Christmas Day is this Thursday. And amid the wrapping paper, festive meals, and joyful parties, what could be more important than celebrating the one who stepped down from heaven to redeem us? That's our purpose on Insight for Living. And in today's study, Chuck Swindahl describes a nighttime conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus that spawned a life-changing verse. The good news, Jesus said, isn't complicated.
It all comes down to this single response, belief.
So, are you ready to unwrap the present that changes everything? Chuck titled his message, God's Greatest Gift. Theology is a bottomless subject. And you can trace these truths. for years and never exhaust them.
One of my mentors used to say, We have an an infinite text.
So it is with John 3. 16. Matter of fact, For the last two weeks, I have been studying this one verse. Do you know that John 3:16 appears in the middle of a conversation. There are two men talking together about being born again.
or born anew. One, of course, is Jesus. Who makes this statement? The other is a man who is a member of the Supreme Court. of the first century Jews.
named Nicodemus. He came by night. To see Jesus. And he said to him, Teacher, the word rabbi means teacher. We know that you have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.
So he isn't antagonistic. He's not a believer. But not all unbelievers are antagonistic. or argumentative. He comes with his eyebrows raised.
And when we get to verse Fourteen. Interestingly, Jesus has the floor. And he says to him, As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, and you know what? At that moment, He locked in with him. Nicodemus knew that story.
completely. It's in the Torah. If you check it out, it's in Numbers 21 verses 4 to 9.
So let's check it out. Hold your place here. Go back. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers.
Okay? It's the fourth book of the Old Testament. It's the 21st chapter. And the Jews are in the middle of their journey from Egypt. to the promised land.
The land of Canaan. And on their way, they're sick and tired. of the journey. They spoke against God and Moses. Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?
There's no food, there's no water, and we loathe this miserable manna. And finally, Finally. Moses intercedes for them. And he said verse five. They say to him, Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?
For there's no food and no water, and we loathe the miserable food. They've been given regularly. A diet of manna. And they had tried every way in the world to prepare it, and it still tasted like. Mana.
And they were sick and tired of manna. And so the Lord sent fiery serpents among them. These are snakes that are red in color, and they bit the people so that many of the people died.
So the people came to Moses and said, We have sinned because we spoke against the Lord and you. Intercede with the Lord that He may remove the serpents from us. Moses interceded for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, Okay, make a fiery serpent.
Now read carefully. By the way, Nicodemus knew all of this by heart. Very familiar with the Torah. Then the LORD said to Moses, Make a fiery serpent. Set it on a standard.
It shall come about that everyone who is bitten when he looks at it, He shall live. When you look at that. If you want to get over snake bite, and snake poisoning from the venom of the snakes. All you have to do is look At this image. of this serpent that is placed on a standard.
Just look at it. Look at the next verse. Moses made a bronze serpent, set it on the standard, came about that if a serpent bit any man, When he looked to the bronze serpent. He lived. How easy was that?
You're in your chin. Your arms swelling. Your fever's rising.
Somebody says, if we stick our head out and look at a serpent that Moses made out of bronze, we'll live. Would anybody in the tent go, No way, man, I'm staying with this swollen arm? I'm going to go my way. That's stupid to think. No.
Everybody who has a brain. would look out the tent and go, Wow, look at that. Boop! The arms stop swelling. And the fever and the poison goes away.
That's the story of the serpent in the wilderness.
Now back to John 3. See, that's why context is important. And the Lord knew that Nicodemus would know the story. Nicodemus knew the story, but he didn't know it was a love story. He didn't know how to unwrap the package and apply what the serpent meant.
All he knew was the history of the serpent, people looking at it and living. Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night. Because he doesn't want his peers, fellow members of the Sanhedrin, to know of his interest in this itinerant preacher. who's been talking about having a new birth.
So he visits with Jesus at night. And there's this dialogue, literally a dialogue between the two of them. Verse 10, verse 11, verse 12. Jesus is responding. to Nicodemus' questions about the new birth.
So Jesus says to Nicodemus, You are, verse 10, you are the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? Truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. Earlier he said, you do not understand.
Now he says, you do not accept our testimony. If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, How will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? You do not understand. You do not receive. You do not accept.
Three different verbs in English, three different verbs in Greek. All three describe a man who is politically connected. who is a sophisticated member of the people of Israel. Intellectually, he's very bright, but spiritually, he's clueless. He does not know The meaning behind these historical events.
He knew all about the serpent in the wilderness. He knew all about Moses. And what Moses had done before the people after they'd been bitten by the snakes, the Torah is his home base. He knew all about it. But when it comes to the new birth, he had never made the transition between what that represents and how it can be applied.
to everyday life. to the spiritual life, never made the connection.
So Jesus is driving home. the importance of believing in the Lord Jesus. Trusting God, accepting His plan, just as the people of Israel would look at the snake. And in looking, they would live.
Now. That's first. Second is the connective four. It ties you in with the context. It lets you know that all of this is flowing out of a bigger picture.
