For God So Loved

John 3:14-21

The Fourth Sunday of Lent Cycle B and Trinity Sunday Cycle A (Roman Catholic)

John 3:14-21

[14] Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, [15] that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. [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. [17] For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. [18] Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. [19] This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. [20] Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. [21] But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.

John 3:14-15

[14] Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, [15] that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

The Snake Among the People

Here is one of the most confusing imageries that John uses in his entire Gospel. That Jesus, our Lord, must be lifted up like a “snake in the desert.” It is a strange simile for John, because his Gospel was primarily written for the non-Jewish believer and this is a deeply Jewish image.

Our Lord is quoting scripture that pertained to an incident in Numbers:

Numbers 21:4-9

[Num 21:4] Then they set out from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; and the people became impatient because of the journey. [5] And the people spoke against God and Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this miserable food.” [6] And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. [7] 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. [8] Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery {serpent,} and set it on a standard; and it shall come about, that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, he shall live.” [9] And Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on the standard; and it came about, that if a serpent bit any man, when he looked to the bronze serpent, he lived.

Let’s begin by looking at some of the terminology from this incident—that will help us to understand the sin of these people in comparison to our own.

· First of all, there are the “People of God” [HSN5971, `am]

This word means flock or tribe. It was the term used for the Israelites who had been given a special status by God. They were brought out of bondage in Egypt, yet they had no strength as a people. Mentally, they were still slaves—they needed to toughen up, be bonded to God, each other, and their purpose. The time in the wilderness was meant to strengthen and bind them in all of these ways. Yet, they kept resisting and refusing to be disciplined.

· They had become impatient with God.

If we look at the Hebrew word used for impatience, we will get a clearer meaning as to the depth of their response to God’s effort to strengthen and bind them as a united people. They were not just a little impatient; they loathed their situation [HSN7114, qatsar]. The word literally means they were harvesting poor grain. When we reject God’s path we may feel like we’re harvesting—we may feel like were working really hard; but the crop we’re pulling up will not sustain us. A harvest of bitterness and cynicism is like junk food; it fills our stomach but has only negative nutritional value. Then, when we really need the energy—we have no reserves upon which to call.

· They loathed their path [HSN1870, derek].

Literally, this means that they detested their course of life—the path that was given to them for their communal salvation by a passionate, loving God. The most obvious sign of sin and pride—the sign of a truly lost person or people—is when we loath the correction and discipline of God.

· They loathed their path to the depth of their soul [HSN5315, nephesh].

Soul literally means “the breathing creature.” The breath of life represented vitality. The Holy Spirit was literally the “breath (vitality) of God.” The soul represented the innermost man, but it was also the term used for what motivates or drives a person. It could mean his appetite, his lusts or pleasure. These people were no longer motivated to serve or follow God, instead they had begun to live like animals looking only as far ahead as their next desire.

These are the images of a backbiting people, weighing down Moses at every step with second-guessing and ingratitude; cursing God for their plight. How quickly they had forgotten the slavery of Egypt, how quickly they forgot the days of whips, drudgery and impossible tasks that they had faced under the Pharaohs of Egypt. They had forgotten the joy of their deliverance; the exuberance of outrunning and defeating the mighty chariots of their wicked masters. They could only think about the passions of each day; “What has Moses or his God done for me today?”

God’s Response to the Disobedient

So God does an interesting thing, he releases a snake among the people. The word John uses for snake [GSN3789, ophis] is quite descriptive. It not only means snake, but it also applies to a person who is skilled at malicious gossip and was a term often used for Satan.

Meanwhile, some of the people began to repent and Moses intercedes on their behalf. God provides Moses a staff with a serpent on the top and those who look at the serpent on the standard are not killed when bitten by the snakes on the ground. EVERYONE GETS BIT; but only those who follow God’s directive and look up to the staff are saved.

Quite literally, God used (and uses) the snake to clean house.

Obeying God and looking up to that which God had raised up was the only way to withstand the serpent (the malicious liar) that prowled the earth among them.

