What Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3:14—21

We are such a narcissistic society today. Judging by how many pharmacies there are even in small towns and villages, and looking at the number of clinics that have popped up in recent years, an outsider would have to conclude that either there is something terribly wrong with most Americans or most Americans spend way too much thinking about themselves! Add to that all the diet plans, fitness centers, self-help seminars and books, and not to mention a president who has written not one but two memoirs before the age of 45, and it becomes painfully obvious that the most important person to some people is themselves.

That’s not to say that you aren’t important. In fact, a good self-image is important. Where do you get your sense of self-worth? What is it about you that makes you loveable? These are actually important questions because people who have a realistic and positive view of themselves fair much better than those who are discouraged and overly critical about themselves.

This group of verses in John’s Gospel is the most significant statement of man’s self-worth because it shows what he is worth to God.

1. Setting the scene

In John’s Gospel, the Pharisees are portrayed as the prominent Jewish leaders, and Nicodemus was “a ruler of the Jews,” that is, he was a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish court. Something about Jesus piqued this man’s curiosity, and so he approached Jesus “at night.” Much has been written about why Nicodemus visited Jesus at night. Some have suggested that he was afraid to be seen with Jesus; afraid of what his peers might think of him. Perhaps all he wanted was some privacy to talk to this man without interruption. The important question, to me, is not why did Nicodemus come to Jesus at night, but why did he come at all? He was surely curious about Jesus and His teachings, but it was a great risk for him to be seen with the this “religious upstart.” Perhaps the reason this Pharisee came to Jesus at night is better understood by looking at this verse, which could best be called a “reverse action:”

As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night. (John 13:30)

The man who betrayed Jesus, his friend, for money left the Light of God for a world of darkness. Nicodemus, a man who never had the Light, is seen here emerging from the darkness.

Nicodemus recognized that there was something special about Jesus—He was “a teacher from God.” Oddly enough, he based this opinion of Jesus not on what Jesus taught, but on what he saw Jesus doing—the “signs” and miracles that surrounded Jesus’ ministry. In response, Jesus simply said this:

“I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” (3:3)

The Greek is ambiguous, Jesus meant either “born anew” or “born from above,” but in either case, this statement perplexed Nicodemus, who was thinking on a purely earthly plain. For the next few verses, Jesus explains what spiritual re-birth entailed, yet Nicodemus still seemed unable to grasp the concept. We can almost hear the frustration in Jesus’ voice when He said—

You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? (3:10)

Jesus was teaching nothing new, a man of Nicodemus’ education and standing should easily understand what the “new birth” was all about, but he didn’t, and so Jesus had to take Nicodemus back in time to Moses. The incident alluded to by Jesus in verse 14 may seem strange to us, but Nicodemus would have immediately recognized Numbers 21:4—9:

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 desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”

Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

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, he lived.

2. Jesus’ interpretation, 3:14—15

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

There are several aspects to this Scripture that Nicodemus would have been familiar with, given that a Pharisee would have spent most of the day studying the OT.

· The Israelites were guilty of disobedience, grumbling, and were unthankful to both God and Moses for their deliverance.

· They were living under the condemnation of God and were being punished for their sin.

· The object elevated before them was a sign of their judgment.

· They were unable to rescue themselves.

· There was no antidote for the poisonous snake bites.

· They were urged to look at the serpent in order to receive life. (Merrill C. Tenney)

The words “As Moses…so must the Son of man” tell us that the event in Numbers 21 is a type, or foreshadow, of the lifting up of the Son of Man. There are four points of comparison implied in John 3:14—15:

· In both Numbers 21 and John 3 the punishment for sin is death.

· In both cases, it is God Himself who, in His sovereign grace, provides a way out.

· In both cases, this remedy consists of something (or Some One) which must be lifted up for all to see.

· In both cases, those who, with a believing heart, look at that which was (or Who was) lifted up, are healed.

But Jesus Christ far transcends His OT type. In Numbers, the people are threatened with physical death, in John all mankind is eternally dead because of their sin. In Numbers it is the type that is lifted up—a brazen serpent with no power to heal. In John it is the Son of God, who does have the power. In Numbers the emphasis is on physical healing, in John it is spiritual life—everlasting life—that is granted to those who trust the One who was lifted up. (Hendriksen)

The lifting up of Christ is not just a remedy for sin; it is the only cure, for in this way alone can God’s righteous demands be met. Jesus knew that He “must be lifted up.” The necessity of the Cross was two-fold. First, the kind of world into which Christ came demanded the Cross. His birth necessitated His atoning death because of lostness of the world; there was simply no other way to save man. And secondly, Christ love for lost humanity demanded the Cross. That kind of sacrificial love is, in reality, an expression of God’s nature; the kind of nature that would exert the supreme effort to reach down and redeem lost men who are quite literally the walking dead. As Joseph Mayfield so eloquently noted, the whole figure [of the Cross] is a kind of paradox that says, Though it be an instrument of death, there is life in the Cross.

