Readings:
Sermon:
Jn 3:14: Jesus said, ‘And 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.’
From the moment Jesus opened his mouth at the very start of his ministry, it was clear to everyone who heard him that he was special. St Luke describes him going to the synagogue immediately after his forty days in the desert, ‘and all were amazed at the gracious words that came from his mouth.’ While St John recounts a meeting, again near the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, with Nicodemus, one of the Pharisees. He approaches Jesus at nighttime. Why at night? Presumably because he did not want his companion Pharisees to know – they were already turning against Jesus. Nicodemus begins ‘Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God.’ And they get into a discussion about the kingdom of God and being born again, during which Jesus makes reference to a story from the life of Moses. Moses was leading the people of Israel through the desert on the way to the Promised Land. But the Israelites were blowing hot and cold, one minute showing faith and trust in God, the next minute speaking against God and Moses, complaining that Moses had led them into the desert to die. On one occasion, God responds to their lack of faith by sending a load of poisonous serpents to bite them. Many of those who got bitten died. The Israelites confess to Moses that they had sinned by speaking against him and God, and they ask Moses to pray for them, which he does. In response, God tells him to make a poisonous serpent and put it on a pole. The people were to look at it, and when they did, they were made well. In the meeting with Nicodemus, Jesus reminds him of this story, and says, ‘And 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.’
In the Moses story, the serpent is a symbol of Israel’s faithlessness, of their sin. Moses, of course, is the one who receives from God the Ten Commandments, the Law, the purpose of which is to bring peace, justice and life. In looking at the serpent held up by Moses, the Israelites are looking at two things at once. They are facing up to their sin, their lack of faith. And they are looking at the one who brought them the words of forgiveness and life. I suggest this is what Jesus wanted Nicodemus to understand when he makes this connection between himself and Moses. St Paul says of Jesus that God made him who was without sin to become sin. On the cross Jesus takes the whole weight of sin upon himself. But the cross became the key that opens the way to eternal life, the cross speaks of God’s boundless love. As a Christian, then, when I look on Christ on the cross, I am confronted with two truths. First, sin: I have to recognize my own sinfulness, my lack of faith, my lack of love. Second: God: I come to see that sin will not have the last word, that I can be freed from my sin and can accept the invitation to eternal life, to life in its full abundance that is Jesus’ gift to all who receive him.
In the Christian tradition, these two truths have become enshrined in two different practices. The first is confession. Yes, there is the general confession in most services, and there is also the practice of making your own confession to a priest. The Anglican tradition on this is ‘all may, none must, some should’ make their confession in this way. It is not a comfortable experience, baring your soul to another human being. But I have heard countless confessions in my time, and afterwards never have I thought any less of the penitent than I did before. And the second practice is simply to gaze on the cross, be it a crucifix or a simple cross. When I say ‘gaze’ I am not thinking just about using your eyes – even visually impaired people can hold the cross in their minds and reflect on the love that the cross symbolizes.
Today is the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, a date in the calendar to highlight the practice – I commend it to you, and I commend the practice of confession to you. And I suspect that Nicodemus understood Jesus’s teaching. Because Nicodemus makes one last appearance in John’s Gospel. He joined Joseph of Arimathea in caring tenderly for the dead body of Jesus after he was taken down from the cross. And this was in daylight, in full view of the very people who had crucified Jesus. Nicodemus, it seems, was no longer afraid of being seen to be associated with Jesus. Nicodemus was born again, he did enter the Kingdom of God. The invitation Jesus gave to him is given to anyone who is willing to receive it.