The Gospel of Jesus Christ (7) The Snake Lifted up on a Pole

​“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (Jn 3:14-16)
 
Review
We’ve been talking about the gospel of Jesus Christ. We’ve specifically focused on how God promised and foreshowed the gospel through events, symbols, and prophecies in the Old Testament.
 
The first indication we looked at was the process of animal sacrifice written about in Leviticus chapter 1. In the Old Testament, animals without defect were used as sacrifices of atonement for people’s sins. The animals were killed and shed their blood because the people who brought them laid their hands on them, and by doing so ascribed their sins to them.
 
Likewise, Jesus Christ died on the cross as the sacrifice of atonement for all people’s sins, shedding His blood, because He bore our sins in His body. Now, all those who believe in Him can be freely forgiven by Jesus’ blood and be justified to stand before the Lord, relying on Jesus’ righteousness and His merit.
 
Last Sunday, we talked about another important event in the history of Israel—the exodus. God sent 10 plagues on Egypt, and the last plague was the death of every firstborn son in Egypt.
 
But God gave the Israelites a way to avoid the plague. It was to take a lamb without defect, kill it, and put the blood of the lamb on the sides and tops of their doorframes. God said that when He saw the sign, He would pass over that house. That’s the meaning of Passover.
 
What’s important here is that the Passover lamb whose blood was used to protect the Israelites from death represents Jesus. Paul calls Him “Christ, our Passover lamb” (1Co 5:7), and Jesus actually died on the day of preparation of the Passover when the Jews killed lambs to celebrate the festival.
 
As our Passover lamb, Jesus Christ laid down His life on the cross so that He could set us free from slavery to sin and fear of death. Hebrews 2:14-15 says,
 
“He too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death - that is, the devil - and free those who all their lives were held in slavery” (Heb 2:14-15)
 
That’s Jesus whom we believe in. Only He could save us from our slavery and death because He was the Son of God sent from heaven who willingly laid down His life to let us join in His eternal life.
 
Jesus Christ: The Snake Lifted on a Pole
Now, let’s move on to the next indication of Jesus Christ revealed in the Old Testament. Let’s read today’s passage one more time.
 
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:14-16)
 
John 3:16 is probably the most well-known verse in the Bible. Many Christians memorize this verse and introduce it to non-believers because it contains the great truth about God’s love and His salvation toward mankind.
 
But in order to understand this verse, we also need to know what the previous verses talk about because John 3:16 starts with the word ‘for’, which implies its relation to them. So, what does the snake Moses lifted in the wilderness represent?
 
To answer this, we should first explore what happened to the Israelites during their time in the wilderness. After the death of the Passover lambs, the exodus began. The exodus started off very well. God divided the Red Sea and destroyed Pharaoh’s chariots and his army. When they saw this, the Israelites praised the Lord for his great power and salvation.
 
But, life in the wilderness wasn’t easy for them, and they started complaining to God about many things such as hunger, thirst, inconvenience, and more. However, God was patient with them and faithfully guided them in the wilderness. In fact, had it not been for God’s faithfulness and grace, they couldn’t have survived there for even a week.
 
Now, God guided the Israelites to a region called Kadesh Barnea. It was an important place because it was located at the southern border of Canaan. It was like a gateway to the promised land.
 
There, God commanded the Israelites to go into the land and conquer it. Moses said to them, “See, the Lord your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged” (Dt 1:21)
 
God didn’t command them to send spies first. It was unnecessary because no matter how strong their enemies were, God would be much bigger and stronger. In other words, what the Israelites needed to know was not how strong their enemies were, but how mighty their God was.
 
But still, they were afraid to go into the land. So they wanted to send spies first to see if they could beat their enemies. Deuteronomy 1:22 says,
 
“Then all of you came to me and said, “Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to.” (Dt 1:22)
 
It wasn’t God’s idea to send people to spy out the land. The idea came from the Israelites’ fear of uncertainty. If they really believed God and trusted in Him, they wouldn’t have needed to send spies first. The one thing they needed to know was whether or not God was with them. Trying to know anything other than this wasn’t necessary. Rather, it only showed their unbelief.
 
But still, God allowed them to spy out the land first. They sent twelve men to explore the land of Canaan for forty days. When they returned, 10 of them reported,
 
“We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.…We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them” (Num 13:31, 33).
 
When they heard this, all the Israelites wept loudly and grumbled against Moses, saying, “Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?...We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt” (Nm 14:3-4)
 
The Israelites were rejecting Moses and Aaron as their leaders. It meant that they were against God, who had appointed them as their leaders.
 
They had seen all the things God had done for them, including the 10 plagues in Egypt and even dividing the Red Sea, but their hearts were still hardened, and they failed to keep their faith in God.
 
