¹³Jesus said to Nicodemus: "No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
¹⁴ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up,
¹⁵ that whoever believes in him may have eternal life."
¹⁶ For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
¹⁷ For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.

• Verses 14 to 21 constitute the second part of the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus when he came to seek out Jesus during the night. In the first part of the conversation (3:1-13), Jesus told Nicodemus that man has to be reborn through the Spirit to enter eternal life.
• (v.14) The reference of the bronze serpent is from the book of Numbers 21:4. As the bronze serpent was the symbol of salvation for the Israelites who believed in God, the crucifixion of Jesus on the cross is the sign of God's salvation for all mankind.
• (v.14) "Lifted up" implies both being lifted off the earth (being crucified on the cross), and being lifted onto the glory of God (the resurrection).
• (v.16) God's love is the single principle of his salvation for the world, and humankind in particular. It is of this Love that God gifted the world with His Son so that He would come, not to condemn, but to lead mankind to eternal life.
• (v.16) "God gave his only Son" in two senses: (1) The incarnation: "the one who has come down from heaven" (v.13), and (2) The death on the cross: "the Son of Man be lifted up" (v.14)
• (v.16) "believe" - To have eternal life, God only requires one response: that people believe in Jesus.

The cross is exalted because it brings life: "everyone who believes in him may have eternal life".

1. Let us reexamine our attitude and mentality during our life of the past month. Let us be honest to ourselves and reflect the priority we have given to Christ and His will. Is Christ the "light" in our life, or is He just one of the "lights", such as the "light" of arrogance, the "light" of acquired wealth, the "light" of power, the "light" of hatred, etc.. Are we ready to bet our life on the "light" of Christ?
2. Let us reflect on the true motives that keep us from embracing the "light" of Christ in our life. Does it make us loving someone that we want to hate? Does it make us realize that we have our own priority? Or is that because we are afraid that it will make clear the evil of our ways?
3. "God so loved the world that He gave His only Son" is a declaration of God's love to humankind. The agony of rejection is rather a common human experience. Contemplate over the agony that God has to bear over the way we use our freedom - a gift from God - to reject His love and His desire to restore goodness in mankind.
4. Salvation is belief in God accompanied by works done in God. "Belief in Jesus" and "works done in God" must go together. Let us reflect on the occasions when we lost our faith in God, and ask ourselves how often our works were done in God.

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A synthesis by the Vietnamese Christian Life (Dong Hanh) Community