And in that context, he now has Nicodemus' attention. I imagine there weren't many people in that day. who could teach Nicodemus much about the scriptures. Because he was a serious student of the scriptures, but Jesus is opening his eyes. to the meaning or the application.
Of history that Nicodemus knew so well.
So that ties it in with the context.
Now, This connective leads us to the great opening Major verb. God Loved the world. Remember, the first word is so much. And it's inserted here in the English for God.
So much. Loved the world.
Now this is a word for love. That is a crucial for us to understand. It's the word agapa'o. Agape is the noun. And it's the word for the highest form of love.
It is a love that requires no reciprocal response. It's not so much a romantic or an affectionate love. as it is a love of the will. God made up his mind to love. the world.
He didn't look for the brightest and the best. He didn't look for those that were appealing. and physically attractive. He set his heart on loving the world, not those. That simply had a high IQ, or those with an enviable pedigree.
He loved the world. The world. This whole sorry lot of us He loved us all.
Now look. See the word of comparison as verse 14 begins. And Just as Moses Lifted up the serpent in the wilderness. Here's the match to the word as, even so. As Moses Even so.
As Moses Even so what? Look at it. Even so. Must the Son of Man be lifted up? What's that a picture of?
Well, the cross. Even so, must the Son of Man be lifted up on a cross to pay the penalty for the sins of the world. Nicodemus never, never connected the two. He's not convinced Jesus is Messiah. He just knows he does God kind of work because he's able to do supernatural miracles.
But he's come to Jesus to find out what this born-again stuff is all about. Jesus says to him, in effect, I'm glad you asked. Let me go back to something familiar to you. The serpent in the wilderness. Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, verse 15.
Change the word s look to the word believe and you've got it connected.
So that whoever believes will in him have eternal life. Whoever looks at the bronze serpent will live. Whoever believes in the one that's lifted up, will have eternal life. Whoever, whoever. Look.
Believe. Got the analogy? That's what he wanted Nicodemus to get. This leads into the four of chapter three, verse 16. Just as we learned from the serpent in the wilderness, In the same way, tied in because of the connective four.
In the same way, God.
So love the world.
So Uh I think it's a time to pause and appreciate. The scope of the offer. The world. Not God so loved the nation. God so loved a special few Or God so loved only the man Or only the women.
Or only the gifted. or only those that are left-handed. Or only those who can swim. Or only those who were married, no, no. Who's your score?
Hey, Gopi San. Hathéos tan cosmon, cosmon. You get the word cosmos, cosmetic from it. Cosmopolitan. The world.
Whoever And notice it is a love. For the world. that God is acting upon. God so loved The world. It's the word agafe.
Agafa'o is the verb, and it's the highest form of love.
Now, get this. It's not a love that has to have a reciprocal. responds. That's romantic love. I say, I love you to my wife, and it's wonderful to hear her say back to me, but I love you.
When we were first dating, We would do this little thing, I love you more. And then she would say, No, I love you more than that. Then I would say, No, I love you twice more than you're more. And she's, no, I love you more than all those silly things you do. When you've been married 60 years, I love you will do.
Okay, that's just fine.
Now with God he doesn't have to hear I love you back He loves us whether we love him or not. He loves us whether we're interested in him or not. He loves us whether we take him seriously or not. He loves us. We are loved.
By God. He is a particular. And who gets loved? I love the way it's written in one book I read: Junkyard Wrecks. and showroom models share equal space in God's garage.
Isn't that good? You may be a junkyard wreck. You may be a showroom model. You were not loved more or less. Because he loves The world.
The whole Sorry lot of us. The unloving. The unattractive. The lonely. The greedy.
The lustful. Those who are broken. Those who have made terrible mistakes. who have committed shameful acts. He loves the weak.
Those who never think of him. He loves Every one of us. Augustine put it this way. God loves each one of us as if there were only one of us. to love.
If you were the only one. His love would be the same. And we are, in fact, one among billions. You and I. are loved Bye.
God. Pause for a moment. What's this got to do with Christmas? Why would I bring this on a Sunday before Christmas? How It it's pretty obvious, isn't it?
We've arrived now at the answer. He gave us a gift. His love didn't simply hang out there. In Theological space. His love prompted him.
to do something. Remember now, we aren't active here at all, not yet. We are Found by Him, we are loved by Him. And as a result of his loving us, look at what it says. He gave his only begotten.
Son The Greek says he gave the Son. The only begotten one. The emphasis is on The last part. the one who is just like him. We would use the words, he has God's DMA.
All the things that characterize God the Father were found in God the Son. In Him, the fullness dwelt. He's the one and only son. And God Think of it. gave him to those of us he loved.
Turn from here to 2 Corinthians 5. I'm going to show you a a sideline thought. that is not covered by John 3. 2 Corinthians 5. You know verse 17, but I feel sorry for verse 18 and verse 19 because nobody knows those verses, and they tie in with that.
17 says, if anyone is in Christ, he's a new creature. The old things are passed away. Behold, new things have come. Look at the next verse. Now all these things are from God.
who reconciled us to himself Through Christ. And gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely. Read. Think. that God was in Christ.
Reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed to us. This word of reconciliation. Get this straight. There's a hymn that says it wrong. It refers to God being reconciled to us when, in fact, We are the ones who need to be reconciled to God.
Reconcile is the idea of change. Why? Because there would be no other way we could be reconciled or changed. to be like unto God himself. He who knew no sin became sin on our behalf.
that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. I've always loved the way that One of the saints of yesteryear put it. When he talked about the Lord Jesus, Uh It was so good I've forgotten it right now, but I'll remember it in a few minutes. The life that he lived qualified him for the death that he died. and the death that he died qualifies us.
for the life that he lived. That's a transfer. of a loving relationship. He so loved us And so cared for us. That he gave us his treasure.
His one and only son. You know the beautiful part about it? He said he gave him to all of us. Remember the announcement of the angel? Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all the people.
For this day in the city of David, there has been born to you a Savior who is Christ the Lord. You can't see it in the English, but all of the Greek words for you are plural. In other words, I have a great message for y'all. In fact, it's for all y'all. He died for all y'all.
All your shepherds. All your kings. All y'all thugs. All y'all farmers. All y'all.
You. Me. Loved us.
So much. That he gave us this priceless Priceless gift. How great is that? Up until now, it's all about God. Four.
Back to that story in numbers. Like the serpent lifted up in the wilderness, so the Son of Man be lifted up. It's all about Christ. God so loved the world, it's all about God. He gave us his Son, all about the Son.
Now look at the purpose clause. Look at this.
So that See it in the middle of the verse? He gave his only begotten son that Here's the reason. Here's our response. The rest of the verse is us. Look at it.
Whoever believes in him. Whoever. Whoever That means you. That means me. That means young.
That means older. That means those in great health That means those who are terribly sick. means those that are of any color, any race, any nationality. any level of maturity. The New English Bible says everyone.
The Phillips paraphrase everyone. The Net Bible, everyone. Weast expanded translation. Everyone. The New Living Translation, everyone, that's it.
Every one of us is included When God wraps his gift, the gift is left, if you will, at everyone's doorstep. Every one of us has the gift. laid before us. No. No one is excluded, and no one person is more special than another.
The bottom line is, God gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him, and that means everyone, shall not perish, but have eternal life. Stay with us because Chuck Swindahl has more to say in just a moment. You're listening to Insight for Living, Chuck titled our study God's Greatest Gift. You can access Chuck's entire message from start to finish using the Insight for Living mobile app. or you can stream these daily programs directly from our website at insight.org.
Well, I'm sure you'd agree our world is fraught with turmoil these days. Even as followers of Jesus Christ, it's easy to lose hope. and yet Christmas represents the highest form of hope. Jesus not only arrived as God in flesh, but ultimately was crucified, buried, and raised from the dead. In fact, Peter said that because of God's great mercy, we are born again to a living hope.
And that is very good news. Chuck?
Sometimes the word hope is misconstrued. Hope isn't making a wish on a star. It's not like throwing pennies into a fountain and crossing your fingers. Let me give you a better definition of hope. It's trusting God's promises.
Before we see the results. That's the earth shattering power of Biblical hope. Every day through Insight for Living, We open the Bible together and I've witnessed how his word sparks hope in hearts around the world. It's like dawn chasing away the night. Sure, this year has been particularly dark.
We've lost some beloved spiritual leaders, some to age, others taken suddenly. Our hearts have been broken. Plus there's unrest in the public arena. A spirit of darkness is moving across our land. But here's what I know, and it thrills me.
the light of Christ still shines bright. and together we have the privilege to carry his torch into the dark corners of our world. This Christmas, we celebrate Jesus. the baby born in Bethlehem who is our everlasting light. He came to pierce the darkness with hope that cannot be extinguished.
And that same hope is what we share every single day through this ministry. through radio broadcasts, through millions of visits to our website and mobile app, And through countless social media connections, Insight for Living continues sharing the hope found only in Christ. But we cannot do this alone. We need partners like you. This Advent season, your generous contribution.
ignites hope. It lights a flame in someone's life who is sitting in darkness right now.
So, go ahead. Reach out today. Together, let's shine the light of Christ into a dark and despairing world. Here's how to respond to Chuck Swindal. To send your donation in the mail, write to us at InsightForLiving.
Post Office Box 5000. Frisco, Texas 75034. We appreciate and value every envelope we receive. Your contributions and comments mean the world to us. More importantly, your partnership with Insight for Living empowers us to shine the everlasting light all across the country and even around the world through multiple languages such as Spanish, Mandarin, and Portuguese, just to name a few.
Again, our address is Post Office Box 5000. Frisco, Texas 75034. If you're listening on the Insight mobile app, just click on the heart that says donate and follow the instructions. You can also call us at 800-772-8888. or make your special year-end donation online at insight.org slash donate.
No. I'm Bill Meyer. Join us when Chuck Swindahl continues to describe God's greatest gift. Tuesday on Insight for Living. The preceding message, God's Greatest Gift, was copyrighted in 2015, 2016, and 2025, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2025 by Charles R.
Swindahl, Inc. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.