And, because of this rebellion, God made the Israelites wander the wilderness for forty years. He said,
 
“For forty years - one year for each of the forty days you explored the land - you will suffer for your sins and know what it is like to have me against you.’ I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will surely do these things to this whole wicked community, which has banded together against me. They will meet their end in this wilderness; here they will die” (Nm 14:34-35).
 
God made the Israelites wander the wilderness for forty years because they explored the land of Canaan for forty days. And, during the 40 years in the wilderness, most of the first generation of the exodus died as God said.
 
And now, the second generation, which refers to those who were children when the Israelites left Egypt or who were born in the wilderness, got ready to enter the promised land. That’s the context of today’s passage.
 
The Israelites’ Complaint
At the end of the 40 years in the wilderness, the second generation of Israelites tried to go into the promised land. But, in order to do so, they had to cross the Jordan River.
 
The problem was that they had to go through the land of Edom in order to get to the Jordan River. But, they couldn’t attack Edom because the people of Edom were related to the people of Israel.
 
As you may know, Isaac, the son of Abraham, was the father of twins. The older brother was called Esau, and  the younger brother was called Jacob. Later on, God gave Jacob the name ‘Israel’, and Esau became known as ‘Edom’, which means red.
 
Therefore, Israel and Edom were brethren nations, and because of that God prohibited Israel from invading Edom.
 
So, Moses sent messengers to ask if the Israelites could go through the land of Edom peacefully. Numbers 20:14-17 says,
 
“Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, saying: “This is what your brother Israel says: You know about all the hardships that have come on us. Our ancestors went down into Egypt, and we lived there many years. The Egyptians mistreated us and our ancestors, but when we cried out to the Lord, he heard our cry and sent an angel and brought us out of Egypt. “Now we are here at Kadesh, a town on the edge of your territory. Please let us pass through your country. We will not go through any field or vineyard, or drink water from any well. We will travel along the King’s Highway and not turn to the right or to the left until we have passed through your territory.” (Num 20:14-17)
 
However, the King of Edom didn’t allow the Israelites to pass through his land. Edom answered,
 
“You may not pass through here; if you try, we will march out and attack you with the sword.” Then Edom came out against them with a large and powerful army. Since Edom refused to let them go through their territory, Israel turned away from them” (Num 20:18, 20-21).          
 
Now, the Israelites had to make a detour to go into the promised land. But they were so tired of wandering in the wilderness that they didn’t want to go around Edom. So, their hearts were hardened on the way, and they started complaining to Moses and God again.
 
Numbers 21:4-5 says,
“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” (Num 21:4-5)
 
Again, their hearts were hardened in the face of difficulties, which led to their rebellion against God. They even called the food God gave them every morning ‘miserable food.’ They were so quick to forget what God had given them by His grace.
 
We know how Israel survived in the wilderness for forty years. It was only because of God’s protection and guidance that they were able to live in the wilderness for such a long period of time.
 
 In the wilderness, there’s no food or water. There are many scorpions and snakes. Moreover, it’s very hot in the afternoon and freezing cold at night. No one wouldn’t be able to survive in such a place for even a week, but the Israelites lived there for forty years.
 
They survived not because they were strong, but because God cared for them. God gave them food every day and water from rocks. God protected them from harmful animals and from the cold and heat with a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. That’s how the Israelites survived.
 
So, when they said, “We detest this miserable food!”, what they were really criticizing wasn’t the food, but the One who gave it to them by His grace. In other words, they were against God, blaming Him for the difficult and uncomfortable situation they faced, while forgetting how graciously He had delivered them out of Egypt and how faithfully He had protected them and guided them in the wilderness.
 
And this is how God responded to their disobedience and rebellion.
Numbers 21:6 says, “Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died.”  (Num 21:6)
 
  God took away His protection and sent snakes to bite the Israelites. There was no cure, and many people died.
 
Seeing this, the Israelites repented of their complaints and said to Moses, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us” (Nm 21:7).
 
So, Moses prayed for them. God heard his prayer and gave him a way for those bitten by snakes to live. This is the most important part of the story. Let’s read Numbers 21:8-9 together.
 
“The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So, Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived” (Nm 21:8-9).
 
God told Moses to make a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Whoever saw the snake on the pole recovered. It was that simple. They just had to look at the snake on the pole.
 
Here, the meaning of being hung on a pole is also important. In the Old Testament, it meant being cursed by God. Dt 21:23 says, “Anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse” (Dt 21:23).
 
This means that the bronze snake hung on the pole was cursed by God instead of the Israelites, and that’s why whoever looked at the snake was healed and freed from death.
 
