THE PATH TO SALVATION
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I don’t know about you, but I hate snakes! I find them to be very creepy! This past September, as I was hiking in the forests of Northern California with my son, Tim, one of my frequent thoughts was “I hope they don’t have any poisonous snakes in Northern California.”
A story was told about one of my grandparents aunts, who lived in the hills of Tennessee and always kept a garden. In her later years, even though she could barely walk, she kept a small garden. And she would crawl around working in her precious garden. One day while she was crawling around she came face to face with a copperhead snake. Yuck! Apparently the hand spade she was using was faster than the copperhead on this occasion!
One of the reasons why I dislike snakes is because of the biblical connotations regarding snakes. The Bible often uses them as a picture of evil or of judgment. It was a snake that tempted Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. It was to this particular snake that the first promise of the coming Messiah was made:
I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.
This morning as we continue in our series, THE PROVISIONS OF THE INCARNATION, we will look at the Path to Salvation. As we do so we will see how a snake was involved in this path. Since we will be looking at a couple of different passages this morning, I will put the verses on the screen for your convenience. But if you wish to turn in your Bible to the passages we will begin with . I will be using a different translation than normal this morning, the Christian Standard Bible.
One thought I would like you to keep in mind this morning is this:
Because of God’s great generosity He provided the path to salvation through the giving of His only Son, Jesus Christ.
As we look at these passages this morning we will focus on the requirements, origin, and benefits of the path to salvation.
Before we consider the first passage for this morning I need to provide you some background details. After Moses led the children of Israel out slavery in the land of Egypt they wandered around the wilderness for about forty years. The reason for this lengthy wandering in the wilderness was their lack of faith in the promise of God. The LORD had brought them to the point of entry into the Promised Land, but they refused to enter because they didn’t trust in the providence and protection of God. Towards the end of their forty years of wandering there was an incidence in which Moses and Aaron also did not trust in the provision of God and they were disqualified as being the ones god would use to lead the children of Israel into the land of Canaan.
Shortly after this event Aaron died. After a time of national mourning for Aaron, God provided for a military victory for Israel against the Canaanite king who had attacked them. But the people of Israel soon forgot about God’s great deliverance, not to mention His constant provision and protection for them over the past years. And they soon began to grumble about the food God had provided for them to eat — the Manna. That is the context of our passage.
Let’s begin by reading
Then they set out from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to bypass the land of Edom, but the people became impatient because of the journey.
The people spoke against God and Moses: “Why have you led us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!”
Then the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and they bit them so that many Israelites died.
The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede with the Lord so that he will take the snakes away from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake image and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will recover.”
So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered.
Now for the context of our passage in John. Early on in the days of Jesus’ public ministry one of the leaders of the nation, a Pharisee by the name of Nicodemus, came to interview the Lord. The conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus is one of the most intriguing conversations in all of the Bible. Jesus’ opening line must have taken Nicodemus by surprise: “Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” And this man who is described as being “the teacher of Israel” did not understand what Jesus was saying. But he should have for this was referred to by God to Ezekiel.
I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
I will place my Spirit within you and cause you to follow my statutes and carefully observe my ordinances.
According to D.A. Carson, “When water is used figuratively in the Old Testament, it habitually refers to renewal or cleansing, especially when it is found in conjunction with ‘spirit.’” (Carson, Pillar, pg. 195).
Now, with that in mind, let’s look at .
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE PATH TO SALVATION
THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE PATH TO SALVATION
As we go back and forth between these two passages we will look at four requirements for salvation.
A Recognition of Sin
A Recognition of Sin
In the account in Numbers we see that God sent poisonous snakes in order to judge or condemn those who sinned against Him by complaining about the food they had to eat. Eventually the people recognized their sin and came to Moses for help. Look at
The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede with the Lord so that he will take the snakes away from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.
Obviously there are huge distinctions between the salvation that Moses mediated and the salvation which Christ mediates. The most obvious of which is that Moses mediated a physical salvation — one which was not eternal in scope. Whereas Christ mediates an spiritual salvation which is eternal in scope.
But in both cases there was a recognition of sin against God. Unless we recognize that we are sinners we cannot journey on the path to salvation.
The next requirement is that of an intercessor.
An Intercessor
An Intercessor
Notice the request of the people in
So the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, because we have spoken against the Lord and you; intercede with the Lord, that He may remove the serpents from us.” And Moses interceded for the people.
Once again, Moses interceded for a temporary solution. The people who were healed from the venomous snake bites would eventually die. Whereas the those who are spiritually healed by Christ are healed spiritually for all eternity.
Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
Let’s consider now the next requirement seen in these passages:
A Standard
A Standard
When I speak of a standard, I am not referring to a principle, although there is certainly that as well. But I am referring to something that is physically raised as a standard, such as a flag on the field of battle.
Notice for a moment:
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake image and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will recover.”
So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered.
Note the picture below which certainly equates the pole on which the bronze snake was attached to a cross of crucifixion.
In our nation symbols such as the flag, the national anthem, and even the Statue of Liberty are standards which are intended to unite our nation.
The cross of Jesus Christ is the standard which unites the people of God. Look again at the powerful words of .
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
When Jesus told Nicodemus that He must be lifted up, it would have been understood that He was referring to being crucified. Nicodemus must have considered this to be a scandalous thought. But eventually he came to understand the truth of this prediction.
Let’s consider one more requirement as presented in our texts:
Faith in the Promise of God
Faith in the Promise of God
For the people of Israel faith in the promise of God required them to look at the bronze snake which was hanging on a pole. Those who had faith in this promise experienced a complete, yet be it temporary, healing. The sad truth however, is that there were many who did not believe that they could be healed merely by looking up at the standard which was held high for all to see. Those who did not believe perished as the result of the judgment of God.
From the spiritual perspective there is also a requirement of faith in the promise of God for salvation. As a matter of fact that has always been the requirement. Our text uses the term believe, which is the verb form of the same Greek word, at least five times. Some of the references are stated positively regarding those who believe, while others are stated negatively regarding those who do not believe. Let’s read together noting the references to believing.
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.
This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.
For everyone who does evil hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed.
But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”
Now let’s turn our attention from the requirements of the path to salvation to the origin of this salvation.
THE ORIGIN OF SALVATION
THE ORIGIN OF SALVATION
There are at least three things in our text in John which I see as being benefits of salvation.
Before we look at the benefits let’s consider the origin of our salvation. Look again at .
For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.
The reason I have chosen to use the Christian Standard Bible this morning is because I think this translation gives the best understanding of this very familiar verse.
Most translations, following in the tradition of the KJV say “For God so loved the world.” Which in itself is a fine translation, but it has become misleading. Often it is interpreted that God love the world so much. But what the Greek term is actually stating is that “God love the world in this way;” or “This is how God loved the world.”
The origin of the believer’s salvation is the love of God. The giving of the Son is the demonstration of that saving love.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
For those who are here on a regular basis you probably know that I really like Charles Spurgeon. Recently I purchased a copy of the Spurgeon Study Bible, which is what I am using this morning. And in his comments on this passage he wrote:
What was there in the world that God should love it? There was nothing lovable in it … Where did this love come from? Not anything outside of God himself. God’s love springs from himself. He loves because it is his nature to do so.
We’ve looked at the requirements and the origin, let’s now consider:
THE BENEFITS OF SALVATION
THE BENEFITS OF SALVATION
There are at least three things in our text in John which I see as being benefits of salvation.
Life Eternal
Life Eternal
The phrase eternal life is used twice in our text, in verses 15 & 16. The actual Greek word ordering is life eternal.
No Condemnation
No Condemnation
Notice for a moment:
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Anyone who believes in him is not condemned, but anyone who does not believe is already condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the one and only Son of God.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
Condemnation is not the purpose for the giving of the Only Son of God, but it is a by-product of unbelief.
For those who have believed in the Son there is no condemnation —
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus,
However for those who refuse to believe in the Babe born in Bethlehem, their condemnation has already occured. They are condemned because they have not believed in the name that is above all names. And as the song I sang earlier stated: “What a beautiful name it is, the name of Jesus; what a wonderful name, what a powerful name!”
There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved.”
The next benefit is:
The Light of Life
The Light of Life
This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.
For everyone who does evil hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed.
But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”
Jesus is the Light of the World. As John stated in his prologue: ,
In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.
The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
In him was life, and that life was the light of men.
That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.
There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.
Just as a snake often depicts evil in the Bible, so darkness also depicts the kingdom of the evil one — Satan. Those who walk in the darkness are the citizens of Satan’s domain. And we were all citizens of his kingdom at one point in time. But those who place their faith in Jesus, the One and Only Son of God, are transferred from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of light.
To which kingdom do you belong? Are you a citizen of darkness? If you are then your condemnation is certain. But the good news is that if you recognize your sin against God, as some of the children of Israel did in our previous text, and you seek the mediation of Christ, and place your faith in the standard of His cross then you will be, in the words of Paul:
He has rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves.
giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in Light.
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son,
in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Because of God’s great generosity He provided the path to salvation through the giving of His only Son, Jesus Christ.
I invite you to receive this generous gift today.
