JOHN 3:14 INTERPRETS JOHN 3:16

Pastor Art Watkins of Coden Bible Church (Coden, Alabama)

January 15, 2018

John 3:14: And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up.

When and where was Christ lifted up? Let him answer for himself:

John 12:32-33: And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. This he said, signifying what death he should die.

He was lifted up on the cross where he died. But what did he die for? Let him answer for himself:

Matthew 20:28: Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.

Christ was lifted up on the cross according to John 3:14 to pay a ransom for sinners according to Matthew 20:28. What is a ransom? The word ransom literally means a price paid for the redemption of captives. In war, when prisoners are taken captive by the enemy the money demanded for their release is called a ransom. It’s the price paid to set them free. Anything that releases anyone from a state of punishment, suffering or sin is called a ransom.

We all need a ransom because we are all by nature captives to sin. We are sold under sin, under the condemnation of sin, and under the curse of sin. And unless we find a ransom to deliver us we will perish in hell. But thank God, we have found a ransom! Matthew 20:28 and John 3:14 and many others tell us that Christ gave himself a ransom for all men when he was lifted up on the cross. That is, he died in the place of sinners and God was willing to accept the pains of his death on the cross in the place of the everlasting suffering that all sinners deserve in hell.

Therefore when you read John 3:16 keep what the Lord said in Matthew 20:28 and John 3:14 in mind:

John 3:16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

The LOVE of John 3:16 is found in John 3:14. The greatest demonstration of the love of God is when he GAVE his only begotten Son into the hands of ungodly sinners to die for ungodly sinners. When Christ was lifted up on the cross according to John 3:14 this world saw the proof that God is a God of love and that there is no love higher than his.

The WORLD of John 3:16 is all men without exception and distinction. John said in 1 John 2:2: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. There is no such thing as limited atonement. His atonement is UNLIMITED for he died for the sins of the whole world.

The faith and BELIEVING in John 3:16 is believing that he was lifted up on the cross in John 3:14 to pay the ransom for your sins according to Matthew 20:28.

The promise of EVERLASTING LIFE to all who believe in John 3:16, is based upon the death and shed blood of Christ on the cross in John 3:14.

Don’t hesitate to preach John 3:16, but make sure you define it by John 3:14 and Matthew 20:28.