But what does John mean by his use of the phrase “lifted up?” In Numbers, of course, it refers to the brazen serpent standing upright so everybody could see it. In John’s Gospel, the term “to be lifted up” always refers to the Cross. But, it is significant that John also uses the verb in connection with Christ’s exaltation—that is, in reference to things like His resurrection and His ascension. In other words, for Christ to be “lifted up” the whole story of redemption must be told.

The last phrase of verse 15 is significant for it indicates that though Christ is lifted up for all to see—both literally on the Cross but also figuratively as He is preached—He does not save all. In order for the ancient Israelites to be healed, they had to look at the brazen serpent. We know from 2 Kings 8:4 that that serpent had no healing powers; God’s blessing was appropriated by the people in their obedience in looking at it. Likewise, man gains everlasting life by looking to Jesus in faith. This brings us to one of the most profound passages in the entire Bible.

3. The Gospel in summary, 3:16

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.

With verse 16, we read the very first mention of God’s love in John’s Gospel, even though it is the dominant theme. It took over three chapters to get here, but what a magnificent declaration! We can learn much about God’s love from this single verse. Obviously, God’s love is universal; it is for everybody who would believe. This declaration explains why God did what He did: He loved! The Greek word is egapesen; the kind of love that moves in the interest of others with no thought for ones’ self. This is the kind of love that is willing to risk everything for one person. The verb is in the aorist tense, telling us that God’s act of unselfish love is timeless, yet also complete. In other words, God’s love is absolute.

Also, consider what else we learn about God’s love:

· We learn about its character. To elaborate on the Greek aorist, God’s love is timeless, and therefore it shows that God’s love in action stretches back into the ageless past, and rocketing forward, coming to its climax at Bethlehem and Calvary. God’s love in action, though, is not to be regarded as a series of events, it is ONE fact.

· We learn about its author. It is God the Father who loved. God is not some abstract thought, like a giant brain hanging out in space. He is a real Person, so take the best and greatest human virtues, raise them to the nth degree and then you can get, perhaps, a glimpse of the God’s the Father’s love.

· We learn about the object of God’s love. God loves the world. What is meant by that term:

1. This verse is for “whoever believes,” so birds, animals and trees are not included.

2. Humanity here is not viewed as “the realm of evil,” since God is holy and can have nothing to do with anything or anyone evil.

3. The term “world” must refer to mankind in a very broad sense, meaning all people, though burdened down and lost in their sins and exposed to the judgment of God, are still objects of His concern. Mankind as created by God was perfect, but is now horribly marred and disfigured by sin. However, the Master Creator can still recognize His work and desires to save it.

4. God’s love is not just for Jews, but as the context demands, it is directed toward all people, everywhere.

· We learn that God’s love is a gift. The original language is striking: “…that he gave his Son, the only one he gave…” The emphasis in on greatness of the gift: the Son. That this gift is great is obvious from the fact that there was only one to give. Once again, the tense of the verb indicates an absolute and complete giving, with nothing held back.

· We also learn that this gift must be accepted. In fact, all of God’s gifts and goodness must be appropriated; He will force His love on no one. But the word “believe” consists of merely accepting something, not doing something. The result of simply believing is that the believing one receives the gift, which is eternal life, and is able to live in a relationship with his heavenly Father in total honesty, for he no longer fears his real self exposed (Tenney).

Given that God’s gift of love must be accepted, man is forced to make the decision himself, no one can make it for him. There are only two options: believe of perish. Eternal life, which is accepted by believing, is a gift from God and brings with it multiplied blessings that only God can give. To perish does not mean to cease to exist, it means to be utterly lost, to fail completely, to experience the misery life can bring with no hope. A perfect illustration of one who did not accept God’s gift is seen in John 17:12—

While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

Nicholas Berdyaev said it so well when he wrote these words:

Man is free to choose torment without God rather than happiness in God; he has a right to hell, as it were.

4. The purpose, 3:17

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

This is a confusing verse for some people because we know, in fact, that Jesus did come to judge (another translation of the word “condemn”) the world, as evidenced by a wide variety of Scriptures. Is this a contradiction? Or does John have something else in mind? Simply put, the purpose of God’s gift—His love expressed in eternal life—was not to bring men to judgment but to salvation. God’s purpose in His gift was positive, even though judgment is inevitable, it is man who brings it upon himself when he stubbornly refuses to accept God’s gift.

God must never be thought of as a suspicious God looking for an excuse to judge and condemn the very people He created in His own image! His purpose in sending Jesus into the world was to show to all people His love and to draw all people unto Himself. If, after the two millennia since Jesus came, people are still lost and living in their sin, it is because they have chosen to be that way.

(c)  2009 WitzEnd