Revisiting John 3:14-15

​John 3:14-15 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should] not perish but have eternal life.
In the previous post I asked what if a person who didn’t believe looking at the snake on the pole would save them from snake bite?  If they looked anyway would God cure them?  I said yes.  The reason being belief was not the condition God had stipulated.  The reason the Israelis were having this problem with snakes is because of their unbelief.  They once again were accusing the Lord of having brought them out into the wilderness to let them die.  Even though God been feeding them with Manna and providing them with water the whole time they had been wandering around out there. 
 
This plague of snakes was intended to drive home the point of belief being the only way to live.  Even a doubter would have to recognize the benefit of belief when those who looked lived and those who didn’t died.  That becomes apparent when you look at the account in Numbers 21.  Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. 10 Now the children of Israel moved on and camped in Oboth Numbers 21:9 & 10.  God told them to either look at the snake and live or don’t look and die.  He then had Moses pull up stakes and move on down the road.  It was a take or leave it deal.    
 
John 3:15 & 16 models the offer of everlasting life after the offer of physical life in the Numbers 21 passage.  Only, this offer requires believing Jesus Christ is the source of everlasting life.  We know from the balance of Scripture that Jesus Christ was raised up on a pole, the cross, where He died for our sins satisfying God’s need for justice.  We also know He rose from the dead proving He has the ability to grant everlasting life.  The condition in His offer is to believe He will give you everlasting life.  Looking back on Jesus Christ’s death as historical fact is not the same as believing in Him for everlasting life.  The historical facts are the rationale behind His offer of life.  Those facts give us reason to believe He is the giver of life. 
 
Faith, the other word for belief, faith in His promise is all He requires to receive everlasting life.  There is nothing you must do or add to your faith in order to have that life.  Since nothing else is required the person who believes in Jesus Christ’s promise can know with absolute certainty they will be with Him in Heaven when they die physically.  Or as I like to say it transfer to their new heavenly body.