Sermon: Lent IV RCL B - "Lift High the Cro... Snake?"

The Podcast can be found here.

John 3:14-21

Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

"Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God."

Some rather interesting news came out of Alabama in 1992… The article says that the Rev. Glenn Summerford, the former pastor at the Church of Jesus with Signs Following is “currently a guest of the state correctional authorities. Pastor Summerford was convicted in the 1991 attempted murder of his wife, Darlene”… What did he do to his beloved?  Records indicate, “he forced [her to hold] her hand in a box full of rattlesnakes until she was bitten.”… Rev. Glenn contended that he was innocent and that the only reason his wife was bitten was because, “her faith waivered.”

Another rather interesting article came out in 1998… The Rev. John Wayne "Punkin" Brown Jr., 34, of Parrottsville, Tennessee, died while handling a four-foot timber rattlesnake during a sermon, preaching on for a quarter-hour after he was bitten. For the record.. his wife died of a snake bite three years ago”…

…FYI.. the Rev. Punkin is cousin to the Rev. Summerford who tried to kill his wife…

The article goes on to say that, “On Saturday, Brown was clutching the snake in his right hand when it bit him on the middle finger of his left, between the knuckle and first joint.

The Rev. Gene Sherbert, of Temple, Georgia, was next to Brown when this happened and reported that, "He looked at me and I knowed he was bit and I put it (the snake) back in the box." ... The Rev. Punkin died a few minutes later.

“Why?” do you ask would they be handling snakes… simple… the Bible says so, Mark 16:17-18: "And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover."… Scripture also says, “thou shall not put the Lord thy God to the test.”

I believe that it was in John Grisham’s book The Last Juror that one of the characters recommends, if attending a snake handling church, to sit on the front row.  It seems that the snakes are kept on ice in a box.. and those on the first row handle it while it is still in a state of hibernation, but by the time it reaches the back of the church – wide awake!

The folks in the day of Moses had a healthier understanding of the issue of snakes.  It was best to stay away from them because the ones wandering in the desert were killers.  It happened on one particular day – as we read in our Old Testament lesson – that they had begun to complain once more against God, so God sent them a plague of snakes and many were killed.  This drove them to repent of their murmuring, but the snakes were still there, so they asked Moses to help and God told Moses to make a snake out of bronze.. to place it on a pole and lift it up.  When the people were bitten, if they would look at the bronze snake, they would be saved.

This particular bronze snake had a name, Nehushtan, and it would be carried with the people as they travelled through the desert and would later hold a place of honor in the Temple.  Trouble is.. over time.. the people no longer looked at this snake as a sign of God’s salvation.. but as a god itself.  However, when Hezekiah became king of Israel, he destroyed the now idol… Scripture says, Hezekiah “did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, just as his father David had done.  He removed the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made, for up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. (It was called Nehushtan.)”

What does this all mean?... The people had spoken against God, so God sent the snakes as a judgment… In order to be spared the death that came from the snakes they were told to look upon the bronze snake.. they were called to look upon their judgment... Because you disobeyed God, because you spoke against Him.. you must look upon the consequence of your disobedience in order to be saved.

Today in our Gospel reading, Nicodemus – who is a Pharisee – comes to Jesus at night.. he likely comes at night because he is afraid to be seen by others visiting with this rabble-rouser Jesus… Nicodemus believes the signs that Jesus has been performing.  Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born from above in order to be saved.  Nicodemus fails to understand what Jesus is saying… so Jesus responds by saying… "Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

The Israelites in the wilderness were required to look upon their judgment – the bronze serpent – in order to be saved.  Jesus is saying, in a similar manner, Nicodemus must also look upon his judgment and believe, in order to be saved.  Nicodemus must look upon his judgment for his disobedience to God.  And what is the judgment for disobedience toward God.. for sin?  Romans 6:23, “the wages of sin.. the consequence of sin.. the judgment of sin is death.”  Nicodemus must look upon death in order to be saved… but not just anybody’s death… he must look upon the death.. the judgment of the Son of God.. of Jesus in order to be saved… He must look upon Christ crucified.. and believe that it is through Jesus’ death that he will receive his salvation.

The message to us.. is no different … we too must look upon the judgment for our sins – death – and believe that it is through that judgment – in the person of Christ crucified – that we are saved.  We must recognize that our sins lead to eternal death… yet, God so loved the world – so loved us – that he gave his only Son to suffer death for us..  so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

Believe and have eternal life… sounds like foolishness to many.. and to many others it is too simple.  God wouldn’t simply give salvation away so freely.  We must earn that right to get into heaven.  We must follow the rules.  Sit, stand, kneel, bow when we are supposed to.  We must live the perfect boring Christian life.  We must be able to handle snakes without our faith failing for even a moment.  Put one toe out of line and you will be bitten.. you will be hell bound.  We apply this way of thinking to others and to ourselves – we end up echoing Paul’s question, “Who then can be saved?”.. and in our logic we answer, “No one… not even ourselves.”  To any who think in such a way I would remind them of the day that Jesus was crucified and the two thieves…

One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: “Aren’t you the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”… But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God.. since you are under the same sentence?  We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong.”  Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”  Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”

Did the thief follow all the rules?  Did he get all the answers right?  Did he lead a perfect life in the eyes of God?  Was he able to handle the snakes without getting bitten?  Or.. did he simply look upon his own judgment and see his salvation?

Look upon the death of Jesus and see it as your own death… and then look again, see your salvation .. and believe.

Let us pray… O Jesus, it is not the heavenly reward You have promised which impels us to love You; neither is it the threat of hell that keeps us from offending You. It is You O Lord, it is the sight of You affixed to the Cross and suffering insults; it is the sight of Your broken body, as well as Your pains and Your death. There is nothing You can give us to make us love You. For even if there were no heaven and no hell we would still love you as we do!  Amen.