\n
For the 2nd Sunday of Lent, Adam and Lindsey read John 3:1-17. \u201cFor God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.\u201d These are the most famous words of scripture, the thesis statement of the Christian faith. But they have so much negative theological baggage attached to them that they are not always the words of reassurance and comfort that they really are meant to be.<\/p>\n
Before this famous verse, though, we get a story of Nicodemus. He is a Pharisee who seeks Jesus in the night because he recognizes the divine presence within Jesus. Jesus tells Nicodemus that no one can see the kingdom of God without being born \u201cfrom above.\u201d Nicodemus doesn\u2019t understand, asking if anyone can re-enter the mother\u2019s womb.<\/p>\n
Nicodemus may have misunderstood, but he\u2019s trying. He\u2019s \u201cin the dark,\u201d confused and bewildered, but he found his way to Jesus. Before we laugh at Nicodemus\u2019s literalism, we should humbly remember that we are all on a journey into deeper understanding; our eyes are still adjusting to the light that grows brighter as we follow, and of course, we too get things wrong.<\/p>\n
And John 3:16 is one of those verses that has long been misinterpreted, has long needed to be understood in the light of God\u2019s universal, unconditional <\/i>love. God\u2019s salvation is not limited to those of a particular religion or creed. \u201cWhosoever believes\u201d is not meant to single out only Christians for salvation.<\/p>\n
Adam and Lindsey explore the meaning of John 3:16 and the following verses. What are we saved from<\/i>? What does it mean to be called to believe in Jesus, in Love Incarnate? What does it mean to be condemned \u201calready,\u201d and is condemnation permanent?\u00a0 The discussion touches on these questions.<\/p>\n
Ultimately, we at Raven believe in universal salvation and reconciliation. John 3:16 attests to God\u2019s great love for the world, but it has been used as a line in the sand between \u201cbelievers\u201d and \u201cnonbelievers\u201d\u2014doubters, seekers, those who profess other faiths. How do we, like Nicodemus, come to a deeper, better understanding? Let\u2019s discover together.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
[\/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”16px”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_section el_class=”post-quote”][\/vc_section][vc_section][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1566393555121{background-color: #f6ebdf !important;}” el_class=”optin”][vc_column][vc_column_text css_animation=”none”][\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section][vc_row el_class=”olive-branch-bg-l”][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]And we invite you to ponder and pray with us not only on our podcast, but\u00a0 <\/span>every Wednesday, live, at 11 am CT\/ 9 am PT on the Raven Foundation Facebook page<\/a>.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Adam and Lindsey explore the meaning of John 3:16, asking what are we saved from and what does it mean to be called to believe in Jesus.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":21442,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4469,4355,14],"tags":[99,1394,4598,4599,326,4601],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Lent 2A: God\u2019s Unconditional Love - The Raven Foundation<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n