Oh boy! What’s going on here? We get this confusing verse right before John 3.16. The setting here, under the cover of night, is Jesus explaining to Nicodemus, a Pharisee, about the need to born again. John 3.14—15 sets up John 3.16. In verse 14, Jesus refers the to the book of Numbers, specifically Numbers 2.19. In Numbers 2, Israel was being bitten by snakes. God commanded Moses to make a bronze serpent and place it on a pole. Whoever looked at it when bitten, would live. Why is Jesus referring to what seems to be an obscure Old Testament passage?
Our problem is sin—eternal death. Israel’s problem was being bitten by snakes—physical death. Two different kinds of death. Israel put symbol on a post. God put his Son on a post—the Cross. In both instances, one must be saved from either eternal or physical death. This is quite an analogy before Jesus says why God gave his only begotten Son. Being “lifted up” refers to Jesus’s death, resurrection, and exaltation. We are saved by Grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone.
John 3.14
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up.
[ WHAT ] is this passage saying and what is a key truth or thought that we learn?
+ What was Nicodemus’s position in society?
+ What was happening to Israel in the wilderness?
+ What does it mean for Christ to be “lifted up”?
[ HOW ] is the Lord calling me to action/obedience?
+ Is there a sin to confess or a next step to take? How has it gone since last time?
+ How would Nicodemus’s position in society affect who Jesus would teach him?
+ How does John 3.14 set-up John 3.16?
+ How are we saved?
[ WHO ] am I walking with and praying for to discover Jesus?
+ What is my next step?
+ Who can you share the story of John 3.14 with—Christian or non-Christian?