The image is dramatic! Its purpose is so clear as to confront one to the inner soul (the Nephesh). The Serpent is among us—his poison is dissatisfaction, lust, hatred for God’s will and it moves all about us. Its toxin pours into the veins of all; Christian and non-Christian alike. We are all bitten by the Deceiver! But, praise almighty God, for when we look up at Christ exalted then we are immune to the toxins of this world. God’s grace, amazing grace, saves us from bitterness, pride and hatred and delivers us to the freedom of forgiveness and love.

The One Lifted Up

Only by keeping our eyes on the One whom God raised up will we be able to sustain our holiness (spiritually whole, set apart). It is by focusing on the lifted Jesus that we find our only hope!

The verb for “lifted up” [GSN5312, hupsoo] is used twenty-two times in the New Testament. It has two general purposes that we must be aware of:

1. Jesus had to be lifted up on the cross

First, we must see Jesus on the cross. For we cannot understand God’s immense love for us and the love we are to have for each other if we have not kneeled at the foot of the cross. Twice, John uses this term to indicate Jesus’ acceptance of the cross as the only way for us to grasp God’s salvation:

John 8:28

[John 8:28] Jesus therefore said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am {He,} and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.”

John 12:32

[John 12:32] “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.”

1. However, by far, the most common use of this word is “to be exalted.”

Jesus is exalted because he bore the cross.

Acts 2:33

[Acts 2:33] “Therefore having been exalted [lifted up] to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”

Acts 5:31

[Acts 5:31] “He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.”

Phil 2:9-11

[Phil 2:9] Therefore also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, [10] that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, [11] and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Looking up to the exalted Jesus is our hope for the present trials and our singular hope for eternal peace. Light has dawned, Jesus has been raised, we can endure because he has taken the Serpent’s poison and his blood contains the antitoxin. The Serpent still moves among God’s people. It slithers about injecting poison (anger, blame, and self-righteousness) on all who do not hunger for the risen Savior. But we can endure because Christ Jesus is raised!

The whining Israelites (and the whining Israelite in each of us) could not be “lifted up (exalted)” by God because they were unwilling to bear the trials of the desert. They lived from self-righteousness to anger and blame but had no desire to serve the very God who saved them. In like manner, we cannot be “lifted up” unless we have a passion to lift up our cross (endure our trials).

Luke 9:23-25

[Luke 9:23] And He was saying to {them} all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. [24] “For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. [25] “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?”

Luke 14:27

[Luke 14:27] “Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.”

The Fault of Man

There is one more note we should make about the Bronze Serpent of Moses. Eventually, the staff had to be destroyed—because people began to worship it.

II Kings 18:4

[II Ki 18:4] He removed the high places and broke down the {sacred} pillars and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the sons of Israel burned incense to it; and it was called Nehushtan. (NAS)

People began to believe that the bronze serpent [HSN5180, Nechushtan], had a power of its own. Similarly, we seem to continually grab for the tangible over the spiritual. Yet, there is no power in bronze, gold or diamonds. All of these precious metals would become useless if they were present in unlimited amounts.

In contrast, God’s love comes in unlimited amounts and it increases in usefulness the more it is surrendered! The power of God’s love grows as it is given. Throughout history, we have bound ourselves to a variety of serpents because they were tangible; we could see and touch them. We have bound our love to temples, to church buildings, to pews, to channel changers. We have attached meaning to automobiles, houses and boats that are totally lifeless. When we haven’t attached meaning to objects, we have attached them to positions. We all-too-willingly bind ourselves to the belief that only certain people have the power to speak for God, heal, teach, cleanse or visit the wounded.

What made Hezekiah God’s favored King was that he tore down those barriers; he obliterated those boundaries within his kingdom.

II Kings 18:5-7

[II Ki 18:5] He trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel; so that after him there was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor {among those} who were before him. [6] For he clung to the LORD; he did not depart from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD had commanded Moses. [7] And the LORD was with him; wherever he went he prospered. And he rebelled against the king of Assyria and did not serve him.

We also need to tear down the barriers and boundaries that keep us from loving Christ and his wounded children. We need to do a radical-rooting-up of all of our idols; letting go of anything that makes me prideful and aloof or blaming others for my situation. It is a constant process, a daily process (see the scripture above; “We must lift up our cross daily [Luke 9:23]”).

