Meditations

Question from moody radio listener on March 25, 2019 on In the Market with Janet Parshall with Dr Sam Storms:

Yeah, I was just wondering if Doctor would share his understanding as to why in John 3:16, Jesus refers to God’s love for the world in the past tense? For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son rather than God so loves the world, present that He gave His Son.

Answer from Dr Sam Storms:

Neal, that’s a very important distinction you’ve drawn there, you know the fact of the matter is very rarely does the New Testament talks about God’s love in the present tense. It’s almost always in the past tense, that’s because typically it’s a reference back to the cross of Christ, you know it’s in the past for us and it was in the past for those who wrote the New Testament. I think what he’s probably doing there in John 3:16 is alluding to the love that God has for fallen sinners before the foundation of the world, so for example, we read in Ephesians 1 that in love, he predestined us for adoption, all that he says was before the foundation of the world, the one place, real quickly I can give you, where the love of God is talked about in the present tense is in Revelation chapter 1.

Break

Janet Parshall:

Neal from Ohio, I thank you for sticking around because you asked such a great question, an important but hefty question about speaking about God’s love in the past tense, God so loved the world, referencing John 3:16, as suppose to the present tense and Dr Storms,  you’ve just going up to a verse in Revelation but I want to give you now all the time that you need because I do think it’s a most intriguing question, please continue …

Dr Sam Storms:

Yeah, it is a good question. I do think that John 3:16 talks about in the past tense because he’s connecting it with a decision to give us Christ, for God so loved the world that He gave and it really wouldn’t make much sense, if God so loves us that he gives because his Son is already been given in the past, died for us and rose from the dead, very much the same thing in 1 John 4:10, where it says that it’s not that we have loved God but He loved us, past tense and send His son for the propitiation for our sins, so I do think that in all likelihood, what we are talking about here is what Paul mentioned in Ephesians 1:4, where he talked about God loving us before the foundation of the world and determining to send his Son for the sacrifice of our sins. But, having said that,  go to Revelation 1:5 and you will read that where it says Jesus loves us, present tense and He’s free us from our sins by His blood. So, His love is not only past, it is also present and of course,  it will be eternal and future. I hope that helps, Neal.

Relevant scripture:

John 3

¹⁶ 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.  -nkjv

1 John 4

¹⁰ In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. -nkjv

Ephesians 1

⁴ just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, -nkjv

Revelation 1

⁵ And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood,  -kjv

Revelation 1

⁵ and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth.

To Him who loves us and has set us free from our sins by His blood,  -hcsb