This is day six on our 40-day journey through the gospel of John,

and today we dive into the most famous verse, the most memorized verse in the whole Bible,

John 316.

We're up to John chapter 3 verses 1 to 21, and of course,

John 316 is right in the heart of that text. But Jesus didn't proclaim this message in his

sermon on the Mount or in some teaching discourse with his disciples. He said this in a one-on-one

back-and-forth conversation with Nicodemus.

Nicodemus, he said to him, for God so loved the world that he gave you as one and only son,

that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God loves you. He loves you

like that. He loves you so much that he sent his one and only son.

The Lamb of God, as John the Baptist said to his disciples, when he was encouraging them in John

chapter one, if you'll remember, to follow Jesus instead of him now. Behold the Lamb of God who

takes away the sin of the world, John said. Follow him, not me. He's the one who God sent into this world

out of love for you and out of love for this whole world. To die as a sacrifice for your sin.

Just believe in him. Belief is the glue, is the bond that joins you together with God now and

forever. And that word, which is Pisteo in the original Greek of

John 316, will recur over and over and over again. It is the key in John's gospel. And Jesus

teaches it here to Nicodemus. Nicodemus, you don't have to do 72 things in order to be saved.

A lot of religious people in the world today want to talk. you don't have to do 72 things in order to be saved.

A lot of religious people in the world today want to talk and teach and preach about a Jesus plus form of Christianity.

Jesus' death on the cross and his resurrection is great,

but you have to do all these other things in order to really get saved.

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