Hezekiah lost sight of this. Eventually, he began to trust more in Egypt’s chariots than the Lord’s power. As a result, he too went into slavery. It is the story of life—we are always enslaved by what we worship and we are especially enslaved by those areas of our life in which we are willing to compromise. Let us choose to worship a living God with all of our passion rather than dead symbols or mortal men.

It is the promise of God in these two biblical versus that if we cling to the risen Christ we will have eternal life [GSN166, aionios]. The word means perpetual life; it includes past, present and future and is everlasting. Therein is the incomprehensible glory of salvation. Once we choose the Way of the Lord over the Way of the Serpent, God enters our life immediately. His presence extends to heal our past of sin, infuse our present with joy and bring us a future of meaning and hope. The Way of the Serpent is the way of the bitten Israelite; “Oh poor me.” It is self-pity, hatred, and blame and it always bites the hand that feeds it.

The Way of the Cross is the Way of Glory; of peace that transcends all understanding.

Rom 5:1-8

[Rom 5:1] Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, [2] through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. [3] And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; [4] and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; [5] and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. [6] For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. [7] For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. [8] But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Philippians 4:4-9

[Phil 4:4] Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! [5] Let your forbearing {spirit} be known to all men. The Lord is near. [6] Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. [7] And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. [8] Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things. [9] The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you.

John 3:16

[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.

The Crux (Cross) of the Entire Bible

I hesitate to even write about this verse for there is arguably no greater verse in the entire bible; all the books before and all the books after reach their fulcrum in this verse. All interpretations of scripture and all studies into the character of God must be held up to the light of this verse. Our relationship with God comes down to this crux—this cross—between God and those he loved.

He loved us so much that he let his only son die for us.

If we go back as far as God’s first call to Abraham, we find a man who lived in a time of horrific gods and priests. They demanded sacrifice from their subjects and their primary sacrifice was the firstborn son. If you really loved your god you would not hesitate to offer him the firstborn of your family’s womb. The tragedy of blood has sprinkled the altars of man since Cain killed Abel. Blood was demanded by Baal from his worshippers in exchange for his blessing. It would be no new thing for the Greatest God—Jehovah Adonai—to make a similar demand of his followers in exchange for the favored nation that he had promised Avram (Abraham).

Abraham would be dismayed, even devastated. But, he would not be surprised. Perhaps he thought this God might be different than all the other Gods of men around him. After all, God had delivered Abraham a son after so many years of barren living. Yet, there seemed nothing different about this God now—He wanted blood in exchange for blessing.

Genesis 22:1-6

[Gen 22:1] Now it came about after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him, “Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” [2] And He said, “Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah; and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you.” [3] So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him and Isaac his son; and he split wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him. [4] On the third day Abraham raised his eyes and saw the place from a distance. [5] And Abraham said to his young men, “Stay here with the donkey, and I and the lad will go yonder; and we will worship and return to you.” [6] And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son, and he took in his hand the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together. (NAS)

What sorrow must have filled Abraham’s heart. How could he even get the words out when his beloved son asked: “Daddy, we have fire and wood—but where’s the sacrifice?”

Genesis 22:7-10

[Gen 22:7] And Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” And he said, “Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” [8] And Abraham said, “God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” So the two of them walked on together. [9] Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there, and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. [10] And Abraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. (NAS)

How could Abraham tie the cords? Did his son struggle? When did his son begin to understand what his dad was going to do to him? Could Abraham see the curve of his son’s beautiful neck as drew the knife downward for its fatal slice?

Then, swift to its destination—the angel stays the father’s hand. The father’s beloved is brought back from the brink of death. He is saved; freed from the cords of death! What kind of joy and relief must have filled Abraham’s heart? How could he even stand on his own two feet? Would he not fall to his knees in absolute gratitude and relief?

