants. And honestly, that’s how I felt in preparing. One is forced to keep to the point. John brings one back again and again to the original Christian good news, the basic Christian message, the authentic gospel.

Time then, this morning, I think, to try to summarize the major issues in John 3:16. There are three of them, and they run through the whole chapter, but they do find, I think, a focus in this wonderful verse. Let me warn you ahead of this morning, it’s impossible to do justice to these great themes of John, but I’ll do my best. So, the first great issue that we’ve looked at on the three Sunday mornings and comes to a focus in 3:16 is the Lord Jesus Christ and His true glory.

The Lord Jesus Christ and his true glory. Well, do I really need to say that? I mean, it’s obvious to anybody who opens the Gospel of John that it centers on Jesus from the first chapter to the last. I don’t know if you know, but John has selected his material very, very carefully. As far as we know, our Lord Jesus Christ had a three-year public ministry, but John, he brings it all down to three weeks, that is, 21 days described in this marvelous Gospel.

And every conversation and every miracle and every action is all planned to centre on the figure of Jesus himself. I mean look at the beginning, that passage that was so powerfully read to us just now. We start with that great statement, in the beginning was the Word, that of course is the Lord Jesus Christ.

¹ In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1, ESV)

And then if you turn to the end of the Gospel you get that rather delightfully quaint verse, verse 25 of chapter 21.

²⁵ Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. (John 21:25, ESV)

And then, as much as Jesus is God, come to earth, and I guess that’s true. Now the Old Hymn tells us to join all glorious names, and John does that in his Gospel. We find that it is full of the names of Jesus, which describe, of course, who he is and why he’s come.

He’s the one and only; he’s the son of the Father; he’s the Saviour of the world; he’s the Son of God, and so on. But I thought we ought to look this morning, finally, at the title that Jesus chooses for himself, and that clearly was his own favourite self-designation. If he wanted to describe who he really was, he would call himself the Son of Man. It comes eighty times in the four Gospels, and you’ll find it in our chapter, in verses thirteen and fourteen.

Chapter three then, if you would, always help of course to have your Bible open there, and you’ll see this wonderful title here.

¹³ No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. ¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. (John 3:13-15, ESV)

Now, there is fortunately no debate as to where this title comes from.

You would expect it to come from the Old Testament, because the Lord Jesus says he’s fulfilling the Old Testament. And it comes, you may like to tell or not, I’ll read it straight away; it comes from Daniel 7:13-14. In my large print Bible, that’s page nine hundred and nine hundred and one, that’s probably no use to you, yours is probably quite different. But anyhow, I’ll read it out to you now. It’s a wonderful vision of the Son of Man.

¹³ “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. ¹⁴ And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. (Daniel 7:13-14, ESV)

Now, isn’t that an amazing vision?

The Son of Man presented to the Ancient of Days, and God giving him authority over all the nations. And of course, that’s picked up, isn’t it, by Jesus himself when, at the end of his life before he ascended into heaven, he said, “All authority is given to me in heaven and on earth; therefore, go to all nations.” So, self-confessedly, he knew who he was and described himself with this wonderful title, the Son of Man. Now, I said that John here tells us in John 3:16, in John chapter 3, about this Lord and his true glory.

So the question is, what is the true glory of the son of man according to John the apostle? I think if you were to write down your answer to that, and I think my own answer to that immediately would be his true glory, which is resurrection. And of course, that is a glorious thing, that he conquered death. I suppose it’s one of the great things we hold on to again and again, don’t we, in life?

That here is someone who broke through death, rose into a new life, and gave us a promise of that new life if we believe in him. But that is not what John actually says in his Gospel. He has a surprise for us. The true glory of the Son of Man, according to John, is his cross. And that’s echoed by the Apostle Paul, you remember, who said,

¹⁴ But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (Galatians 6:14, ESV)

Now, this is astonishing, really.

It is, if you like, a paradox, it’s a tension, but I think it’s a wonderful one and I want to underline it now. What John does is to present the terrible humiliation of Jesus on the cross, and remember what a horrible death that was, what a vile thing it was, man’s worst. What John wants to do is to show us that under God, and in God’s purposes, that humiliation of Jesus is his exaltation.

