Good News... Bad News...
“God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
Even if you’ve never cracked open a Bible, you’re probably familiar with John 3:16. It has been recited and preached ad infinitum, appeared on countless T-shirts and bumper stickers, and some of us even remember when it was flashed by energetic fans in the endzone during NFL football games.
It is the epitome of the old adage: “I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news.”
The good news of John 3:16 is very good: God loved the world. God gave His Son. We can have eternal life if we believe in Him. (mic drop!)
But hold on. There’s bad news too. And the bad news of John 3:16 is very, very bad. Delivered so swiftly, it can be easily overlooked. It comes in the form of a single word: perish.
Turn John 3:16 upside down, to emphasize the bad news, and it reads like this: We will all perish if we do not believe in God’s one and only Son, whom He gave because He loved the world.
The bad news of John 3:16 is very, very bad
So the obvious question is: what does it mean to “perish”?
Your handy-dandy online dictionary will offer a definition along the lines of: “to suffer death, typically in a violent or sudden, untimely way.” But that doesn’t begin to adequately define perish as it appears in John 3:16. In that context, it packs more punch. A lot more.
Destruction
In the original Greek, the word translated “perish” (apollumi) means to destroy; to be cut off entirely; permanent and absolute destruction; to be utterly lost and experience a miserable end.
Doesn’t sound fun. But wait, there’s more.
Under God’s Wrath
According to pastor and Bible teacher John Piper, it also means being under the wrath of God. “The issue,” Piper writes, “is not merely dying, but being judged by God. To perish means that we remain under the wrath of God because we will not trust Christ. And that is a terrifying place to be.” (See John 3:36)
In Fiery Torment
Piper also notes that in the book of Revelation, perishing is described as being tormented with fire (Rev. 14:10). “Perishing is not,” he explains, “going out of existence. It is staying in existence and suffering in the fiery torments of hell.”
Sound like bad news yet?
Separated From God
Another aspect of what lies ahead for those who refuse God’s offer of eternal life in Christ is separation from God and His glory. As Paul points out in his second letter to the Thessalonians, “They [God-rejectors] will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might.”
“In hell,” Piper writes, “the perishing will be cut off from all [God’s] work – except the work of wrath.”
Those who perish cannot change course, change their mind, or change their eternal home.
Irreversibly and Eternally
Lastly, perishing is irreversible and eternal. The destruction, the wrath, the fire.... They are forever and there’s no way out. Those who perish cannot change course, change their mind, or change their eternal home. That should put fear in every human heart. There is no more frightening destiny than the perishing described in John 3:16.
Taking together, those who perish will face “destruction in fiery torment under God’s wrath, separated from God, irreversibly and eternally.”
Yikes!
Maybe you don’t “feel” like you need for a savior. Life is good. You’ve got it under control. Maybe you don’t even believe in God, the Bible, heaven or hell. Great. It’s a (mostly, kind of, on paper at least) free country. Believe what you want to believe.
But what if you’re wrong?
According to the Bible, a day is swiftly approaching when we will all stand before God in judgement and give an accounting of our lives. If we’ve broken a single command (lied once, stolen once, committed adultery or lusted once, murdered or hated someone once, used God’s name in vain once...) we’ll be found guilty. And if we’re honest, each of us has disobeyed God’s laws on numerous occasions.
The Bible says ALL have sinned and that the payment for that sin is death.
Bottom line: we... shall... all... perish.
With the bad news now well established, let’s return to the good news: God has paid the price for our sin and is offering us eternal life. As the Bible puts it: “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus.”
All we have to do is Admit we haven’t lived up to God’s standard and ask Him to forgive us; Believe Jesus died in our place and was raised back to life; and Confess that we are putting our faith and trust in Him.
It’s almost too simple. But it’s imperative if we hope to avoid perishing and embrace eternal life.
Good news... bad news... The choice is up to you.
Happy Easter!