Condemned No More

John 3:17-18

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

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Condemned.

It's a word that is used a couple different ways in our world today.

For one, we call a building condemned when it falls into disrepair. Where once stood a grand Victorian manor home, now stands a hollow skeleton devoid of life. Time and elements conspire to wear away at the walls and ceiling, leaving their indelible marks. A chandelier covered in cobwebs, moldy wallpaper hanging down in strips, mantles covered in dust. Yellow light streams in through faded stain-glass. Underneath the cosmetic symptoms there are rafters and foundations beginning to crumble. Once condemned, a building becomes dangerous for anyone to enter. Squatters and graffiti artists take over at their own risk. Eventually, even these new purposes become impossible, and there arrives a day of collapse or demolition.

Likewise are the effects of our sin, at least in the passive sense. Each of us is born into a world that is decaying, a shadow of its former glory. Our bodies and souls quickly fall victim to the effects of man's curse - illness, tragedy, broken plans, and broken promises. As the elements wear against our souls, our own former glory becomes weak and tarnished. Without someone coming to renovate, we continue to degrade. In this condemned state of ruin is a glimmer and a memory of glory - the image of our Maker remains. But without intervention, we stand condemned and on the verge of collapse.

Another common use of the word condemned is for criminals. A criminal is any violator of the law of the land. Theft, drug deals, violent offenses, blue collar crime, white collar crime, tax evasion, treason - these acts tear at the fabric of social order and threaten the good of self and neighbor. A criminal stands condemned when arrested, tried, and sentenced, ideally in equal measure to the crime they have committed. He also stands condemned before his Maker.

This is the position of every man before God who has violated even one of his commands. This is sin in the active sense. We are not merely victims of a fallen world. We are also perpetrators in a grand treason against our benevolent creator and redeemer.

In John 3, we hear an extended description of how to enter the kingdom of God, and it is not what we would expect. Nicodemus is shocked to realize that neither his ethnicity nor his religious credentials offer any hope when God himself is standing in the room with you demanding that you be born again as a new person.

Then, John offers an oft-quoted promise of salvation for all who believe, followed by verses 17 and 18. Here we are told that Jesus did not come to condemn the world, but to save those who believe. It is tempting to see this as evidence that Jesus was excusing sin and sweeping it under the proverbial rug. But verse 18 states that outside of Christ we are condemned already. In other words, Jesus did not come to condemn us because he didn't have to - that job was already done. He could condemn us no further because humanity's hands were already stained with the blood of hatred and injustice and self-destruction.

Gladly, while he had every right to leave us in the darkness we chose for ourselves, instead he entered that darkness and took the curse and condemnation on himself. John the Baptist cried out, "Behold! The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" The penalty and power of sin is forever removed for all who trust in this sacrificial lamb, who takes it all upon himself. Our condemnation is removed in every sense - we are criminals no more and new life is given to a home fully restored.

I pray that we can walk in the freedom and joy that comes from being condemned no more. Our renewed life and hope of heaven is as sure as the finished work of the cross and empty tomb. There is now a banner draped over our heads that reads "No condemnation!" as Paul so beautifully declared:

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. (Romans 8:1-2)