John 3:18-21

The doctrine of responsibility for unbelief, John 3:18-21.

Jesus here explains to Nicodemus how men are guilty for rejecting him. 1. His coming into the world is a great, world-wide, glorious fact, too important to be ignored unless wilfully. 2. His coming, like the entrance of light into the world, evidences itself by its own nature. 3. Love of evil prevents men’s accepting the good; they prefer the dark and hate the light because they prefer the evil. 4. The experience of the light is from voluntarily preferring good to evil. Hence men reject Christ and religion because they are evil; and they are evil because they reject Christ and religion. Irreligion and wickedness are one. See our notes on Mark 16:16.