How Ridiculously Easy God Made It to Receive the Gift of Eternal Life
Orientation
Humanity's deep-seated pride and religious striving make God's simple gift of salvation through faith alone seem too easy to accept.
- We often believe we must earn God's favor through our own efforts or morality.
- Religious systems promote self-salvation, obscuring the free gift of grace.
- The human heart struggles to accept a remedy that requires nothing but looking to Christ.
And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. (John 3:14-15)
— John 3:14-15
Clarification
Salvation is not about improving ourselves to approach God, but about receiving His finished remedy for our sin-bitten condition.
- The bronze serpent represented judgment for sin; Christ on the cross bore that judgment for us.
- Looking to the serpent was not a work, but an act of faith in God's provided remedy.
- All sins are forgiven through faith in Christ's atonement; only rejecting Him brings condemnation.
And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. (Numbers 21:8)
— Numbers 21:8
Structure
The biblical pattern shows God first reveals the terror of our separation due to sin, then provides a divine remedy requiring only faith.
- Human rebellion brings divine judgment (fiery serpents), revealing our desperate state.
- God's provision (bronze serpent) addresses the judgment, offering life through a simple look.
- Christ, lifted up on the cross, is the ultimate fulfillment, bearing judgment so believers receive eternal life.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
— 2 Corinthians 5:21
Weight-Bearing Prose
The core theological assertion is justification by faith alone, apart from works of the law. The typology from Numbers 21, authorized by Christ in John 3, establishes the Pauline category of substitutionary atonement. Christ became sin for us, bearing divine judgment on the cross. The human condition is one of spiritual death, bitten by sin and separated from a holy God. Any system that adds human effort or religious observance to simple faith in Christ’s finished work constitutes a different gospel. The object of faith is God’s testimony concerning His Son: that He died for our sins and was raised. Believing this record is what saves. This faith is not a work, nor is it a ‘heart faith’ distinct from intellectual assent; it is being convinced that God’s testimony is true. The only sin that condemns is the rejection of this provided Son.
Integration
Your assurance rests entirely on Christ’s work, not your own. He was lifted up so you could look and live. There is no pressure to advance or mature into this truth; it is complete and sufficient from the moment you believe. Eternal life is a present possession, a gift received by faith. Christ is your righteousness, your sanctification, and your reward. Any feeling of inadequacy or distance is answered by the finished reality of the cross. You are reconciled to God through Him alone. Rest here. This is your landing place.