And John uses a favorite method to do that; he does this quite often in the Gospel. He uses a word with a double meaning. And you’ll find it there in John 3:14.

¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, (John 3:14, ESV)

Now, obviously, the lifting up of the serpent was lifting him up physically, and this refers to the fact that our Lord Jesus Christ was lifted up to be crucified. It’s very interesting, I’m not an Aramaic scholar, but I looked this up.

In Palestinian Aramaic, which would be the language they would speak in Palestine in his day, the phrase “to be lifted up” has a special meaning: to be crucified. Now, John must have known that. So, what he’s saying is that as Jesus is lifted up to be crucified, the second part of the verse… So must the Son of Man be lifted up, meaning, of course, be exalted, glorified. Now, if that was only once in the Gospel, we might wonder if that was absolutely right.

But it is said twice more, and we have time only for one of them, so turn over if you will, and this really is worth turning to, to John 12:32, where we are told more about the glory of the Son. John 12 please, and verse 32. I think I’ll start at verse 27, because it’s such a lovely passage. And here Jesus is talking about his hour, which is of course the hour of his crucifixion, for which he came into the world. Verse 27 then of John 12.

²⁷ “Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. ²⁸ Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” ²⁹ The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” ³⁰ Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. ³¹ Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. ³² And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” ³³ He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. (John 12:27-33, ESV)

So the Father says, “I’m going to glorify you, and I’m going to glorify you by lifting you up.” And that lifting up is the humiliation of the cross. So, John wants to show the true glory of the Son of Man. The true glory of Christ is when He takes the sinner’s place, that is my place.

When He bears the sinner’s burden of guilt, that is my burden and yours. When He receives the sinner’s condemnation from God, rightfully given, because He bears our sin in our place, I think I’m right in saying that this is put rather well. We’re not going to sing, don’t worry, as I take up the hymn book. The pianists needn’t rush to the piano. But I’m going to ask you to look at hymn 421. I was quite surprised to find it in praise, because it’s a very old hymn. At least, I thought it was an old hymn.

And I thought this put it so well. Let’s read the first three verses together. Hymn 421. Glory be to Jesus, who in bitter pains, poured for me the life-blood from his sacred veins. Grace and life eternal in their blood I find. Blessed be their compassion, wonderfully kind. Abel’s blood for vengeance pleaded to the skies, but the blood of Jesus for our pardon cries. And you notice that first line in particular, which is why I came across it. Glory be to Jesus. So that’s the first thing.

That’s the first issue that goes right the way through John’s Gospel, which is focused in verse 16, that John wants us to know the true glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, great issue number two: I remember the sheepdog. I find that he refused to let me leave this out. He brought it back again and again to my mind. He not only wants us to see the Lord and his true glory, John wants to rub our noses in the world and its real and greatest need.

Now, of course, the needs of the world, as you know and I know, materially, socially, economically, if you will, are enormous. And incidentally, in my travels, I just want to say how impressive it is to see in many a congregation when you talk to people how Christian people have got their sleeves rolled up and are doing something about these many needs.

I won’t go into that now but it does impress me as I meet congregations that Christian people are not idle and that once the love of Christ is in their hearts we find they are everywhere meeting all these needs. But John of course is not talking about theirs, he is talking about the greatest need of all that God alone can meet, the need that caused the Father to send the Son into the world, that is the need for the Incarnation, what Christmas is all about.

And this is of supreme importance because it has to do not only with this world but also with the world to come. Now I’ve already mentioned these two things, I’m not going to take a lot of time, I’ll say them again. I don’t think that I can begin to show the depth of these things, only God the Holy Spirit can open our hearts to realise what a tremendous thing it is that He came to save us from these two things. One, He came to save us or rather the world from darkness.

And verse 19 we saw already, it was such a lovely, it’s got this lovely phrase in it hasn’t it, the light has come into the world to save us from darkness. Now that means, quite simply, to know God instead of being ignorant. I think there is no ignorance so tragic as to be one of God’s creatures, living in God’s world, but quite ignorant of Him. And sadly, you know as well as I do, that an enormous number of people are in that position. The most ignorant of all, of course, is the atheist.

