Lifting up Christ on the cross to save us

Today’s Sunday gospel in John 3:13-17 speaks volumes about the Love of God:

[Jesus said to Nicodemus,] 13 “No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.”

To better understand this passage, fast forward to the day after the Resurrection in Luke 24:13-35 on the Appearance of our Lord Jesus on the Road to Emmaus.

Two of Jesus’ disciples, one of them named Cleofas, were walking towards Emmaus when Jesus started walking with them. But the two failed to recognize him. He asked the two what they were talking about. Cleofas replied, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know of the things that have taken place there in these days?” Jesus then queried further and asked, “What sort of things?” Cleofas then gave the story of the events that happened to Jesus Christ who was mighty in deed and in word before God who was crucified. Now his body had vanished and that some women in their group were met by an angel who announced that the Lord has risen from the dead, which was confirmed by their other members.

Jesus then told the two, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke! Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” Jesus then recounted to the two about his life from the time of Moses and all what the prophets foretold of him.

Let us backtrack to the days of the Old Testament right after Moses threw on the ground the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, written by the hand of God because the ungrateful Israelites worshipped the golden calf. When poisonous snakes appeared and bit thousands of Israelites, they asked Moses to ask God to save them. God then ordered Moses to make a Bronze Serpent and place it on top of a pole and those bitten by the snakes were made to look up to this “graven” image when it was lifted up and they were all saved!

Back to the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. He pointed out that the Son of Man has to be lifted up so that everyone who believes in him shall be saved! This was actually a prophesy that our Lord Jesus would be crucified on the cross and literally lifted up for all to see so we can all be saved!

So what did the Lord mean when he told Nicodemus, “No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man?” My humble understanding of this statement is that, from the time of Moses or even longer before him, the heavens were closed. All those who died before the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ never got into heaven, not matter how good they were. But since the good would never be thrown into hell, where then did they go? Well, we could only assume that they were in limbo, somewhere in between heaven and hell.

This brings us to the time of the Transfiguration of our Lord Jesus in Matt. 17:1-8 where our Lord Jesus Christ brought along three of his disciples, Peter, James and John to Mt. Tabor where he was transfigured. The three Apostles saw Jesus conversing with Moses and Elijah. What do you think were the three discussing right before the eyes of the startled Apostles? My layman’s idea of this event was Jesus was visiting them in Limbo to inform them of the Good News of their salvation.

Finally, read in John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life”. The operative word here is Love. Indeed,God is Love or in Latin, “Deus Caritas Est.”The title was aptly used by his holiness Pope Benedict XVI for his very first Encyclical. For many centuries, Christians were taught about the “don’ts” emblazoned in the Ten Commandments, that we should all fear the wrath of God. Many felt it quite difficult to love someone whom we fear.

Yet in ancient times and up to this time, devout Israelis memorize the Shima, praying in Hebrew “Sh’ma Yis’ra’eil Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad” which means, “Hear O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength and with all your mind.” Only when we believe that God loves each and everyone of us can we also learn to love our God whom we cannot see with our eyes, but we can feel within our soul.