John. Jey J. Kanagaraj

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John - Jey J. Kanagaraj


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so also is believing in the lifted-up Son of Man (Wis 16:7).

      “Eternal life” refers to the “life of the age to come” (cf. Dan 12:2). This life will be given at the resurrection of the believers on the last day (John 6:54) and therefore it is called the “resurrection of life” (5:29; cf. 5:25). Sometimes John uses the word “life” to denote “eternal life” (e.g., 6:33, 51; 20:31). It is the very life of God given by him to Jesus (5:26; 6:57; cf. 1:4) and is obtained now and in future by those who believe in Jesus. Jesus gives life to whom he wills (5:21) and it cannot be destroyed by physical death (11:26). It is the life of the kingdom of God given to those who are born of the Spirit (3:3, 5). Those who obey Jesus’ words and believe in the Father who sent him have already passed from death to life (5:24). Since Jesus is the giver of life (6:27), he himself is life (11:25; 14:6). The words “whoever believes in him” in 3:15–16 show the universal effect of Jesus’ exaltation on the cross and also the inclusive nature of God’s new community.

      The manner and content of God’s love is expressed by the statement “. . . that he gave his only son.” Abraham’s offering of his only and beloved son, Isaac (Gen 22:2, 9–10, 16), prefigures God’s gift of his unique Son not only to be offered on the cross as a sacrifice to take away human sin (John 1:29, 36; 8:32; 1 John 4:9–10), but also to raise him up from the dead to grant new life for those who believe (Heb 11:17–19). God’s purpose of giving his Son is that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life (3:16; cf. 3:15). Both “eternal life” and “perishing,” being end-time events, are opposed to each other. The former denotes salvation of the believers and the latter the eternal condemnation of those who do not believe in the Son. Human destiny has only these two ends. Such dualism is used in John to urge human beings to choose life (cf. Deut 30:18–19).

      God giving his only Son is parallel to God sending his Son into the world. God did not send his Son to condemn the world, but to save the world through the Son (3:17). The phrase “not to perish” (3:16) is interpreted as “not to condemn,” and the phrase “to have eternal life” (3:16) is interpreted as “to save.” The term “everyone” is read in 3:17 as a collective term “the world,” meaning the sphere of human life. The word “sending” has a missional thrust. The purpose of Jesus’ mission in the world is to save all people from eternal destruction and to give heavenly life to those who allow him to direct their lives. “The one who does not believe is condemned already” (3:18) implies that anyone who does not accept God’s provision for human salvation is already judged as guilty and hence is given up to death. Jesus did not come to judge the world, but to save it from the power of darkness (12:47). But the reason for eternal condemnation is the refusal to believe in the name of the only Son (cf. 1:12). Unbelief is the root of all evil deeds (cf. 16:9).

      John refers to the descent of the Son of Man to the world (3:13–15), and then he speaks of the sending/giving of the Son to the world (3:16–18), and in 3:19–21 he speaks of the coming of the Light into the world (cf. 1:9–11)—all denoting the coming of Jesus into the world. In 3:19–21, John describes the Logos incarnate, Jesus, as the Light who came into the world (cf. 8:12; 9:5; 12:35–36, 46). Since human works are naturally evil, all people love to live in darkness rather than in light. Therefore they themselves fall under God’s judgment (3:19), an eschatological event that is in operation at present (3:18; 5:24). The Light not only shines and illumines (1:5, 9), but also exposes the evil deeds of humankind and therefore the world hates the Light and does not come to it (3:20).

      In contrast, those who do the truth are recognized as those who love the Light and live in it (3:21). They exhibit their faithfulness to the covenant relationship of God by obeying his commandments. Doing good deeds is the same as doing the truth by living in the Light and in fellowship with God (cf. Matt 5:16). The coming of Jesus thus divides human beings into those who love darkness and perform evil and those who come to the Light and perform good deeds (cf. 1QS 3.1—4.26). Nevertheless, the division was caused not by the coming of Jesus into the world but by the response of the people to his coming.

      The Baptist’s testimony to Jesus (3:22–30)

      The Baptist speaks first proverbially by saying that no human can receive even one thing unless it is given from heaven (3:27), that is, “from God who dwells above in heaven” (cf.


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