What a fool he is, isn’t he? And he came to save us from that darkness. Turn back a page to that magnificent reading we had just now; we haven’t time to go into it in any length, but look at verse four and five. Chapter one, in him was life, that is Jesus, and the life was the light of men. That is exactly what he claimed, to be the light of the world. And then verse five,

⁴ In him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:4-5, ESV)

Here’s another of John’s double meanings, by the way. Some versions say the darkness is not understood; some say the darkness has not. I’ll shout louder if the rain gets louder, by the way. Don’t worry, I’ve got a strong voice this morning; all those bugs have been repulsed, and I will therefore shout. What he’s saying in verse five is this: the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has tried to overcome it, doesn’t understand it, and has failed.

But as one scholar has said, it’s part of the tragic note in John’s gospel, isn’t it, that the darkness has tried to overcome the light. So that’s the first great need of the world, and my friends, you must know that from the people you live amongst, friends, even relatives, that they are still in the dark, and they need the light of the world, and that that’s their greatest need. The second great need, He came to save us not only from darkness, but from death. And John 3:16 is particularly clear, isn’t it?

Let me read it again, I’m sorry to do it again, but as the rain goes on I’ll read it again and I’ll underline the words that matter so much.

¹⁶ “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16, ESV)

Death here means separation from God, so that I cannot enjoy the experience of His presence now, nor have any hope for it in the life to come.

So God sent His Son into the world to save the world from those two desperate needs, darkness and death. And if you’re a Christian you ought to be rejoicing now that God has delivered you from darkness and from separation from your Heavenly Father. I tried to remember the shorter Scottish catechism, and if there’s a Scot here you can put me right off to ever copy. But I think it goes like this, I’m always delighted in it. What is the chief end of man? Answer, to know God and enjoy Him forever.

Those are the two things: to know God, the darkness removed, to enjoy Him forever, death removed. Isn’t that worth talking about? Isn’t that worth rejoicing in? Isn’t it worth preaching? To be saved from agnosticism, which is just another word for ignorance, and to be saved from sins so that we’re forgiven and accepted, and we may walk with God despite our sins, despite our unworthiness, and not fear the future. That’s what Christ was sent into the world for. First then, John wants us to see Jesus and His true glory.

Secondly, and we’ve seen this every Sunday morning, he wants us to see the world in its true need. What’s the third great issue? I think John wants us to see the Christian and his true beginnings. Now, I hope I’m not being disrespectful to the great apostle John, but he is a one-track man. He’s an evangelist. He’s out to make disciples. And maybe he’s after you. He wants the world to hear, and he wants every knee to bow.

One of the most lovely things about this gospel is the number of times he writes about a conversation between the Lord and an individual. And since he’s only got 21 days, it’s astonishing. The whole of chapter 3, Nicodemus, the whole of chapter 4, the Samaritan woman, the whole of chapter 9, the blind man, chapter 20, doubting Thomas. He’s interested in the individual. So all through chapter 3, and indeed all through the gospel of John, he’s calling for a personal response. Now it’s interesting to see the many different ways in which he does this.

I want to spell out one or two. A response to the love of God in Jesus Christ is first a belief in Christ and his sacrifice.

¹⁵ that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. ¹⁶ “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. ¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. ¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. (John 3:15-18, ESV)

Belief in the crucified Son of Man is thus the means to eternal life. So next time someone stops you and says, oh you know I don’t go to church but I do believe in a God who loves.

Say, “Well, actually, in the world I live in, it’s quite difficult to believe in the love of God apart from the fact of Jesus Christ. That’s why I believe in the love of God. And I put my trust in His sacrifice, and I know that through that way, I can trust in the love of God and know it and experience it.” So that’s one of the ways in which John explains a response. Do you believe in Christ and His sacrifice for you? Can you say with the Apostle Paul, “He loved me and gave Himself for me”?

Secondly, John says that faith is submission to Christ and His Lordship. Look at verse 36. Quite a stern verse, isn’t it? “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not.” Now, isn’t that strange? He doesn’t say “whoever doesn’t believe”; he says “whoever doesn’t obey.” John the Evangelist makes it quite plain: it’s not just a matter of believing but of submission. The Christian life does not begin until I submit to the rule of Christ. And that’s why the last story of all, Thomas, is so delightful, isn’t it?

