John 3:14-15 - the Golden "Context" of the Bible

It doesn't matter who you are, you've heard...we've all heard, of John 3:16. It's perhaps the most oft-cited verse in the Bible, and is called "the golden text" of the Bible. Many people, and most of you, I'm sure, can quote the verse from memory. But in case you need a little refreshing, here it is...

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

This really is a "golden text." The message of John 3:16 is simple and yet so informative as to the theme of the Holy Scriptures, which is that God provided redemption and salvation to sinful man through the perfect sacrifice of His own Son! And yet despite the text's simplicity and beauty, many religious people misuse this verse. They argue that in order to be saved, all that sinful man must do is believe in Jesus. It is then argued that if we require anything in addition to faith, we're preaching a "works-based" salvation.

To remedy this abuse of the golden text of the Bible, let's consider what I call the "golden context" of the Bible - John 3:14-15. So that you can get the whole message, I'll quote verse 16 here, too...

"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

The sacrifice of Christ (on the cross) is compared to the lifting up of the serpent by Moses. This is a reference to the story of the "Bronze Serpent," which is found in Numbers 21. While in the wilderness, the Israelites often complained against Moses and against God. In this story, they accused Moses of bringing them out of Egypt to die in the wilderness. Then, if that wasn't enough, they complained about the bread (i.e. Manna) that God provided to sustain them. So what did God do?

"So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died" (Num. 21:6).

The Israelites acknowledged their sin and asked Moses to intercede on their behalf before God. After Moses prayed for the people, the Lord gave instructions regarding their deliverance (from the serpents).

"Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.' So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived" (Num. 21:8-9).

Were these people delivered from the bronze serpents by faith alone? No! They clearly believed and even repented in verse seven, apparently not long after the fiery serpents infiltrated the camp. To be delivered, the people had to look at a BRONZE serpent that God had commanded Moses to build and raise up on a pole. When they looked at the elevated object, they would be delivered. Perhaps there were some who, in order to see the object, had to limp around a tree or tent, or even through the camp before it came into view. I don't know. What I do know is that if they wanted to escape God's wrath, they had to believe, repent, and take action...and specifically, the action that God specified: look at the bronze serpent. Was this a "works-based" salvation? Did they "earn" their healing and deliverance? Of course not.

So, in John 3:16, is Jesus saying that all we have to do is believe in Him to be saved? According to the "golden context" of the Bible, which includes the previous two verses, saving faith cannot be separated from obedience. That's the comparison. That's the context...the "golden context."