Genesis 22:11-18

[Gen 22:11] But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven, and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” [12] And he said, “Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” [13] Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind {him} a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son. [14] And Abraham called the name of that place The LORD Will Provide, as it is said to this day, “In the mount of the LORD it will be provided.” [15] Then the angel of the LORD called to Abraham a second time from heaven, [16] and said, “By Myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son, [17] indeed I will greatly bless you, and I will greatly multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens, and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your seed shall possess the gate of their enemies. [18] “And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

But, my dear friends, Abraham’s story is not complete until John 3:16! For what God would not ask of us; He freely gave to us. He sat willfully to the side, watching while we took his son, his only son, and made him our sacrifice. What God would not ask of us; he freely gave to us. He held back his hand, his legion of angels, the power of his right arm and watched his son, his only son, brutally sacrificed for our sins. What God would not ask of us; he freely gave to us.

This is the crux of the bible. This is the deciding point of eternity. Our God loved us so much that “He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

“My dearest God—I am so unworthy of your passionate love. Yet, you sent your son, your only son, to die for me; useless servant that I am, Lord. I want nothing more than to serve you!”

John 3:18-19

[18] Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. [19] This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.

Who Condemns?

Here is perhaps the second greatest truth of scripture. It is not God who condemns us; it is we who condemn ourselves when we turn away from God.

Romans 6:23

[Rom 6:23] For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NAS)

God is wholly good. He is Holy; the word means both “set apart” and “horrible.” He is compassion and justice with a zealous desire to keep His children from evil. However, God did everything that He could possibly do to offer us a relationship with Him. Remember, He did immeasurably more for us than He would ever ask of us! He willingly gave His only son!

It is our response to this ultimate act of love that determines where we will spend our eternity (remember that word means past, present and future). If you intimately know God; then you know that a moment without Him is sorrow. Satan may even reward us for abandoning God (in the short term). He may offer us pleasure, instant gratification, even wealth and power; all the very same things that he offered Jesus in the desert. Yet, as we have said before; “The more we feed the snake, the more it bites us.”

Find a vice that doesn’t grow with indulgence. A drug that doesn’t leave us grasping for more once it has loosed it’s venom throughout our veins. Find an anger that doesn’t make the heart harder when we offer it increasing license. Find an example of lust that doesn’t wound the object as well as the perpetrator.

Even our vane attempts to do “good” are for naught if they do not lead us to the source of goodness. They are like the family that rescues the drunk before he hits his low point. My prideful works are like the mice that our family’s housecat lays on our doorstep. The cat believes she impresses my wife with her prowess. The cat hasn’t a clue what my wife wants to see on the doorstep when she opens the front door in the morning. Similarly, we have no clue what is good to God except by drawing close to him and using all our resources to bring others into his love. Our goodness is simply misleading; God alone is the true source of eternal goodness.

When Jesus was crucified, he was crucified between two men; two men who represented us, sinners on polar sides of the only innocent man that ever walked the face of the earth. They both deserved to die while the man on the cross in the middle chose to die for us.

Luke 23:33-34

[Luke 23:33] And when they came to the place called The Skull, there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. [34] But Jesus was saying, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And they cast lots, dividing up His garments among themselves. (NAS)

Luke 23:39-43

[Luke 23:39] And one of the criminals who were hanged {there} was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” [40] But the other answered, and rebuking him said, “Do you not even fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? [41] “And we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.” [42] And he was saying, “Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!” [43] And He said to him, “Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in Paradise.” (NAS)

I am either the man on the left or the man on the right. My response to Christ eternally condemns me or frees me. My ultimate fate lies in my hands and whether I realize that I am a sinner who needs salvation or whether I am too proud to admit that I need salvation’s offered hand.

God has done everything. He could not offer more to us than to give us the free gift of salvation—it is now up to us. Judgment is our choice—not God’s condemnation.

John 3:20-21

[20] Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. [21] But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.

Evil Is Not an Isolated Action—It Springs From a Way of Living

I have seen people who are proud of being evil and admitted it; they are repulsive and few. Most people who are truly evil have lived in a cocoon of self-denial and rationalization and rarely realize they are living in sin. They are “comfortable” with their self-deception. More often our pride just keeps us from even considering the impact of our actions on others. The Hebrew concept of evil [HSN7489, ra` a`] was not an action; it was a way of acting, a state of being. The sense of the word is one who does harm and does it maliciously. It is someone who breaks apart relationships and might even be thought of as a “spoiling agent” like a bacteria that spoils food, turning it to poison.

