Why did Jesus compare Himself to a snake?

[Jeff W.]

In the Bible, the snake is usually a symbol of Satan, evil, and sin. However, in John 3:14-15, Jesus compared Himself to the bronze serpent that Moses hung in the wilderness. In fact, God used the snake symbol multiple times with Moses, and each experience reveals something about Jesus. This video looks at three of those experiences, and the amazing things that one can learn from these living parables. 

[TrevorL]

Greetings Jeff W,

On 10/17/2019 at 6:07 AM, Jeff W. said:

In the Bible, the snake is usually a symbol of Satan, evil, and sin. However, in John 3:14-15, Jesus compared Himself to the bronze serpent that Moses hung in the wilderness.

While not endorsing all that is said in the video, another perspective is that the word Seraphim in Isaiah 6 seems to be related to the word used for fiery serpents. This could also be a link to John 3:14-15, and also to John 12:32 and John 12 has other links to Isaiah 6, for example John 12:40-41. I understand the brasen serpent to represent the flesh, but uniquely connected with Jesus he is the same human flesh as descended from Adam, but with Jesus he never sinned. Nevertheless, even though he never sinned, and his flesh was purified by fire, as with the altar of burnt offering, Jesus was teaching by his voluntary death, the need to crucify the flesh with its affections and lusts.

Kind regards Trevor 

[JoeMo]

3 hours ago, TrevorL said:

he brasen serpent to represent the flesh, but uniquely connected with Jesus he is the same human flesh as descended from Adam

Jesus also became sin for us; hence the serpent representation.

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Cor. 5:21)

[8thdaypriest]

Galatians 3:13 "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.'" (NIV)

The Jews regarded anyone who was "hung up" to be under God's curse. 

The Serpent in the Garden was literally "cursed" by God. 

 Isaiah 53:4 "Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted." (NIV)

In truth, God did treat His own Son, as if He was a great sinner.  He did not protect His Son from torment by men under Satan's control, or from torment by demons. 

If you have ever been harassed by demons, you know they can cloud the mind with a darkness to the point where one cannot sense the comforting presence of God.  I believe they did such to Jesus  (to a far greater degree than they are ever allowed to do to one of us).  When Jesus cried out, "Why have you forsaken me?", I believe he did so when the darkness was so thick He could not sense His Father with Him. 

[JoeMo]

12 minutes ago, 8thdaypriest said:

Isaiah 53:4 "Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted."

This verse demonstrates one of the great deceptions in the Church.  Isaiah plainly says that Christ [voluntarily] took up our pain and suffering. I would guess His motivation was infinite selfless love.  Yet, many of us have been taught that Jesus came to be punished by God - that our sin is so awful that God had to kill His Son to be appeased.  Just one more lie of satan to try to convince us that we serve a restrictive, vindictive, and angry God that is only held at bay (possibly reluctantly so)by the blood of His Son.

18 minutes ago, 8thdaypriest said:

He did not protect His Son from torment by men under Satan's control, or from torment by demons. 

I have to think that Jesus volunteered for the mission.  Who is ultimately responsible for the death of Jesus - His Father, men, or satan?

"None of the rulers of this age understood it, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." (1 Cor. 2:8)

[8thdaypriest]

2 hours ago, JoeMo said:

Yet, many of us have been taught that Jesus came to be punished by God - that our sin is so awful that God had to kill His Son to be appeased.  Just one more lie of satan to try to convince us that we serve a restrictive, vindictive, and angry God that is only held at bay (possibly reluctantly so)by the blood of His Son.

Yes!!!

What Jesus and His Father did - when the Son of God incarnated, when He walked the dusty roads, and when He died publicly by torture, was the greatest love letter of all time!    They did it to win our hearts - to win us back.  Christ did it to recover dominion of this earth - because dominion over this earth meant dominion over the human beings on this earth. 

There is a study titled "Dominion" on my website:

https://prophecyviewpoint.com/htdocs/11-DOMINION.htm

[TrevorL]

Greetings JoeMo,

On 10/20/2019 at 2:16 AM, JoeMo said:

Jesus also became sin for us; hence the serpent representation.

