May 25, 2026

Today's Reading: John 3:16-21

Daily Lectionary: Numbers 22:1-20; Luke 22:1-23

“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John 3:17)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Why did Jesus come down from heaven to dwell on the earth? Easy, right? To die for the sins of the world. The familiar words of John 3:16 tell us that. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

But don’t stop there! John 3:17 expresses the same thought but in the opposite way. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved.” Why did Jesus come? Because God doesn’t want to condemn the world, He wants to save it!

It seems so obvious, and yet the devil, the world, and our own sinful nature are constantly trying to convince us that God is sitting in heaven like a crabby old man just waiting to punish all those who disobey Him. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. “God is love” (1 John 4:8), and He wants all people “to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth,” (1 Timothy 2:4).

This should be some of the most comforting news we’ve ever heard! God wants us to be saved. God does not want to condemn you or anybody else, for that matter. I don’t know about you, but when I consider my own sins, and the terrible things that I’ve done and the awful things I’ve thought, I wonder how God could possibly not condemn me. Yet Jesus reminds us that He lived, suffered, and died precisely so that I wouldn’t have to be condemned.

Sadly, not everyone will receive this salvation. Many will choose to live outside of God’s love and condemn themselves. But this is not what God wants. He tells us that He has “no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live,”(Ezekiel 33:11).

There are people that I know and love who are currently choosing to live without Christ’s forgiveness. I’m sure you do too. And while that makes us sad, we can rejoice knowing that God doesn’t want them to be condemned. He’s given Jesus to the world because He doesn’t want them to be condemned. This means that God will continue to reach out to them all with His love through His Means Of Grace, His Word and Sacraments, offering forgiveness and working through the Holy Spirit to bring them to faith. Therefore, we can rest assured that God won’t give up on them, just as He hasn’t given up on us.

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

God would not have the sinner die; His Son with saving grace is nigh; His Spirit in the Word declares How we in Christ are heaven’s heirs. (LSB 571:3)

Rev. Aric Fenske, Executive Director of Lutherans for Life.