Problem Texts for Sovereign Grace (Part 18) – Joh 1:29; Joh 3:16

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1.      Joh 1:29

1. “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” (Joh 1:29)
2. Does this verse teach universal redemption – that Jesus died for the sins of the entire human race without exception?
   1. Whoever “the world” is in John 1:29, their sins were taken away by Jesus.
   2. The verse doesn’t say that the Lamb of God would attempt, try, hope, or intend to take away the sin of the world, but that He did it.
3. World – The inhabitants of the earth, or a section of them.
4. The world doesn’t always refer to the entire human race (Luk 2:1) (See Section II,11,C).
5. What world did Jesus take away the sin of? All the inhabitants of the earth, or a section of them?
   1. Jesus did not take away the sin of the entire human race.
      1. If Jesus took away the sin of the entire human race, then the entire human race would be saved eternally and be going to heaven since they would have NO SIN for which to suffer in hell.
      2. There are people in hell now (Jud 1:7) and more on the way (Rev 20:15).
      3. Therefore Jesus did not take away their sin, for if He did, they wouldn’t be in hell.
      4. This is the most basic fact of the gospel; remember it if you remember nothing else: if Jesus died for a person’s sins, they are redeemed and are going to heaven because they have no sin to die for; if Jesus didn’t die for all of a person’s sins, they are going to hell because they have sin to die for.
         1. If Jesus died for all of the sins of the entire human race, then the entire human race are going to heaven.
         2. If any member of the entire human race is not going to heaven, then Jesus didn’t die for the sins of the entire human race.
         3. This isn’t hard to understand; it’s hard to accept.
      5. Jesus did not die for every man that has ever lived.
         1. Jesus died for His sheep (Joh 10:15).
         2. Many are not His sheep (Joh 10:26).
         3. Jesus therefore did not die for them and they will go to hell (Mat 25:31-33,41).

• Jesus only died for and took away the sins of those whom the Father gave Him – His elect.
  1. Those whom the Father gave Him were chosen in Him before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4).
  2. He was called JESUS because “he shall save HIS PEOPLE from their sins” (Mat 1:21).
  3. Jesus said He was only sent to “give eternal life to AS MANY AS THOU HAST GIVEN HIM” (Joh 17:2), and He actually did it (Joh 17:4).
  4. Jesus will raise up at the last day all that the Father gave Him (Joh 6:37-39).
  5. Jesus gave HIS SHEEP eternal life and they shall never perish (Joh 10:27-29).

1. Those whom Jesus died for and took away their sins were not only of the nation of Israel, but were taken out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation, “the world” distributively, not collectively (Rev 5:9; Rev 7:9; Rev 13:16 c/w Rev 20:4 c/w 1Th 4:17 c/w 1Th 4:17).
   1. This is the “whole world” for whose sins Jesus was a propitiation (1Jo 2:2).
      1. Propitiation n. – 1. The action or an act of propitiating; appeasement, conciliation; atonement, expiation.
      2. Jesus is the propitiation for the sins of the “whole world”; He didn’t simply attempt, try, offer, or hope to be the propitiation of their sins.
      3. Whoever the “whole world” is — their sins are atoned for.
      4. The “whole world” is not just the nation of Israel, but all the children of God scattered abroad (Joh 11:50-52).
      5. The “whole world” doesn’t necessarily have to mean the entire human race (1Jo 5:19; Rom 1:8).
   2. This is the world that God sent Jesus to be the Saviour of (1Jo 4:14).
      1. Jesus is the Savior of the world (the elect) (1Ti 4:10), not the potential Savior (See 1Ti 4:10 – Section III).
      2. It was said of Jesus that “he shall save his people from their sins” (Mat 1:21).
      3. Whoever the world is that Christ was sent to be the Savior of is saved.
   3. This is the “all” that Christ died for (2Co 5:14).
   4. This the world that God reconciled to Himself by Christ (2Co 5:19).
2. Therefore the world whom Jesus died for and took away their sins was a cross section of the inhabitants of the earth, which is in keeping with the definition of “world”.
3. The world Jesus died for was the world of His elect people whom the Father had given Him.

2.      Joh 3:15-17

1. “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. 16) For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17) For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.” (Joh 3:15-17)
2. Do these verses teach that belief is a condition for acquiring eternal life?
3. Do these verses teach that God loved the entire human race and sent Jesus Christ to save all of them?
4. Who is the world whom God loved?
   1. The world doesn’t always mean the entire human race in scripture (Luk 2:1) (See Section II,11,C).
   2. World n. – The inhabitants of the earth, or a section of them.

• Does God love all the inhabitants of the earth, or only a section of them?
  1. If it can be shown from the scripture that God hates anyone, then that necessarily means that He doesn’t love everyone, which means that the world that He loves is only a section of the inhabitants of the earth.
  2. Love – 1. a. trans. With personal obj. or one capable of personification: To bear love to; to entertain a great affection or regard for; to hold dear.
  3. Hate – 1. trans. To hold in very strong dislike; to detest; to bear malice to. The opposite of to love.

1. God hates sinners (workers of iniquity) (Psa 5:4-5).
2. God hates the wicked (Psa 11:5).
3. God not only hates wicked people who have rejected Him, He hates all sinners from the womb whom He didn’t elect to save (Rom 9:11-13).

• Since hate is the opposite of love, God cannot both love the entire human race and hate many of them at the same time.
• Therefore, the world whom God loved is a section of the human race.

1. God loves His elect whom He chose before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:4; Rom 8:28-39; Jer 31:3).
2. Therefore, the world whom God loved is the world of His elect which is a section of the human race out of every nation and people, “the world” distributively, not collectively (Rev 5:9; Rev 7:9; Rev 13:16 c/w Rev 20:4 c/w 1Th 4:17).

1. Who can believe in Christ?
   1. All men are born dead in sin (Rom 5:12; Eph 2:1).
   2. In this condition they can’t hear (Joh 8:43,47), understand (Rom 3:10-11), nor believe the gospel (1Co 2:14) (See Section II,2).

• Only those which are saved can believe the preaching of the cross (1Co 1:18).

1. If a person believes in Christ, it’s only because he had already passed from death unto life prior to hearing it (Joh 5:24; 1Jo 5:1; 1Jo 4:15) (See Joh 5:24 – Section III).
2. Therefore, whosoever believes in Jesus Christ shows the evidence that they shall not perish, but have eternal life.
3. Those who looked upon the serpent which Moses lifted up in the wilderness were saved from death (Joh 3:14 c/w Num 21:8-9).
   1. Looking upon the serpent was only beneficial to those who were alive, not to those who were already dead.
   2. In similar fashion, because Christ was lifted up and died on the cross, those who believe on Him shall not perish because they are passed from death unto life.
   3. Just as Israel turned the brass serpent into an idol (2Ki 18:4), so likewise people today have made their faith in Christ an idol which they think saves them.
4. It was God giving His Son, not their belief in Him, which saved the world of God’s elect and gave them eternal life (Rom 5:6-10; Rom 5:19; Rom 8:3; 2Co 5:21; Gal 4:4-5; 1Pe 2:24).
5. What does their belief accomplish?
   1. Their belief doesn’t get them eternal life since only those who are saved and have eternal life can believe.
   2. Their belief identifies them as part of the world whom God loved and for whom He sent His Son to die.

• Joh 3:16 is not a formula to follow to get eternal life, but rather a wonderful promise to those who believe in Christ that they shall not perish, but have everlasting life.