Because dear old Thomas comes out of all that darkness, doubt, and fog and ends up by saying, “My Lord and my God.” If you mean that, you mean, “I submit, I obey.” A rebel. Belief in Christ and his sacrifice, submission to Christ and his lordship, and now another way in which John describes the beginning of the Christian life, and that is verse 21, coming to Christ and his truth. Let’s look at verse 21.

²¹ But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” (John 3:21, ESV)

I love that.

I like the sense of activity here in response to invitation. You get that throughout the gospels. You come to me all who labour and I will give you rest. Come. And coming to him means leaving behind of course the darkness and the death, the error and the evil. So the third way in which John describes the beginning of the Christian life, I guess it goes on throughout life, but there needs to be that definite coming to him in answer to the invitation.

And fourthly, this beginning of the Christian life is commitment to Christ and his cause. Now one of the reasons there’s no reality in some people’s Christian experience is they’re not committed openly to the cause of Christ. They look back to some time, it may have been Confirmation, it may have been an evangelistic rally, it may have been some time when they honestly believed in Jesus, but they never come out into the open. And I think John wants us to know that belief in Christ means commitment to him and his cause in the world.

And I think it’s just time for us to look up what happened to Nicodemus, who came, as you remember, by night. I think he must have been very shy of coming to talk to Christ, and many of us when we began were very shy of having any to do with Christ. But turn over to chapter 7 and verse 50. Don’t bother, if you’d rather I just read it. Here’s Nicodemus in the middle of, well I suppose you’d call it the General Assembly of Jerusalem, the Great Council, and they’re hostile to a man.

Nicodemus, who’d gone to him before and was one of them, said to the Council,

⁵⁰ Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, ⁵¹ “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” ⁵² They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.” [The earliest manuscripts do not include 7: (John 7:50-52, ESV)

It’s the real put-down, isn’t it? Quite hard to stand up, isn’t it, in the General Assembly of the leaders, the chief priests, the rabbis, everybody standing there. They’re all hostile against Christ.

Up stands Nicodemus, “Is it actually right to condemn this man without hearing him? Or you’re just a fundamentalist?” you know the kind of rudeness that people use today to anybody who has a faith.

And much, much more striking, John 19:39. Jesus is dead, the cause is lost apparently, Joseph of Arimathea bravely comes to take the body.

Verse 39, very striking I think, this shy man Nicodemus, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloe, 75 pounds in weight, and they took the body of Jesus and bound it and buried him.

³⁹ Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. (John 19:39, ESV)

I hope you won’t think I’m being frivolous, but I can imagine some of Nicodemus’ relatives, can you imagine Mrs Nicodemus when he came home? What are you doing yourself? You put yourself in great danger. Nobody has anything to do with this man. He’s dead now anyhow.

Somewhere along the line, we have to come out and be open, don’t we? Even though people scorn us, even though it puts us at some risk of our reputation, whether socially or intellectually or whatever, that’s, according to John, part of the beginning of the Christian life, an open commitment to Christ and his cause. And last of all, trust in Christ’s word, where to believe in him and what he says.

He who is ashamed of me and my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes with his angels on the great day of glory. Are you ashamed of his words? I am the way, the truth, the life, no one comes to the Father but by me. Are you ashamed of that? Let me urge on you the meaning of response. Come into Christ, believing in his name, commitment to his cause, trust in his word.

If that is you today, as perhaps it has been for many years, that is a sign that God is at work in you. And if he begins good work in you, thankfully he’ll finish it.

So let’s pray together. Three great things, John, won’t let us forget. The true glory of Jesus, the real need of the world, and the real meaning of response, what it means to be a Christian. simplicity and the depth and profundity of John’s Gospel. We thank you for this glorious message. We thank you that it meets our need even today.

We thank you that there is no need to be afraid. We thank you for the purpose that this gives us in life and in death. We thank you that you so loved the world that you sent your son. And we rejoice this morning in his true glory as we remember his death. The Son of God loved me and gave himself for me. Amen.