MONDAY, NOVEMBER 5
Scripture: John 3:16, John 3:17-20

Every Christian knows John 3:16. My kids learned it in Sunday School and most of us learned it in the early days of our walk with Christ. It is a great Scripture and we have all used it, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Watching the church accept John 3:16 while neglecting its context is the consummate example of “pick and choose” Christianity. Those five verses help bring us into knowledge of the judicial Christ. John 3:17-19 says, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” The “condemnation“ of verse 19 is the Greek Word for ‘judgment.’ Verse 20 continues with the judgment, “…For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.” John 3:16 leads us to the judicial manifestation of not receiving Christ. The judicial manifestation in verse 19 is judgment! If we love darkness more than light, if we love evil and reject Christ, then our judgment is set and it is a fiery one! John 3:16 is a great verse, but what follows it completes the picture. What follows it is pure destruction for those who love darkness. Why has the church taught their kids only John 3:16 and left out the other five verses? Most parishioners can quote John 3:16, but it is much less often they can quote John 3:17-21. Why have we chosen only the easy part? If we only grow in the evangelistic and pastoral we find ourselves without the faith to confront evil that assaults our nation. Samuel knew God and his prayers brought affliction on enemies. Do we know this Jesus? Can our prayers reach the White House?