Section 9
people read the words "lifted up," they lack the understanding of them. The Son of Man was lifted up as was the brass serpent not only to deal with sin, but also to deal with the serpent. John 12:31-32 indicates that when the Son of Man was lifted up, the ruler of this world, the Devil, was judged and cast out. Christ was not only cruci fied—He was lifted up. In His being lifted up, the serpent was exposed, judged, and cast out. The serpent, the Devil, was judged and cast out by Jesus' being lifted up. Who was there on the pole? The serpent. In the flesh of Jesus, God put the serpent on the pole and made a universal dis play that all the universe might see that His enemy, the serpent, was on the pole. Thus, Jesus was lifted up for the judging and casting out of the Devil. He was lifted up for the serpent-poisoned sin ners in the form of a serpent in order to cast out the old serpent (John 3:14; 12:31-34; Rev. 12:9; 20:2). He was lifted up in order to deal with the serpentine nature and with the serpent himself.
How could the Lord be the One who was sin less? Because He is Jehovah, the great I Am. How could the Lord condemn sin? Also because He is the great I Am. But how can He as Jehovah for give sin? You must remember that Jehovah could never forgive sin. If Jehovah forgave sin, He