Reading
John 3:14-21
Introduction
The gospel passage we’ve just heard is probably very familiar to most of us, and contains quite possibly the most well-known verse in the Bible! Whilst I will of course refer to that verse, we’ll also be thinking about its immediate context, which gives us important understanding that we might otherwise overlook.
We’ve come in on the end of a conversation between the Lord Jesus and a man called Nicodemus who, presumably troubled in a good way by what he’d seen and heard, sought Jesus out in secret to try and find out more.
Nicodemus was a devout, morally upright Pharisee and a respected member of the Jewish ruling council in Jerusalem. He’s just learnt from Jesus that all these apparent advantages weren’t enough to get him into the kingdom of heaven; he couldn’t be saved by his own efforts, he needed to be born from above, born of the Spirit – born again!
He asks Jesus, ‘How can this be?’ (9) and, as part of his response, Jesus explains how his mission as Messiah will make salvation possible.
As I thought about the passage, I noticed how well Methodism’s ‘Four Alls’ served as a basis for understanding it:
- All need to be saved
- All can be saved
- All can know they are saved
- All can be saved to the uttermost
So let’s think about this passage in those terms.
All Need To Be Saved
All need to be saved. Why do we need to be saved? In verses 18 to 20, John tells us what our fundamental problem is; “… people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.”
In our natural state, we are sinners. We do wrong, we live for ourselves, we disregard God and do what we want. As Isaiah puts it, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way.” (Is. 53:6a)
In our natural state we are found wanting. Paul writes in Romans 3:23 that, “… all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…”
Our sin damages us, and separates us from the relationship with God that we were designed for. And we dare not get too close to God anyway, lest we are exposed for who we really are! So we hide in the darkness.
Yes, we try to do good things, even by attending church. Does it help? Do we find ourselves wondering if we’ve done enough, hoping that we have? Not even Nicodemus’s devout practice of religion was enough to save him. And neither is ours.
Paul writes in Romans 6:23 that, “… the wages of sin is death…” And, as John reminds us here, we stand condemned, unable to save ourselves.
All need to be saved!
All Can Be Saved
That was the bad news; now here’s the good news: all can be saved!
We can’t rely on our own efforts to save us. But we can be saved by relying entirely on what God himself has done for us.
Jesus reminds Nicodemus about an incident in the history of Israel when the people yet again grumbled against God and against Moses. We’re told that God sent venomous snakes among them in judgement. Many Israelites were bitten and died. The people repented of their grumbling and asked for mercy, so God told Moses to make a model snake and put it up on a pole and promised that “anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” (Num 21:8.) And that’s what happened!
Imagine it! You’re bitten by a snake; you know you’re going to die. What do you do? Try your best to ignore the poison? Or look at the snake on the pole and rely on God’s sure promise?
Now, Jesus points out to Nicodemus that the snake on the pole is a figure of Messiah. Just as the snake was lifted up, so must Messiah be lifted up. Just as looking at the snake and relying on God’s promise saved the Israelites, so also those who look to Messiah and rely on God’s promise can be saved.
OK, let’s quote that famous verse: “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.”
But God didn’t just send Jesus to the world as a role model. John tells us that Jesus didn’t come to condemn us; he came to rescue us from condemnation. He came with a very particular purpose. When Jesus spoke about the Son of Man having to be lifted up he foretold his death on the cross and the necessity of it.
The cross of Christ brings the enormity of our sin and cancels it out by the immensity of God’s love; at the cross, Jesus took on himself God’s just penalty for our sin (“… the wages of sin is death…”) and opened the way for us to receive God’s compassionate mercy.
God wants all to be saved. He didn’t love merely a few: he loved the whole world. The offer of salvation is not just to a few: the offer is to “whoever”.
All can be saved, but not all will be saved. You see, there’s a condition: we must believe. To be healed from the snake bite the Israelites had to go a look at the model snake in reliance on God’s promise. To be saved from condemnation we have to recognise the futility of our own efforts and rely on Christ’s sacrifice at the cross as full payment for our rescue, forgiveness and redemption.
All can be saved!
All Can Know They Are Saved
All Can Know They Are Saved. Let me ask you, do you know you’re saved? Do know what it is to be born again, born of the Spirit? Do you have assurance of your salvation?
If you are relying on Jesus to save you, what can you bank on?
Verse 17: Jesus himself came for the very purpose of saving us. Jesus cried out on the cross, “It is finished.” The language there means, “It is accomplished.” Jesus succeeded in his mission. Our penalty was paid and our salvation secured.
The Hymn-writer Horatio Spafford expressed his assurance like this:
My sin – O the bliss of this glorious thought –
My sin – not in part but the whole –
Is nailed to his cross; and I bear it no more;
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul.
It is well with my soul…
Verse 18: Whoever believes in him is not condemned. Charles Wesley expressed his assurance like this:
No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine!
Alive in Him, my living Head,
and clothed in righteousness divine,
bold I approach the eternal throne,
and claim the crown, through Christ, my own.
Verse 16: those who believe shall not perish. Jesus didn’t fail! Salvation for those who rely on him is certain!
All Can Be Saved To The Uttermost
All can be saved to the uttermost. I’ve heard it said that “Jesus can save you from the gutter-most to the uttermost.”
We’ve probably all heard testimonies of people who were utterly destitute in body, mind and spirit meeting Jesus and being lifted out of their mess, being completely reoriented, and going on to live purposeful lives of Christian service. I came across an amazing story only this week.
Most of us have probably never been in such dire straights, but we all need picking up, turning around and being set on a new course.
In this life, here on earth, God begins the transformation of our living, renewing in us the image of his Son. But there’s more good news! This isn’t all there is!
Verses 15 and 16 talk about those who believe having eternal life. We have a solid hope of better things to come beyond our lives in this world.
This hope of eternal life can help us in the here-and-now too. Many of us – especially those of us who are older – may feel like the pandemic has robbed us of a year of our lives, and we might not have many left! I can understand that; it’s hardly been an unending round of pleasure. But I’m not letting myself be despondent about that: I have eternity in view!
I was once in a meeting where Richard Wurmbrand was being interviewed. He was a Romanian pastor who was tortured in a communist prison for 14 years because of his faith. He was asked if he felt bitter about the lost time. He said, “I’m not bitter. I have all of eternity ahead of me. What is 14 years?”
Now, we don’t know what eternal life will be like. It may be very like this world but without its problems. And it won’t be boring. It won’t be endless monotony stretched out forever ahead of us. God will be there! We will be with him! There’ll be a wedding feast! And that’s just the start of it!
Psalm 16 says, “You make known to me the path of life; you fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”
There are no half-measures with God—he saves us to the uttermost!
Summary
- All need to be saved. Have you recognised your need of a Saviour? Have you given up trying to save yourself?
- All can be saved. God has given sure and certain promises that whoever relies on Jesus will be saved.
- All can know they are saved. Do you have that assurance? What are you trusting in?
- All can be saved to the uttermost. Allow God to renew his image in your life in this world, and fill you with joy for the hope that lies before you in eternity.
Amen!