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." (2 Cor. 5:21)

I understand this to teach that he suffered all the effects of sin, not that our sins were somehow mysteriously transferred from us to him. If we considered all the people that interacted with Jesus in his crucifixion, then there was all types represented by the authorities, the crowd, the disciples, the two thieves, the soldiers, the Centurion and others. Jesus endured all of these, he took upon him their sins and forgave them. We are represented in all of this, and if we acknowledge in affectionate and wholehearted faith what was achieved in his death and resurrection and identify with his death and resurrection through baptism, then Jesus will forgive our sins.

Kind regards Trevor

[JoeMo]

9 hours ago, TrevorL said:

I understand this to teach that he suffered all the effects of sin, not that our sins were somehow mysteriously transferred from us to him.

The transfer of sin is well illustrated by the OT sacrificial system.  The sinner would place his hands on the sacrificial animal; and the sins were transferred to the sacrifice.  The sacrifice was slaughtered, and the blood sprinkled on the altar; transferring the sin to the altar.  Then, on the Day of Atonement, the sins were transferred from the altar to two goats - a sacrificial goat and the Azazel goat.  The sacrificial goat was sacrificed for the confessed sins of Israel; and the Azazel goat was led out into the wilderness for the unconfessed sins.  The blood of the sacrificial animals was then sprinkled on the ark; and the sanctuary was cleansed of a year's worth of Israel's sin.

One day, the sins of the whole world will be put on the antitypical Azazel goat - satan - and he will be banished to the "wilderness" for 1,000 years before he is permanently destroyed.

[8thdaypriest]

Personally, I don't believe sin is something that can be "transferred" - like a blueberry stain.  If that were true, then babies would inherit transferred sin from their mothers/fathers. 

The Tabernacle (under the tent) symbolized "Heaven itself".   Transferring the blood from sinner, to sacrifice, to priest, into the Tent, was a symbolic way of showing that the act of confession (of sins) was recorded in the "books" of Heaven, NOT every sin ever committed.   Cause it really doesn't matter how many sins a person has committed.  It only takes one. 

Blood was NOT sprinkled inside the Tent daily.  The priests ate a portion of the sin offering.  They took the sin (the record of confession) into themselves.  This made them "sin bearers".   Then they entered the Tent.  That is how the record of confession was taken into the Tent daily. 

Only on the Day of Atonement was blood actually sprinkled before the Mercy Seat (unless a priest or the whole congregation sinned knowingly). 

[TrevorL]

Greetings again JoeMo,

4 hours ago, JoeMo said:

The transfer of sin is well illustrated by the OT sacrificial system.  The sinner would place his hands on the sacrificial animal; and the sins were transferred to the sacrifice.  The sacrifice was slaughtered, and the blood sprinkled on the altar; transferring the sin to the altar.  Then, on the Day of Atonement, the sins were transferred from the altar to two goats - a sacrificial goat and the Azazel goat.  The sacrificial goat was sacrificed for the confessed sins of Israel; and the Azazel goat was led out into the wilderness for the unconfessed sins.  The blood of the sacrificial animals was then sprinkled on the ark; and the sanctuary was cleansed of a year's worth of Israel's sin.

I do not believe that the sins were literally transferred to the sacrificial animal, but the whole of the sacrificial system, including the Day of Atonement were only typical procedures pointing forward to what would be accomplished in Jesus

Hebrews 10:1-4 (KJV): 1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. 2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. 3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. 4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

Even on the Day of Atonement there was a repeat of the remembrance of all past sins, showing that the ritual had not achieved forgiveness.

 

4 hours ago, JoeMo said:

One day, the sins of the whole world will be put on the antitypical Azazel goat - satan - and he will be banished to the "wilderness" for 1,000 years before he is permanently destroyed.

The sins being placed upon the goat going into the wilderness was teaching the forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of Christ, not sins being placed upon satan.

 

Kind regards

Trevor

[BlessedMan]

On 10/21/2019 at 2:03 PM, TrevorL said:

The sins being placed upon the goat going into the wilderness was teaching the forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of Christ, not sins being placed upon satan.

So true, and context is important.

We could also consider here that "serpent" was not always a bad thing in scripture. Jesus did tell us to be "wise as serpents and harmless as doves." (Mat 10:16)