Gospel for 1 March, 2007

For this is how God loved the world: he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. For God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but so that through him the world might be saved. No one who believes in him will be judged; but whoever does not believe is judged already, because that person does not believe in the Name of God's only Son. And the judgement is this: though the light has come into the world people have preferred darkness to the light because their deeds were evil. And indeed, everybody who does wrong hates the light and avoids it, to prevent his actions from being shown up; but whoever does the truth comes out into the light, so that what he is doing may plainly appear as done in God.' (John 3:16-21 NJB)

You almost cannot watch a major sporting event on TV without seeing at least one sign with "John 3:16" written on it. That's always made me want to cringe just a bit; not because it's a message that should not be proclaimed, but because the next verses, John 3:17-21, gives it all the context that it needs to make more sense. God sent His Son not to judge, but to save; to bring light, and life and reconciliation, to re-establish our relationship with God. The extra verses also lay out plainly that it is God who makes the effort to reach out to us and Who provides us the means and method of salvation; His own Son.

But you can't fit all of that on a hand held sign that will be seen for 10 0r 15 seconds while they set up for an extra point attempt. I wonder if the message might be more readily grasped if rather than holding up a somewhat crytic sign, we actually lived lives that proclaimed the truth that Jesus Christ is alive and that He is Lord.