Many of our Protestant brothers and sisters point to John 3:16 as must-memorize material: “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.” And, indeed, it’s a great bit of Sacred Scripture to have on hand; it is a foundational element of the faith that those who believe in Christ have a proven path to Heaven.
However, the entirety of today’s Gospel selection from John 3:16-21 should also be firmly in our minds. There is so much here, especially about our relationship with work and acts. In fact, I’m going to do the video equivalent of slowing down to frame-by-frame speed, and really point out something that you might not have noticed.
John 3:17 – For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Christ does not want the world to suffer; John 3:17 makes clear that salvation is possible for the whole world. We should view this belief with an optimistic eye. We would have little use for a fire department whose goal was to limit destruction by fire to 30% of the city, leaving 70% of the town’s structures and citizens to perish amid flames. When fire erupts, we hope that losses are minimal, and we do what we can to keep the fire’s touch from inflicting too heavy a cost; any loss is lamentable. In the same way, we should not view Christianity with an eye to keeping our flock safe and stable in size; we should do what we can to spread the word to as much of the world as we can. God wants the whole world saved, and it falls to those of us outside of and within the fold to do what we can to make this happen.
John 3:18 – Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God. Sometimes others view Christians as judgmental, but we aren’t . . . not really. We are tellers of truth. A doctor who evaluates your condition and says, “You are going to die within a year” is not condemning you to death; the facts of your medical condition are condemning you to death. In a similar way, we as Christians are not judging nonbelievers to be denied Heaven; we are merely reporting the facts as we understand them. Again, there should not be any glee in our hearts at the prospect of nonbelievers being denied Heaven; we should remain ever humble in our hopes that those who have yet to see the light do so before it is too late.
John 3:19 – And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil. Here is the sentence where the entirety of this passage begins to come together, in a way that didn’t really click for me until I read it with eyes freshly reopened from the Easter-season miracle. I’m not going to say why until two paragraphs from now – I’m trying to build a bit of suspense here – but it’s important. However, I’ll note that this line does something interesting. Namely, it points out that judgment is an ongoing concern; it’s not something saved solely for future generations or some unknowable tomorrow. This is the verdict. People preferred darkness. We as Christians have chosen a lighter path, but at the time of the Crucifixion, the crowds wanted Barabbas, and there are still far too many people today who want Barabbas.
John 3:20 – For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed. This is an interesting line. It points to wickedness as being much more active than we’ve generally believed. Of course, active disbelief is a sin (see 2123-2128 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church for a discussion of atheism and agnosticism, including this gem of a line: “Agnosticism is all too often equivalent to practical atheism”). But John 3:20 seems to really be drawing up the connection between those who “hate the light” and those who commit evil works.
John 3:21 – But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God. And here we tie in this entire passage together, with a fact that I teased a couple of paragraphs earlier. Namely, that this Gospel makes clear the intimate connection between faith and works. Those who commit evil deeds must hate the light. Those whose works are evil prefer darkness to light. Those who accept Christ want to do good works, “works . . . done in God.”
Many of our Protestant friends say that works are not necessary, and that by faith alone we are saved. But if you read the fullness of this most-beloved of Gospel selections, it’s clear the association between works and deeds. It’s true that we cannot “buy” our way into heaven with good deeds; rather, good deeds are a result of living a true, honest, considered life with Christ. And when we’re trying to form lives with Jesus, performing Christ-focused good works can develop the discipline and habits needed to live as free from sin as we can.
By all means, accept Christ in your heart! And know that through him salvation is possible. But it is in deeds that the light of Christ is brought into the world. As Pope Francis said on July 21, 2013, “In our Christian life . . . may prayer and action always be deeply united. A prayer that does not lead you to practical action for your brother — the poor, the sick, those in need of help, a brother in difficulty — is a sterile and incomplete prayer.” So, then, may the truth of God’s love for the world spur us to joy, to hope for salvation for all, and – perhaps most importantly – to action.
Today’s Readings for Mass: Acts 5:17-26; Ps 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; Jn 3:16-21
