John 3:18 – You’re Already Condemned!

John 3:18 = “Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

There seems to be a misunderstanding in the world about the urgent and crucial need to accept Jesus as Savior and Lord. It’s like people think that they can either wait until the end, and then accept Him right then and there (which they CAN, but they’re really missing the point of knowing God), or like they don’t think they really need Him at all. Even just the other day, I was talking with somebody who thinks he doesn’t need God or Jesus to get into Heaven, but thinks he’ll get there himself because he shares his wealth, he gives to charities, he’s nice to and respects almost everyone (not so much Christians who believe and preach that Jesus is the only way to Heaven, though)…and here, 2 verses after and still part of the one verse that’s most known worldwide tells him that even though he does all these nice things for people, he’s still condemned to Hell because he’s rejected and doesn’t believe in Christ. “There’s no judgment against anyone who believes in Christ”, but because he hasn’t, he’s got a death sentence taxed onto his soul.

I was translating John 3 from the Greek the other night, because for some reason, John 3:18 has been on my mind a lot lately. Maybe it’s because we’re in the Christmas season and Christmas is coming up (quickly!), or maybe because I know so many people who have yet to even WANT anything to do with Jesus. Anyway, I’m not completely done yet with the translating (I only got to verse 18), but I wanted to share part of it, because there’s so much more in the Greek than in the English, and a lot of emphasis is really lost in the English.

John 3:16

So you know John 3:16, right? “For God so loved the World that He gave His One and Only Son….” That verse actually starts off with a “Therefore” or “for this reason”. So when people quote that verse alone, they’re really taking it out of context. I believe this is also the verse where the post-modern beliefs today get the idea that God is such a loving God that He would never send anyone to Hell for not believing in Jesus Christ (nor God, which sounds ironic because you’re believing in a loving God but refuse to believe that He’ll send you to Hell for not believing in Him….huh?) So anyway, I digress.

It’s important to know that in John, “world” is often used as “a system that’s opposed to God”. So God so much loved the world – a world that hates and rejects Him – that He sent His One and Only Son, basically so that instead of being condemned, one might be saved through Jesus Christ (the Son) by trusting/believing in Him.

John 3:18

HOWEVER, though the whole idea is that everybody accept/believe in/trust in the Son and receive eternal life, and those who have, have received eternal life, verse 18 tells us that those who have rejected the Son HAVE ALREADY BEEN condemned. Did you get that? It’s not like you’ll be condemned if you don’t accept Jesus, the Son of God (although, you will be such, also), but because you’ve so far rejected Him, you’re ALREADY condemned! So when a non-believers says, “Only God can judge me,” they really should cringe, because HE ALREADY HAS! And because you haven’t received the Son, your judgment is condemnation (in worldly terms, ya ain’t goin’ ta Heaven).

Reason for Urgency

This really puts a whole new cry for urgency to accept Jesus, doesn’t it? Because now, you’re already going to Hell in a hand basket, so to say. You could die today, and if you continue to reject Jesus the Son of God, then regardless of how “good” you were all your life, you’ve already been condemned because you haven’t put your faith into the Messiah, who is literally the only way to God, in this life and in the next. I mean, we already knew this though, right? That’s what we’ve all been preaching, right? You need to accept Jesus if you want to get into Heaven, not Hell? But there’s just something about this realization that seems to make everything so much more urgent, because verse 18 is basically saying that the judgment we’re all expecting to occur in the end, has already occurred against everybody who rejects the Son of God.

So from what I’m getting from this passage, there will still be a final judgment in the end, but the verdict of that judgment is based on what you do in this life, here (and what I mean by “do” is giving yourself over fully to Christ) – but we already know this, right? But here’s the thing: you came into this life with a death sentence, and you never did anything to clear your name. Instead, all your life, you refuse to acknowledge your sin, your need for Jesus, and continue to reject Him for your entire life. All you needed to do was accept the only One who could clear your name, but you refused to do so. Therefore, in the next life, your judgment will be carried out, and condemnation will be the verdict.

A Rescue Mission

John 3:16-18 = “For God so loved the world that He gave His (one and only) Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. Those who believe in Him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the Only Son of God.”

How can one read that and not see the urgency and importance of believing in Jesus, especially since everybody already sees God’s love in it? Let me see if I can translate this in a way somebody can better understand:

‘Everybody in this world who continues to reject God and want nothing to do with Him, will perish. All throughout time, (and we read about it all throughout the Old Testament), God continued to urge His creation (through prophets) to turn from their sin, return to Him, and be saved from eternal condemnation. He even promised that He’d one day send His Messiah to rescue all who would call on His name. So bring in Jesus to the scene: all who should choose to believe in Him will be rescued from their eternal condemnation, and instead, spend the rest of eternity with God. And so, because of the original situation of people, and their continued choices of how they preferred to live, if they continue to reject Jesus to the end of their lives here, they will reach the judgment against them. All they need to do to be saved from eternal condemnation is to believe in the name of the One and Only Son of God. But if they do not, they will not be saved’ (notice, “Everyone who believes in Him may not perish, but have eternal life”.) Jesus’ coming here was a rescue mission!

How To Become Saved

Does that make any better sense? Yeah, God so loved the world that He sent His One and Only Son in order to save it (them). But He did His part. Now, we (you) need to do yours, and that is to accept that you’re a sinner, repent of that sin, accept Jesus, and follow Him and His teachings/ways. But if you choose not to, then you’ve already been condemned. And if you continue to reject Him until the day you die, then it’s like you accepted your judgment, and now it’ll be carried out.

So there’s no need to try and be a “good person” in the eyes of the world or yourself, and you might want to be careful when you cry out, “Only God can judge me,” because by simply not believing in Christ, you’ve already been judged, and the only way to be freed from this judgment is to believe in Christ through faith.