Remember when John started this chapter talking about the attitudes of the Israelites, their hatred of the way of God, their scoffing at Moses’ leadership? Remember how they were backbiters and obstinate; dwelling on immediate gratification and forgetting God’s wonders? These are the spoiling agents that God’s light reveals. How many of those people thought they were evil? Weren’t they just “demanding their rights?” They had cloaked themselves in garments of self-indignation and other-blame; “It isn’t fair.” “Just who does Moses think he is?”

Throwin’ or Growin’?

The Evil Ones are those who carry a bag full of complaints like a sack full of rotten tomatoes. They’d rather throw ‘em than grow ‘em. It is easy for us to criticize when we think only of our own needs and have never had to lead an entire people through God’s wilderness. It’s easy to snipe and grouse with people who are just like me and forget about all those who have less; who are ill and old, orphaned or widowed. Evil is rooted in the question, “What about me?” when we should be asking, “What about God’s children?”

Evil refutes discipline and thinks it is above reproach:

Psalm 50:17

[Ps 50:17] “For you hate discipline, and you cast My words behind you.” (NAS)

Proverbs 4:18-19

[Prov 4:18] But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, that shines brighter and brighter until the full day. 19] The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know over what they stumble.

Proverbs 15:12

[Prov 15:12] A scoffer does not love one who reproves him, He will not go to the wise.

James goes even further and says that evil is to know what is right and then not do it. In other words—evil is not just doing bad things—it is avoiding what is just and liberating.

James 1:23-25

[James 1:23] For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; [24] for {once} he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. [25] But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the {law} of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does.

In vivid examples of men who are cast from God’s presence for their evil, we find:

· “Sons of the Kingdom” who think that birthright gives them a privileged spot at God’s table. Those people are condemned in contrast to the simple belief of the Roman Centurion who says; “Lord I am not worthy that you come under my roof [Matt 8:8].”

· The one who sows weeds among God’s grain fields [Matt 13:41].

· A man who thought his own clothes were fancy enough for a King’s banquet and didn’t wrap himself in the clothes that the King provided (the robes of Christ’s sacrifice) [Matt 22:12];

· The one’s who refused to love Jesus when he was present in the form of the least of these [Matt 25:45-46].

Then, there are those who are even in the presence of God’s love but can feel nothing but hatred and anger:

· The men who were angry that the vineyard owner gave a day’s wage to everyone; no matter how long they worked in the vineyard, [Matt 20:11];

· A son who was jealous when his lost brother returned home and received his dad’s complete acceptance [Matt 15:28];

· A rich man (Dives), who ignored poverty even when it sat at his own gate (Lazarus) [Luke 16:25];

Finally, we see Christ paint the most impressive picture of those who will either accept or reject God. It is the picture of a horrible sinner, a tax collector—the Jews hated no one more—a traitor to his own people. Yet, despite his horrific sin, he throws himself upon God’s temple floor and declares; “I am THE sinner.” Not, A sinner; he declares himself THE sinner!

Next to him stood a Pharisee, fastidious about the law to the most delicate detail. He sneered at the prostrate tax collector and wrapped himself in a cloak of pride. “I thank God that I am not like him!”

Who is evil in God’s sight?

Luke 18:14

[Luke 18:14] “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled, but he who humbles himself shall be exalted.”

Evil is placing myself above any man. Evil is looking at the cross and saying; “I don’t need your help.” Evil is indifferent Christianity. Evil is judgmentalism, prejudice and pride unchecked. Evil is often socially acceptable—even socially “en vogue.” But, evil is subtle. It is a snake in the hand; the more it’s fed, the longer it will stay.

We often do not choose evil; we succumb to it—little by little over a lifetime. It slithers around our hearts and cuts off our compassion; it pours its toxin into our spirits and deadens our humility.

John makes a sandwich of the greatest news ever told. He spells out his case:

1. Look to the elevated Jesus; on the cross and by God’s side. It is the way to salvation.

2. God has done everything possible (and even more) to make ultimate joy available to us. Now we must choose.

3. Not choosing is a choice. Not obeying is choosing evil. To choose or succumb to evil is to die. Choose life; choose Christ.

