Message by Rev. Samuel Kim
April 9, 2023
Scripture: John 3:16
Seeing the universe on the big screen is really beautiful. Some astrophysicists say that they shed tears when they saw colorful sparkling stars in a dark space—such beauty moved them! God created this beautiful world and said it was good. However, among the many stars God created life only on Earth. As far as we know, life exists only on Earth. All other planets are desolate and cold like deserts without air. However, the earth is an optimal environment for life with abundant water, fresh air, moderate temperature, and enormous resources. It is full of life, from sea and land to microscopic germs in caves several kilometers deep. God created life on earth and said that it was good.
God loves earth among the rest of the universe. Why? Because of humans. It’s because of us. After God created the optimal environment for humans to live in, such as light, air, water, plants, and animals, God created humans and gave them the authority and ability to rule over all things. He made human beings to resemble God’s personality, God’s thoughts, and God’s heart, and made them the only spiritual beings who have true fellowship with God. It was a special love for humans. God made man and woman and said finally, “It is very good.”
‘God saw that it was good’ is in line with God’s meaning of loving human beings. So, in today’s text, I expressed it like this. ‘For God so loved the world.’ Here, ‘so’ means ‘so much’or “very much”. Zephaniah 3:17 testifies how much God loves humans.
“The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you,
but will rejoice over you with singing.”
God loves us humans so much that he cannot contain his joy. Psalm 2:7 is more specific.
“I will proclaim the LORD’s decree; He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father.”
The best love expression in human language is ‘I have become your father’. The inseparable relationship is the relationship between man and God. The object that God loves most in the world is not the universe, the earth, or living things. It is human beings in the image of God. “God so loved the world” refers to love for human beings on earth. He prepared the optimal environment for loving human beings, made them resemble God, and made them live happily. God’s love is here.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
We are not alone. We are not alone because there is a God who loves us so much. Happiness overflows. I hope you will remember this ecstatic love of God and live happily with praise and thanksgiving.
Unfortunately, many people are not happy. Things in our lives are out of place, like a button that has fallen off. I went where I shouldn’t have gone and chose what I shouldn’t have chosen. So, life becomes miserable. The main cause was sin. Sin is called “hamartia” in Greek, which means “to miss the target.” It is a sin to deviate from the right path. Unfortunately, we humans have missed the mark. The Bible testifies. “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” (Rom. 3:23).
Sin brings suffering. King David, a man who was well respected, also sinned and wet his bed with tears at night; he cried so much that he put his tears in a bottle. How much painful he had; his body and soul became emaciated, and he lost the joy of his soul, the thrill of salvation, and even happiness. The pain of sin is severe. We suffer because of sin, our communication with God is blocked because of sin, and we lose the joy, grace, and happiness that God wants to give us. Another writer named Paul lamented how great the pain of sin was, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?” (Rom. 7:24). Humans suffer because of sin.
But God did not leave humans alone like this. Instead, he sent His only begotten Son to this earth as the text says. And what did that Son do? It tells us in Romans 5:8.
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
The phrase ‘While we were still sinners’ means ‘when humans could not solve the sin problem’. At that time, the Lord died on the cross to pay the price for man’s sins. It was God’s amazing love that sent his only begotten Son to this earth to pay the penalty for our sins.
If you love a person, you can give them money or property. You can also donate blood. However, it is not common to give up your very life for another. But Jesus endured a whip instead of receiving our love.
To love by being crucified and insulted,
No one suffers hell as an act of love.
Only God has given this kind of love. There is no love more beautiful and truer than this. So the Bible testifies.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son”
What have we become through this amazing love of the cross? The Bible testifies. “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5).
Because of His love, our sins are forgiven, we are set free from sin, and we are healed.
If we remember this amazing love of the cross, we can enjoy true freedom and peace no matter which sins we have committed in the past. I desire that your hearts be filled with the grace of the forgiveness of sins of the cross, healing, gratitude, freedom and peace.
It is important to accept this amazing love of God by faith. Only then will that love truly be yours. In other words, until we believe in this amazing love of God, freedom, peace, salvation, and eternal life are out of reach. So today’s word declares.
“ For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Hallelujah! God sent His Son to this earth, and the Lord forgave our sins by being nailed to the cross and being brutally killed. It was this great love that saved you and me. I declare that whoever believes in me will not perish but gain eternal life when they believe in and rely on this amazing love.
Do you believe in the love of this cross?
Do you have the faith that leads to salvation now?
Our Lord saw the faith of the woman suffering from an issue of blood and healed her.
Jesus saw Zacchaeus’ faith and forgave her sins.
Seeing the faith of the crucified thief, he granted salvation,
Seeing Stephen’s faith, God opened the door to heaven.
If you believe that the Lord of the Cross died for your sins, you will be saved from death to life. What matters is faith. You may lose money or your health, but you must never lose your faith. Because faith leads our souls to salvation. Filled with faith that the Lord of the cross died for my sins, you can face today and tomorrow with hope and confidence.