We all know why Jesus came to earth and died. It was for you and for me because God so loved the world that He sent His Son. And what He came to do is equally obvious; it is so that we should not perish. So, why are we spending time considering the real purpose of Jesus’ life? Is there a hidden truth somewhere other than in John 3:16, which we all know by heart?
Yes, there is a hidden truth but it right there in that verse, hiding in plain sight, as it were. Often, the problem with being too familiar with a verse of scripture is that we stop thinking about its meaning. So, we now take time to re-examine the verse. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. That whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting (eternal) life.”
When was the last time you really thought about what this popular verse is saying? Well, let us do that now to try and see the real purpose of Jesus’ life. We immediately observe three points that may not necessarily be clear to us each time we recite this verse. The first point is its context.
Remember, this is a verse from Jesus’ conversation with a bible scholar. Pastor Nicodemus had been in the ministry for a while but had no idea he needed anything further. When Jesus informed him of a man’s need to be born again, he was incredulous.
Nicodemus Did Not Know The Real Purpose Of Jesus’ Life
Like most of us who have been busy in the ministry, Nicodemus did not know this simple truth. What on earth was Jesus talking about, was Nicodemus’ attitude. It was in that context that Jesus employed this sentence to try and educate the Pastor.
Poor Nicodemus, he was earthly, thinking only with his five senses aka flesh. How can a man be born again when he is old (and bigger than his mother)? He was sitting with Jesus and yet did not know that Jesus was not merely a great prophet. The question is, do you know the real purpose of Jesus’ life? Do I?
Before you become angry at this insult to your intelligence, hear me out. You do know, thanks to Nicodemus’ courage in asking Jesus for answers, that Jesus came to save you from hell. And that brings us to the second truth in the verse. God is not loquacious, as you already know if you are conversant with the bible.
So, if not perishing (in hell) is the same as having eternal life, God would not have repeated Himself. Therefore, you have to search that verse carefully to spot the difference. It is only then that you see the real purpose of Jesus’ life. You start to sense that eternal life and not perishing in hell are not the same.
Eternal Life Is Different From Not Perishing.
True, Jesus came to die so that once you believe in Him, you will not go to hell. Any who believes in Jesus will end up in Heaven, either at death or at the Rapture, whichever is earlier. To be able to spend eternity outside of the control of satan is already a huge benefit for the believer. And if that is the only real purpose of Jesus’ life, we can shout Hallelujah.
However, by our attitude and prayers, most believers think that is the sole purpose of Jesus’ life. Not true, according to our verse. Many of us do not realize that Jesus came to give us eternal life and that life starts right now and here. What is eternal life if it is not life in eternity? So glad you asked because someone must have asked Jesus the same question.
And here is His response. “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” I read that verse and I don’t see Jesus waiting until a later date to show me Himself, do you? You don’t, and that is the problem with our Christianity.
Eternal Life Is The Real Purpose Of Jesus’ Life
Christians live their entire lives in waiting – for eternal life. But Jesus defines eternal life as something you can have right now if you know God through Him. Until we have a clear understanding of this concept, we live out our lives in anticipation.
We always seem to be waiting for that home in Heaven. And please, don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with that. Because it is only those who are expecting His appearing that He will reward.
But unless we understand that eternal life is the real purpose of Jesus’ Life, we fail to enjoy this life. Until we appreciate that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord, we cannot enjoy life. We are always waiting, like a passenger at the bus station. He is looking forward to getting home but meanwhile, he is merely enduring the trip. And yet Jesus came to give us more than an abundant life.
Once we understand the real purpose of Jesus’ life, we can start enjoying the trip. Or as someone said, we can have a bit of Heaven in which to travel to Heaven. For the one who understands this concept, heaven begins on earth, right now. That is the real purpose of Jesus’ life.
Believers Are So easy To Satisfy
There is one final small point in this verse under consideration. Believers are so easy to satisfy . We read a verse like John 3:16 and get to the part where it says we will not perish. Wow! All I have to do is accept Jesus and I will not perish in hell? Oh, thank you, Jesus; Hallelujah. And we go our way.
We forget that this is the King of kings and the Lord of Lords to whom we are relating. He is the one who told David that if being made a king was too small, He would have done more for him. This is the God who owns the entire world, the cattle on a thousand hills, the gold and the silver.
And we take just one promise and run with it when He is ready to give us all that pertains to godliness. How it must hurt Him that we are so easily satisfied when He delights to give us everything to enjoy. We approach God with a thimble instead of a truck because we don’t know the real purpose of Jesus’ life.
Start today to enjoy eternal life. Your present enjoyment does not take away from your future enjoyment in Heaven. It is all yours to enjoy, both here and hereafter.
Maranatha!