Youth Supplement

Pivotal Question

A dear friend of mine (Chaplain Martin, in the Yakima County Jail) has a pivotal question he will often ask men who come to the jail but resist taking the opportunities that could further their growth.

“Do you have a daughter?” He asks.

“Yea,” says the inmate unsure of where the question might be going.

“What if I told you that I already know the first man that girl is going to love?” He will query.

“I would say you were nuts, Chaplain,” is a common response.

“What if I told you that I even know his name?” He inquires further.

“I’d say that you should probably be in here instead of me, Chaplain.”

“Well,” Chaplain Lopez will say, “I do know that man and I do know his name—that man is You!”

“She will look for a man just like her daddy! So, let me ask you, son. Are you the kind of man that you want your daughter to marry?”

That question is a life-changing question; a pivotal question. It is a question that one cannot walk away from without making a choice. Either you choose to change for the love of another or continue to act in selfishness. All of life can be measured in a person’s response to such a choice.

Pivotal Verse

Chaplain Martin’s pivotal question comes to mind because this week’s scripture is THE pivotal verse of all scripture. John 3:16 is a verse against which all of life can be measured. Indeed, the salvation of humankind will be measured by the words: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son.”

When sin entered the world it broke the relationship with God and his people. Since then, every act of sin, (Christ tells us even every thought or whisper of sin) only serves to lengthen the distance between God and his people. The very first sin of Adam and Eve was enough to create an inaccessible distance between the pure holiness of God and the stained state of his children. Just imagine the distance now, after thousands of years of sin!

So God did the unthinkable; knowing that sin demanded sacrifice—for the wages of sin is death—God gave the greatest gift that will ever be given. He allowed his son to die in our place.

There might be times that you think; “I would be willing to offer my brother/sister as a sacrifice.” When they ‘borrow’ a game or some clothes without asking; when they snoop on your phone calls or tell your parent something you didn’t want them to know. Maybe you find yourself thinking at a time like that; “Lord, if you desire, I am willing to offer my sibling to you. You can send him/her to Egypt, the moon or Mars—I will even pay the postage.”

Yet, the reality is; most of us would give everything—and maybe even our lives—for someone we loved.

God, on the other hand, loved us so much that he let his one and only son die for us—while we were still sinners! There is no greater gift. There is no greater sacrifice. At any moment, as He watched his son tortured because of our sins, God could have shouted; “That’s enough!” and sent twelve thousand angels to demolish sinful man. (By the way, only one angel was needed to demolish all of Sodom and Gomorrah).

The reason this is a pivotal verse lies in the following two truths:

1. God is love

His love is so great that he gave the ultimate sacrifice to save us.

2. God has given everything—now it is our turn.

Like the man that Chaplain Martin asked; “Are you the kind of man that you want your little girl to marry?” This verse gives us a pivotal question. “Will we accept his love and change or choose to reject it and live in sin?”

God does not condemn us. Sin does. Choosing to accept the love that God offers through the gift of his son, Jesus Christ, frees us to start all over again. Refusing that offer—or even not choosing to accept it—means that we are relying on ourselves to cross the inaccessible distance between God and man.

If it were not that serious—God would certainly not have sent his son to die. All of eternity—my eternity and yours—rests on this pivotal question. “Do I accept this gift and start living differently or continue in my sin?”

It is the pivotal verse and the pivotal question.

Questions:

· Ask three adults that you admire what events, books, biblical verses or persons were “pivotal” in their life.

· Ask them if they ever had a “pivotal” question or statement that dramatically touched their life.

· Have you ever heard a “pivotal” question or statement? Perhaps a song or someone’s story that really made you think about your own life?

· Jesus was a “pivotal” person. Everyone who interacted with him came away different. Some walked away more hateful and wanted him dead—others walked away and sold everything they had to follow him. Name three qualities that made Jesus a “pivotal” person.

· What would it take for you to become a “pivotal” person in other people’s lives?

· There are many people who teach about an angry, judgmental God. How does this contrast with a God who so loved the world that he gave his one and only son? A God who gave everything to offer us a way back to him?

· Which God appeals to you more?

· What are three things you could share or do for others that would lead them to understand the God who loves us that much?

Copyright Notice

“Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, (C) Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1988. Used by permission.”

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