"For God so loved the world, that He gave His Only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved." John 3:16-17
... what have we gained by the Son being given? An immense and unfathomable gift for all who believe in Him: to escape destruction and live eternally. The Old Testament promised length of days in this earthly life to those who pleased God. But the Gospel bestows, not any transitory existence, but life that is unending and beyond time.
There are two comings of Christ: the first has already taken place; the second is still to come. The Lord is speaking of His first coming when He says that the Son was not sent to condemn the world. Had that been the reason for His coming, all mankind would have been condemned, "for all have sinned" (Rom 3:23) as Paul says. He came the first time in order to save the world; only after some refused to believe did He judge those individuals. In contrast, the chief purpose in giving the Mosaic law was to rebuke sin and condemn transgressors (cf Rom 3:20). No one was forgiven under the law; rather, it called for punishment to be applied as soon as the sinner was identified. The Lord's first coming, then, did not have judgement as its objective, though judgement did fall upon those who rejected the Lord's efforts to save them. By their own unbelief they brought condemnation on themselves. But at the second coming, the Lord's explicit purpose is to judge all and render to each according to his deeds.
+Blessed Theophylact of Ochrid, from The Explanation of the Gospel of John.
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