John 3:21 - Wrought In God

By Pastor Jeff Beauvais

In John chapter 3 verse 21, Jesus tells Nicodemus of the Pharisees who was a ruler of the Jews…  

But the one who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds will be revealed as having been wrought in God.

This archaic verb essentially means “work,” as a past participle.  

There are two main gleanings we can derive from the verb form of wrought.  

The first reveals that being wrought in God is defined as something which has already been worked by God.

The means God has gone before you and initiated the action.  He has already helped you to accomplish it.  When we do things in the present, we do so with the understanding that Christ has already accomplished what we are about to do.

This point is illustrated and reinforced throughout scripture.  

In Ephesians 2:10, the apostle Paul writes, 

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do beforehand so that we would walk in them.

If our deeds are indeed “wrought in God,” then we are not behaving in ways which we are naturally inclined.  Instead we are moving and living and breathing in step with God’s Spirit and we are under the inclination of the supernatural and eternal.

The second main gleaning which we can derive from the verb form of wrought in this context (which Jesus is relaying to Nicodemus) involves the testability and finality of God’s work within us.  There are two available possibilities with no grey area, either our actions are wrought in God or they are wrought in something else.  

Jesus reveals to this ruler of the Jews that the ONLY way to discern whether our actions are wrought in God is to come into the light and practice the truth.

To practice the truth is far greater than mere ascent.

God himself is the one who is working in us and through us, to do His will.

Anyone who wishes to follow Christ and desires for their actions to be revealed as having been wrought in God understands that when our lives are wrought in God, His craftsmanship over our lives is not only enabling us to live as Jesus lived, but we are also being taught the obedience of Christ through suffering.  This is where the adjective form of the wrought definition comes into view.

To be wrought in God means there is a beating and hammering going on, often to remove impurity.  This hammering is for our own good.  It is never intended to destroy, but to redeem for a purpose.  What was once a mineral in the ground has not been molded and tested and molded and tested again, before it is fashioned and finalized as a useful tool in the hand of the living God.

As we continue to delve into passages such as these, let us retrieve words like “wrought” and embrace the facets of its definitions so that we may be emboldened in our faith and endure the hammer.  If we hold fast, we will also experience the exhilaration of God’s empowerment.  His purposes will ultimately prevail, but we will experience the benefit of being useful for such purposes and not experience His wrath.

Which brings us to God’s righteous anger.  

We often wonder if the hammering of our lives is the direct result of His anger which burns against the ungodliness of men.  Whether His hammer is driven by anger against sin, or by loving discipline as a Father, the result is the same.  The full counsel of God in scripture often illustrates that His anger and His love are present in every joyous strike.  

The purpose of God’s anger is to resist evil and to redeem and restore His unfathomable favor.  

Psalm 30:5 says, 

For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.

As I close out this blog, I feel the perseverance of the saints, and God’s work to preserve His people deserves an entire series of sermons, blogs, scholarly articles, videos, worship songs and more.

For now, let us reflect on the way in which God has prepared for each of us to no longer live according to our own wringing and wrangling, but to surrender to that which He has ALREADY ACCOMPLISHED by His great love and in His tender mercy to overcome sin and ensure that we are WROUGHT in Him.

Remember that the ultimate proof of being wrought in God is obedient and enduring faith in Jesus Christ our Lord.

All for His glory!

-Pastor Jeff Beauvais