deafly be interpreted with some qualification. It would contra- dict other plain texts of Scripture, if we took it to mean, "God sent His Son into the world, that all the world might finally be saved through Him, and none be lost." In fact, our Lord Him- self declares in the very next verse, " that he that beiieveth not is condemned already."
The meaning of the sentence evidently is, that " all the world might have a door of salvation opened through Christ, — that salvation might be provided for all the world, — and that so any one in the world beheving on Christ, might be saved." In this view it is hke the expression of St. John, *' The Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world." (1 John iv. 14.)
The expression, " God hath sent," in this verse, ought not to be overlooked. It is very frequently applied, in St. John's Gos- pel, to our Lord. At least thirty-eight times we find Him speaking of Himself as Him " whom God hath sent." It is probably fronc this expression that St. Paul derives the peculiar name whicli he gives to our Lord, " The apostle of our profession." (Heb. iii. 1.) The apostle means simply, *' The sent one."
The readiness of natural man everywhere to regard Christ as a Judge much more than as a Saviour, is a curious fact. The whole system of the Roman Catholic Church is fuU of the idea. People are taught to be afraid of Christ, and to flee to the Virgin Mary ! Ignorant Protestants are not much better. They often regard Christ as a kind of Judge, whose demands they will have to satisfy at the last day, much more than as a present personal Saviour and Friend. Our Lord f«eems to foresee this error, and to correct it in the words of this text.
Calvin observes on this verse, " Whenever our sins press us, — whenever Satan would drive us to despair, — we ought to hold out this shield, that God is unwiUing that we should be over- whelmed with everlasting destruction, because He has appointed His Son to be the salvation of the world."
18. — [He that helieveth on JIim....is not condemned.] In this verse our Lord shows Nicodemus another "heavenly thing." He do- clares the privileges of believing, and the peril of not believing in the Son of God. Nico lemus had addressed Him as a " teacher come from Gol." He would have Nicodemus know that He was that high and holy One, to believe on whom was hfe eter- nal, and not to believe on whom was everlasting destruction. Life or death was before men. If they believed and received Him as the Messiah, they would be saved. If they beheved not, they would die in their sins.
The expression, " He that beiieveth," deserves special notice. It is the third time that our Lord speaks of " believing " on