Mission 3:16 - by Paul Borthwick (Paperback)

About the Book

Paul Borthwick unpacks the Bible's most famous verse to unveil God's intentional, sacrificial mission for the world. He examines every word in John 3:16 to reveal the underlying motivation for mission, the global scope of God's call, and how we are invited to enter into partnership with God. God still loves the world, and we can too.

Book Synopsis

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." --John 3:16Paul Borthwick unpacks the Bible's most famous verse to unveil God's intentional, sacrificial mission for the world. He examines every word in John 3:16 to reveal the underlying motivation for mission, the global scope of God's call, and how we are invited to enter into partnership with God. This mission statement highlights the centrality of Jesus and the relational nature of the invitation to follow him--for the world to escape perishing and enter eternal life. God still loves the world, and we can too. Come join him on this mission of love and discover how he brings the world back to life.

Review Quotes

"C. S. Lewis famously contended that overfamiliarity with a subject can all too easily lead to its unfamiliarity. In Mission 3:16, Paul Borthwick successfully helps Christians recover the missional nature of the Bible's most well-known verse. This practical and compelling book is a discipleship resource sure to empower leaders, small groups, and churches all over the world."

--Dave Ripper, lead pastor of Crossway Christian Church, Nashua, New Hampshire, and coauthor of The Fellowship of the Suffering

"John 3:16 is not just some text of Scripture for Paul Borthwick but a life he has embraced and lives out. Ever since we first met in Kasarani (Kenya), I've appreciated his genuine and contagious love for people in God's world in all our diversity. Be it around Boston, where God has brought the world to his doorstep, or other parts of the world he has crisscrossed (including Bela-Bela, South Africa, where we most recently met), Paul both speaks and lives out the love of God in drawing people to his saving grace. I commend Mission 3:16 to all who have experienced this love of God are eager to invite others to do the same."

--Femi B. Adeleye, director of the Institute for Christian Impact, Ghana

"Paul Borthwick profoundly brings us back to the heart of God's message for us, reframing the familiar and injecting fresh insight into it. It is not only backed by solid exegesis (informing the head) but also by the author's own missional experiences recounted in his uniquely winsome style (touching the heart). Ultimately it is a call to go and do (engaging the hands). You will never read John 3:16 the same way again!"

--Allen Yeh, associate professor of intercultural studies and missiology at Biola University

"Sometimes, we just need to get back to the basics. And when we do, we often find that we hadn't learned the basics as well as we thought. Mission 3:16 does this by taking a well-known Bible verse, illustrating it with stories from around the world, and offering winsome applications that make you want to go and do it right away! I have my takeaways already, and if you read this book, you'll get yours."

--James Choung, vice president of strategy and innovation with InterVarsity/USA, author of True Story and coauthor of Longing for Revival

About the Author

Paul Borthwick (DMin, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary) is senior consultant for Development Associates International. His books include Western Christians in Global Mission; Six Dangerous Questions to Transform Your View of the World; Great Commission, Great Compassion; and The Fellowship of the Suffering.