God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son in order that the world might attain salvation through him. The foregoing popular verse from the Gospel according to St. John answers one of the age-old questions that have been tackled in the Christian world: why did God become man? Many theologians have answered this question, the notable one being St. Anselm of Canterbury in his work entitled Cur Deus Homo (Why God became Man). And while the various answers that have been presented forth by theologians and other scholars are certainly insightful, I tend to believe that the evangelist John had already given an answer which, to me, was satisfactory. According to the above verse which was part of the conversation that Jesus was having with Nicodemus, it was not because of our sins that God sent his Son into the world (the famed “happy fault” answer). Rather, it was out of love for the created universe that God became man in the person of Jesus Christ. To what end? So that the world might be saved through him.
The salvation wrought by Jesus is not one that is “after-the-fact,” as it were. It is not something that is meant to pull us out of some mess in which we have found ourselves (even if such is the understanding of salvation that we have come to embrace). Rather, the salvation brought to us in Jesus Christ is “before-the-fact” (of our sinning). It was willed by God from the very beginning of the creative process and was set by him as its culmination and goal. For salvation means nothing other than creation coming to rest in God. The transformation brought about by the resurrection of Jesus allows creation to come to rest in God. In Jesus’ resurrection, every created being shares in the glorious body of Christ and as such has been raised to a divine level (deified). Because we participate in, and share in the resurrection of Jesus, we have been set on the path to eternal life.