That’s the snake Jesus mentions in John 3. Now, let’s read today’s verse one more time.
 
Jesus: The Snake Lifted up in the Wilderness
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” (John 3:14-15).
 
The bronze snake Moses lifted on the pole in the wilderness represents Jesus Christ, who was hung on the cross.
 
Just like the snake lifted up in the wilderness, Jesus was lifted up on the cross. He was cursed there to save those who were bitten by snakes in their sins and rebellion against God and were dying spiritually.
 
In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve sinned against God after being deceived by the serpent, Satan, which resulted in the severance of their relationship with God and thus eternal death. In other words, they were bitten by the snake and were heading toward death as a result.
 
And, just like Adam and Eve, and the people of Israel who were bitten by snakes in the wilderness because of their rebellion against God, the Bible says that all people have sinned, fall short of the glory of God, and were heading to eternal death in their sins. Paul said,
 
“Death came to all people, because all sinned” (Rm 5:12)
 
However, the good news, the gospel of Jesus Christ, is that He was hung on the cross for us like the bronze snake Moses put up on the pole in the wilderness. It means that Jesus Christ was cursed by God on our behalf.
 
The curse was meant for us. But Jesus, who hadn’t done anything wrong, was cursed by God in our place and experienced deep separation from His presence that He had never experienced because He bore our sins in His body.
 
God’s wrath was meant for us. Jesus wasn’t an object of God’s wrath because “the wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people” (Rm 1:18), and Jesus was innocent, pure, and holy.
 
We were the objects of God’s wrath in our godlessness and wickedness, but Jesus bore the wrath of God being poured out upon our sins on the cross because He willingly chose to take away our sins.
 
And, His death was meant for us because we were the ones who denied God’s lordship and sovereignty over us and decided to drag Him down from His position as our King and Lord by disobeying Him. But, Jesus “tasted death for everyone” (Heb 2:9) so that He could “free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” (Heb 2:15) Jesus took away our death and gave us His life on the cross.
 
That’s the essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The truth that the cross continues to shout to us is that He took away all our sins along with their consequences.
 
And now, those who believe in Him may have the life that He freely gives by His sacrifice. As Jesus said,
 
“Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life” (Jn 5:24)
 
That’s the only way for us to be saved from our sins and their terrible consequences, which we could never overcome on our own. Just as those bitten by snakes in the wilderness were saved when they saw the bronze snake on the pole, we can be saved from sin and eternal death when we see Jesus lifted up on the cross and lift our faith to Him. Again, we can only be saved through faith in Him.
 
Let’s read today’s verse together one more time,
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:16).
 
We see God’s great love for us because He didn’t even spare His Son and sacrificed His most precious One to save us. We see Jesus’ love for us because He was willing to be mocked, cursed, subject to God’s wrath, and crucified in order to give us true life.
 
That’s the Jesus whom we believe in. That’s the Jesus who alone is worthy of our praise.
 
So, I want us to think about who Jesus Christ is and what He has done for us. I hope that God fills you with the truth of Jesus Christ through the wisdom and understanding of the Holy Spirit so that you know Him more and become stronger in your faith in Christ. I hope that you can truly enjoy the joy of salvation God gives you through Christ and be victorious in all circumstances in Him.
 
Let’s pray.
 
[Closing Prayer]
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:16)
 
Father God, full of grace and love, thank You for letting us hear Your word today.
 
We just learned about Your amazing love and what You’ve done for us. Thank you, Lord, for sending Your only Son to save us from our sins and their consequences. We proclaim that the only reason we can stand before You righteously is because He laid down His precious life on the cross.
 
Because Jesus was cursed, we were blessed. Because Jesus bore Your wrath for us, we became free from all condemnation. And because Jesus tasted death for us on the cross, we are given new eternal life in You. We thank You for all the great things He achieved on the cross for our salvation.
 
Oh Lord, we want to know more about Him and have stronger faith in Him. Please open our hearts and let us understand the gospel of Jesus Christ.
 
Let us see the cross where Your Son was cursed, abandoned, and killed for us so that we can keep walking with You in our faith and so that those around us can also have faith in You and be saved.
 
We hope that only Your name is glorified through our worship and our lives. We thank You and love You, Lord.
 
We pray all these things in the precious name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
 
[Reflection Questions]
1. What do you complain about most nowadays? Where do you think those complaints come from? How do you think you can change your complaints into thanksgiving?
 
2. We see the love of Christ in how He was cursed, subject to the wrath of God, and crucified for us. Have you experienced Christ’s love in Your life? When? How did it change your life?
 
3. Please share some ways you can show the world the love that You’ve been given by Christ.