“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” – John 3:14-15
Hundreds of years earlier, the Israelites had rebelled against God, grumbling and complaining about His provision. As both symbol of, and punishment for, their sin God sent venomous snakes to plague them in the desert. However, because He is a God who saves, He had Moses create a bronze snake on a pole and all who were dying from the poison from these snakes could look up to that snake and be healed of what was killing them.
That strange story pointed forward to what Jesus does for us. We have all rebelled against God’s good design for our life. We grumble and complain about our situation, and prefer to do whatever we like no matter what. We’ve all been poisoned by sin and we all deserve the agony of an eternity separated from our holy God who doesn’t permit sin into His presence.
However, because God is a God who saves, He sent His Son Jesus to bring healing. By His sacrifice on the cross, in which Jesus Christ was lifted high, laid low in the tomb, and raised back to life even higher, He fulfilled this promise and opened the way to healing and reconciliation between sinful humans and our sinless God. All who believe in Jesus, all who look to Him for healing from the poison of sin and death will receive eternal life: the knowledge, relationship, and presence of God forever more.