First, read that Scripture slowly and at least five times. Allow those words to sink in a bit. Second, let's talk about the word begotten. We read it and say it, but do we understand it? Begotten is an English word making an attempt to tell us what a Greek word means. The Greek word we need to consider is "monogenes". Monogenes (according to the Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament) is described as "pertaining to being the only one of it's kind or class, unique in kind". This is the one that applies to Christ although there are two meanings. This meaning demonstrates that uniquely, Jesus is the Son of God, sharing the same divine nature as God. This differentiates Christ from us who are also referred to as sons and daughters of God but are not uniquely sharing the same divine nature. (from "Got questions.org")
God so loved the world that He gave His son. Ten words that are as full as a huge book. I hope to take a deeper look into this by supposing we can relate to God in this amazing gift and sacrifice. As we take a little walk in His sandals, it is my hope that you can see the amazing love He has for us, His creation.
Let's step into God's sandals for a moment.
Let's say you were God and try to connect with His world.
You pour all your imagination into creating a universe and a world that was filled with beauty, wonder and amazing things beyond any comprehension. You used some of your best imagination and create a world that is governed by the laws you put into place. Such things we now define as the laws of science. You create gravity, the tides, the rotation of the earth and planets. You created a universe such that if earth was one planet closer or farther from the sun, there would be no life. He created biological processes that will amaze us until we no longer exist. You place Earth in the exact position to sustain life. You create food that is perfectly thought out. The food you create is perfect. The wrappers are biodegradable like on bananas and oranges. Not only are the wrappers biodegradable but they provide nourishment to the earth. Other wrappers are edible like on apples. Foods such as fruit replenishes itself. An apple falls from a tree and the seeds fall into the ground and more fruit is produced. Your creation is amazing.
You have created a perfect world with a perfect system. You love your creation and look for something to be it's crowning glory. Man, perhaps your greatest creation ever. You create mankind in your own image and unlike the animals and plants, you give man a soul. You are even a bit overwhelmed with the wonder of what you have done. You love mankind and put him in a perfect environment where he can thrive, live in peace and learn to love. You place him in a garden where you can have fellowship with him.
You are loving the garden, the flowers, plants and trees. You are loving your relationship with man. As time goes by, you notice he seems sad. He is the only one of his species and has no one to spend hours with. Your heart is broken a bit. You hoped the relationship he had with you would be enough. Being the loving god you are, you understand and are compassionate. You will create another human, some say a human that is even better than the original. You create woman from man and give her a soul. You see the joy they have with one another. They run naked through the garden and share all their thoughts and discoveries with one another. Their bond is strong. You are pleased. Perhaps deep inside, that which you have created with such love and that which you have given a soul doesn't notice you as much as they used to. Perhaps you feel a pain in your heart. You have created all this for their pleasure, even each other. You have created man and woman to have fellowship with and to have a growing relationship with. Their obsession with one another leaves you out and you feel the loss. Perhaps you feel rejected and maybe hope lingers in your heart every single day that they will want to be with you as much as you want to be with them. You love them and will not give up on your dream of a life long, wonderful relationship.
You, god, their creator, give them one rule. Do not eat from the tree in the middle of the garden and even warn them if they do they will surely die. Their lack of interest in returning the love you pour out on them takes them one step further. They are now not only self indulged, but now are disobedient. They have driven a huge wedge between them and you. Not only that but they have turned to the brightest of your angels. The fallen one who turned on you in heaven. That carries twice the pain doesn't it. The pain runs so deep. That which you created, that which you breathed life into has joined the one who betrayed you and has chosen to be disobedient. They have decided to believe him over you.
You are a righteous creator and have no room for sin. You despise sin but love your creation. It is not an easy decision. With a blink, you could destroy all you made and it would be ended. Not only are you righteous, but you are love. You love the man and the woman. You love creation. The garden can never be the same. Something has to happen, so with great pain, you cast them from the garden. It hurts deeply but they have to live for themselves now. There must be some sort of consequence for their decision, so be it.
As god, you know all things. You know the future. You know in an instant what they will experience and endure. They will know pain which was not part of their existence in the garden. They will know anger, betrayal, suffering, lack, sickness, death, and hundreds more things they would never have known if they had not made that choice. You wanted and still want them to choose you. However, it is as it must be for you are god and you cannot be what you are not.
