John 3:16 is NOT an Assurance of Salvation

Yes, you read that title correctly!

All English Bibles are translations from the original Koine Greek used by the New Testament written about 2,000 years ago.  The original Greek versions of the New Testament have a tendency to be mis-translated, mutilated, mis-edited by bias of the translator(s), as well as a victim of changes in meaning through time, culture and usage. Of course, some versions have it right like Young's Literal Translation, and the Douay-Rheims Version.

For example, until the early 70's, the word "gay" used to describe ONLY happy people. Today, is means something else and hopefully, they are still happy, though that group, ironically, has a suicide rate beyond that of the general population especially among the younger set where their suicide rate is 4 to six times greater.  So, the word "gay" has definitely lost its original meaning.

Back to the subject, John 3:16, has been mis-translated mainly by theological bias and many preachers and evangelists have used that verse to assure people of eternal life if they "believe in" the Only begotten Son of God.

Unfortunately, if translated correctly, there is no such assurance. The Greek literal translation is actually "might not perish but might have eternal life". The Greek verbs used are in the Subjunctive mood (similar to the word, subjective). The verbs are verbs of possibility and NOT certainty as many preachers would like us to believe.

The verse is not about assurance. It is a declaration of the great love of God offering the POSSIBILITY of eternal life. That is the entire point of the verse. Just the offer of the possibility is GRACE in itself and that is already good news, as it is.

For assurance of salvation, you have to look elsewhere in Scripture and find out that assurance is ALWAYS CONDITIONAL upon being "a new creation" (2 Corinthians 5:15), "dead to self and alive to God" and "a slave to righteousness, not a slave to sin" (Romans 6), being "born again" (John 3, similar to being a new creation), and most explicitly (but mostly mis-translated or mis-interpreted), being "saved (justified AND sanctified AND glorified) by grace through faith" (Ephesians 2:8-9), and walking in newness of life in the Holy Spirit (Romans 8), and naturally and consistently demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23) and holiness (Hebrews 12:14).

BELIEVING IN has to be tested by the kind of fruit it yields (Matthew 7:19-20, John 15:2,6)
We have to "work out" our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12)
Ignorance of Scripture is not bliss! It is TRAGEDY!