For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. – John 3:16
Surely this is a Bible verse to commit to memory if ever there was one. But why is this verse so famous? I believe it’s because it reveals some very important truths in one succinct sentence. It tells us why Jesus came to us and who sent Him. It gives us a glimpse of the nature of the Holy Trinity. It also tells us how we are saved and for what purpose. Most of all, it points to three incredible gifts given to us by God.
God’s Precious Gift: The Son
Notice that God’s love is for the world–all of us, individually and as a human race. His love for us is a saving, suffering love. The Father suffered by sending us His Son who suffered on the Cross for our sins. God sent us His Son, so Jesus is God’s gift to us! Jesus describes Himself as “the gift of God” to the woman at the well (John 4:10). St. Hilary of Poitiers said, “God, who loved the world, gave His only begotten Son as a manifest token of His love…gifts are the price of the evidence of affection: the greatness of surrender is evidence of the greatness of the love.” God gave us what was most precious to Him despite of–and, in fact, precisely because of–our sinfulness: “God proves His love for us that while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
God’s Sanctifying Gift: The Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit of Christ is also a gift from God: “‘God is Love’ and love is his first gift, containing all others. ‘God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us’” (CCC 733; 1 John 4:8; Romans 5:5). John 3:16 points us to the truth that the Holy Trinity–Father, Son, and Holy Spirit–is love: “God’s very being is love. By sending his only Son and the Spirit of Love in the fullness of time, God has revealed his innermost secret: God himself is an eternal exchange of love, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and he has destined us to share in that exchange” (CCC 221). God the Father sent the Holy Spirit as a gift to us in Jesus’s name (see John 16, 26).
God’s Saving Gift: Grace
Back to the question of why Jesus came. He came to share His eternal, abundant life with us (John 10:10). He came to save us from the grip of the evil one and from ourselves. He could have come to condemn us, but He did not. Unfortunately, through unbelief in Him we can condemn ourselves (John 3:17-18). He came to save us through another incredible gift from God: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). We are saved by grace through faith working itself out in love (see Galatians 5:6). This grace is primarily a gift of the Holy Spirit: “The grace of Christ is the gratuitous gift that God makes to us of his own life, infused by the Holy Spirit into our soul to heal it of sin and to sanctify it….Grace is first and foremost the gift of the Spirit who justifies and sanctifies us” (CCC 1999, 2003).
There are countless gifts from God; we’ve all experienced blessing upon blessing. These three gifts are key and release all the other gifts (especially the seven-fold gifts of the Holy Spirit): the precious Son, The Holy Spirit, and the grace of salvation. All gifts require gratitude from the one who has received to the one who has given. What could we possibly say or do to thank God for these life-giving gifts? This reminds me that stewardship is the grateful response of a Christian disciple who recognizes and receives God’s gifts and shares these gifts in love of God and neighbor.
Abba, Father, my heart is so grateful to You! May my worship and praise be a fitting response to your gifts and show the loyalty of my heart. Help me to love you and others through my faith-filled stewardship of time, talent, and treasure.