European Bible Study Meeting, 2002The Heart of God Revealed in the Old TestamentApril 3rd, 2002, Afternoon Lecture Part 2For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  John 3:16-17That Whoever Believes in Him Should not Perish but Have Eternal LifeLast time, we took a look at the words of Jesus in John chapter 3 when He told Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, that he needed to be born again. Just as it says in the book of Ecclesiastes, “As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child” (11:5), Jesus said that you do not know where the wind comes from or where it goes and so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.Let’s turn to John chapter 3 and read from verse 9.Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?  verses 9-10When Nicodemus asked how such a thing could be possible, Jesus said to him, “How is it that you do not know this seeing as how you are a teacher of the Israelites?”Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.  John 3:11What did He mean when He said, “we” here? He was referring to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.  John 3:12-13Man’s brain is incapable of understanding the works of God. Since we do not fully understand the things that happen on earth, we must not complain at will about God in heaven, accuse Him of being unfair, judge the work of God in one way or another, or criticize or judge Him at will. These are tremendous sins in front of God.Jesus said, “No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.” Jesus alone came down from heaven. As we live on this earth in our mortal flesh, we tend to judge God at will and have thoughts such as, “Why is God so unfair? Why did God put the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in the garden of Eden, knowing full well that Adam would eat from it? I can’t believe in that kind of God.” But we need to consider whether we are qualified to ask God such questions.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 3:14-15Jesus said that just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up. Abraham left Egypt and returned to the land of Canaan, and the Israelites also came out of the land of Egypt and traveled back to the land of Canaan. Let’s take a look at something that happened amongst them along the way. It is in the book of Numbers chapter 21.From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. And the people spoke against God and against 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 worthless food.” Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you.”  verses 4-7They said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and you.” As you look them, think deeply about this matter and ask yourself if you have ever felt resentful towards God, or perhaps you feel resentful towards Him even now.“Pray to the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.  Numbers 21:7-9God said to Abraham, “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, northward and southward and eastward and westward” (Genesis 13:14), and when Abraham was taking his son Isaac to offer him up as a sacrifice to God, he lifted up his eyes on the third day and saw the place from afar (see Genesis 22:1-4). Similarly, when these people looked at the bronze serpent on the pole as God had told them to do, their wounds were healed.Perhaps you are thinking, “That is strange. The Son of God hung on the wooden cross. Why did God tell them here to look at a serpent? The serpent conjures up an image of the devil. This does not seem to fit in with the rest of the Bible.” To see if such thoughts are correct or not, let’s turn to Second Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21.For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. It says here that Jesus was made our sin. Jesus was covered with your sin so He became your sin, when He was nailed to the cross and died also your sin died. There is a Bible verse that says, “Anyone hung on a tree is under God’s curse” (Deuteronomy 21:23 CSB). Since your sin was nailed to the tree, that is the end of it. This is the sin that came in through the deception of the serpent. When Adam was deceived by the serpent and we all became sinners, God said to the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15). As God had said at that time in the Garden of Eden, the moment Jesus died on the cross, the head of the devil was bruised. As Jesus died on the cross, He took upon Himself all our sins. So all that is necessary is for the words “when he sees it, [he] shall live” to become your very own. There is no need for anything else.Let’s turn to second Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21 again.For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.When it says, “in him,” here, it means in Jesus Christ. God has said, “I set before you the way of life and the way of death” (Jeremiah 21:8). You need only enter “the way of life.” This “way of life” lies in the cross of Jesus Christ. We need only look to His cross and go. When we enter Him we become the righteousness of God. This is saying that if you believe in the cross of Jesus Christ and God did it and that becomes your very own, you become the righteousness of God.God so Loved the World, that He Gave His only SonLet’s return to John chapter 3.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. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  verses 14-16It says here that God “so loved the world.” How much does “so” mean here? God told Abraham “Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you” (Genesis 22:2), and, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). Similarly, He told the Son of God who was with Him in His glory to go to this lowly place, this sinful world. Also, just as Abraham bound his son and took the knife and the fire in his hand to offer him as a burnt sacrifice, God Himself watched over as His Son was nailed to the cross.“Whoever believes in him” means whoever believes in this Son. This is not simply. Even if you believe in Jesus, you need to know and trust Him. Whenever you read John chapter 3 verse 16, always keep in mind the content of Genesis chapter 22. You can see the kind of heart that God was leading Abraham to have.Let’s turn to John chapter 1 from verse 1 to verse 14.In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.Everything we have studied together so far is contained in this passage. It seems to answer all the questions at one time. “The true light” is not the light of the sun; it is the actual light. He came to the world and shone His light on each individual person. The world was made by Him, but the world did not know Him. Also He came to His own land—the land of Israel—but the people of Israel did not receive Him. And yet to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.Who is referred to here as those who “believed in his name”? Compare the verse that says, “you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21), and the verse that says, “through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you” (Acts 13:38). We also need to take into consideration that the Bible tells us that we cannot be justified by works of the law, but God justifies us by faith (see Romans 3:20-22). If you make an effort to believe in the name of Jesus Christ, you will fail no

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