Your heart is heavy as you watch them make bad choice after bad choice. You watch as they cry out to you but turn from you at the smallest of things. They cry out that they love you, then they steal, they murder, they lie , they blaspheme, covet and commit adultery. The list of things they dream up is a sort of creation of their own. The world they have created for themselves is not at all what you wanted for them and again you feel agony in your heart. They live in pain and sickness and you know this never had to be. Never, no, never had to be.
Thousands and thousands of years go by. You have sent warnings and messengers to draw them close to you again. You have gone to enormous lengths to get them back. Your love never diminishes but seems to grow if that is even possible. You are faced with an extremely hard decision. You pick a family and pairs of animals and save them in a huge boat. Then you flood the earth in an effort to cleanse it and make it right.
You sigh a sigh of releif. You hope you are never driven to such a place again. You do not want to have to repeat such a thing. Time goes by and the world seems as if it has a chance. Alas, it again chooses to follow he whom you tossed from heaven. They listen more to their own lusts and desires than your voice and teachings. They choose to listen to the fallen one who was once the brightest in the heavens. The world again is a place far from the garden.
Great amounts of time pass as you patiently wait for your creation to want you above all things. You are god, yet they settle for so much less. You offer things beyond their dreams, yet they settle for the things of little value that they can see and touch. They are willing to gamble away the beautiful souls you have given them. "No," you scream, "this may never be!"
Your heart is in a place it has never been before. This time and place requires something bigger than the human mind can understand. You do not consider these thoughts lightly, in fact, if you were not god, such thoughts would easily take your life. You must send a saviour. A price must be paid for each and every sin ever committed. You must kill a part of you. The only way is to pay the debt for that which you created and that which turned it's back on you. You must sacrifice something so loved and pure for something filled with so much darkness and sin. You must offer up the very son of god in their place. He must suffer an amount of pain that can never be understood to rescue them from themselves. Yes, they are doing all this to themselves, but in their foolishness they are also doing this to the son. They sin and think they are getting away with it but the son is taking the punsihment. He takes every blow, every beating, the snap of every whip. He takes every insult, every humiliation. Your son, yes your son is bearing it all. Your son, is experiencing complete separation from you. He is on his own. He is fighting all the evil of this world for you, for them. No one is getting away with anything. The pain for your son is excruciating. The darkness he experiences is horrifying, yet to save that which you both love so much it must be so. Yet to create a way for mankind, who is not worthy of such a sacrifice, it must be done. Why? Because you love them more than they will ever know. You and your son are willing to do whatever it takes to save them for all eternity. This time, the cleansing will never have to be repeated. This time death will be defeated once and for all for those who cling to you.
You watch as your son hangs on a cross for all the world to see. You watch as he is mocked and humiliated. You watch as he screams to you with a voice that pierces the universe, "Father, why have you forsaken me?" You did not want this, they did. They chose this. Yet you and your son love them with an unfailing love and chose this as payment for their sins. Your son's screams push you to a new pain and you watch as he breathes his last breath. The heavens collide and rumble with your pain and misery. The earth quakes with your sorrow. The curtain in the temple is torn with your determination that you are never separated from your creation, your love. You and your son have rescued them. You cry out, "Please, oh please will all of creation, please notice what we have done." "Please turn from your wickedness and turn to me" is your cry.
Your son battles death, he pays the price and rises victorious from the grave. He rises to again join you in that heavenly place. There is great celebration in the heavens. Tears of joy from you and the heavenly host flood your holy place with the power of the flood you used to once cleanse the earth. If your creation could only see this victory, if they could only see this celebration, then they would know. This is your greatest moment, this is the fulfillment of your plan. You have rescued them, those foolish people you love so very much. Surely they will see and understand. Surely, they will change their course. Surely, they will find their way back to the garden and beg to be let back in.
You watch and wait and well, you know. You knew it all along. But your plan is completed, victory is the cry of heaven. Yet still, they choose such useless things over you.
You wait, you long for that day. You do not quit. You do not give up. You wait for you know there will be that day when they will again be with you in that relationship you both once enjoyed. You wait for it will come soon. You and the son and all of heaven wait with watchful eyes as each person leaves the earth and finds themselves in your presence. Then they will know that you so loved the world.
Love somebody. Love everybody. Love the Lord your God for He so loves you.