John 3:14 - 18:
"14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
16 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.
17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."

 

God displayed His love to the children of Israel many times in the wilderness, but they despised Him and would not have Him to rule over them. They rebelled, grumbled, despised His food to such an extent that one could wonder whether there was anything good which God had done for them. Even when He chastised them He provided a way of escape so that those who would look upon the snake would live. He felt pity for them.

Today as well, you need to look to God so that you can be saved from that which is troubling you - so that you may be saved from your sins.

Those Israelites would have received no benefit had they not looked up to the serpent, even though it was there. They had to obey the Word of God, and live.

So too God commands each one who is bitten by the serpent of sin to look to the Son of Man and be saved.

We read in verse 5, "“unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God". "Water" here refers to the Word of God which washes and cleanses us, and not to baptism. One's life must be transformed and one must be saved.

The rich young ruler kept the commandments of the Lord since his youth, but he wasn't willing to forsake all for the sake of Christ and to follow Him. If you want to enter the Kingdom of God you must lose your life for the sake of Christ. Your whole life is transformed when you "seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness". If you only want eternal life badly but do not cast yourself unreservedly on Christ you will not be saved.

We need to believe in the Word of God, be obedient to Him? Or are we like the Israelites, murmuring, complaining, gossiping, criticizing the very food which God has given us in His grace? The one who does that, will perish with those who perish unless he repents.

We also read here that "whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life". The life which is in the Son of God, is in those who believe in Him. They will live for all eternity. Many people are distracted by temporary pleasure and gain. If only they would realize that if they remain true to God, they will receive eternal life. There are those who forsake the faith and turn their backs on God, for the temporary pleasures of this world, money, fame or the cares of this world.

Do your life uplift the Lord Jesus and exalt Him? Does your life testify to the fact that Jesus has been born in you and that you desire to do His will and walk in His ways? The Word of God must be alive in you. You must spend time with the Lord and His Word day by day.

You cannot serve God and the world. You cannot draw close to God and draw close to the lust, pleasures, pornography, slander, pride etc. Those things will drown the work of God in your life.

Rather live for God with all of your heart and shun the things of the world which strive against God. Live in such a way that people can say, "We don't only hear that he wants to follow God, but we can see it. He loves God and the things of God, because he loves the people of God and are always busy with the things of God."
Has this miracle been done in your life?