John 3:9–15:
The Son of Man Must Be Lifted Up

Accurate Interpretation of John 3:9–15

After teaching Nicodemus that it is necessary to be begotten from Above, by water and Spirit, Jesus continues responding to his difficulty in understanding. Although Nicodemus was the teacher of Israel, he does not understand how these things can be. Jesus then shows that His teaching does not come from human opinion, but from true testimony. The passage moves from the need for the new birth to the person of the Son of Man, who came down out of Heaven and must be lifted up so that everyone who believes into Him may have eternal life.

(v. 9)
«Nicodemus answered and said to Him, “How can these things be?”»

Nicodemus still does not understand.

After hearing that it is necessary to be begotten from Above and that the work of the Spirit is like the wind, he asks: “How can these things be?”

His question shows that he is still struggling with Jesus’ teaching.

Nicodemus does not openly reject Jesus, but he cannot understand how the birth Jesus describes can take place.

(v. 10)
«Jesus answered and said to Him: “You are the teacher of Israel, yet you do not understand these things?»

Jesus responds by pointing to Nicodemus’ responsibility.

He calls him “the teacher of Israel”.

This shows that Nicodemus was not merely another religious man, but someone who bore responsibility for teaching the people.

Therefore, his lack of understanding is serious.

Jesus does not present the new birth as a strange idea disconnected from what God had already revealed. The Scriptures already spoke about the need for an inward renewal accomplished by God in His people. Therefore, as the teacher of Israel, Nicodemus should have understood that man needs more than outward religious instruction: he needs a profound work of God within him.

(v. 11)
«Most assuredly I say to you, we speak what we know and testify to what we have seen, but you (pl) do not receive our testimony.»

Jesus once again introduces a solemn affirmation: “Most assuredly I say to you”.

He now speaks about testimony.

He says: “we speak what we know and testify to what we have seen”.

His teaching does not come from human assumptions. Jesus speaks with true knowledge and testifies to a reality He knows.

But He adds: “you do not receive our testimony”.

The problem is not a lack of clarity or authority in the testimony, but the failure of those who hear it to receive it.

Nicodemus came acknowledging the signs, but Jesus shows that truly receiving His testimony is something deeper.

(v. 12)
«If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I should tell you the heavenly?»

Jesus distinguishes between what He has already said and what He could still reveal.

He has spoken about things connected with human experience, such as birth, water, the Spirit, and the wind.

Yet even then, Nicodemus does not believe or fully understand.

Jesus therefore asks how they will believe if He should tell them the heavenly things.

The teaching shows that unbelief hinders understanding. If they do not receive what Jesus has already revealed, they will not be able to advance toward a greater revelation.

(v. 13)
«No one has gone up into Heaven except the One who came down out of Heaven —the Son of the Man, who is in Heaven.»

Jesus now directs attention toward Himself.

No one has gone up into Heaven to obtain heavenly knowledge by his own power.

There is only One who can speak authoritatively about heavenly things: the One who came down out of Heaven.

He is the Son of Man.

Jesus presents Himself as the One who came from Heaven and therefore as the only One who can truthfully reveal the things of God.

His authority is not like that of Nicodemus or any human teacher. He speaks from His heavenly origin.

(v. 14)
«Also, just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, just so the Son of the Man must be lifted up,»

Jesus introduces a comparison drawn from Israel’s history (Numbers 21:4–9).

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, the Son of Man must be lifted up.

The reference points to the occasion when the people, wounded and under judgment, had to look at what God had commanded Moses to lift up in order to live.

Jesus uses that image to speak about Himself.

The Son of Man must likewise be lifted up. Jesus does not present this as a possibility, but as a necessity within God’s purpose.

Here Jesus begins to reveal that eternal life will come through Him, but through His being lifted up.

(v. 15)
«so that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.»

Jesus explains the purpose.

The Son of Man will be lifted up so that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.

The necessary response is to believe into Him.

Man’s need is serious: without the work of the Son of Man, he is wasted.

But God’s purpose in lifting up the Son is to give eternal life to everyone who believes into Him.

In this way, Jesus connects the teaching about the new birth with faith in the Son of Man. Eternal life does not come through religious position, human knowledge, or ancestry, but through believing into the One whom God has given and lifted up.

Implications

• The new birth should have been understood in light of God’s revelation: as the teacher of Israel, Nicodemus was responsible for understanding the need for an inward work of God.
• Jesus speaks with true authority: He testifies to what He knows and what He has seen.
• The human problem is not merely a lack of information: Jesus says that they do not receive His testimony.
• Unbelief prevents people from receiving deeper revelation: if they do not believe the earthly things, they will not receive the heavenly.
• Jesus is the Son of Man who came down out of Heaven: His authority to reveal the things of God comes from His heavenly origin.
• The Son of Man had to be lifted up: His death was not an accident, but part of God’s purpose.
• Eternal life is received by believing into Him: everyone who believes into the Son should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.

Applications

• Do not be satisfied with religious knowledge: Nicodemus was the teacher of Israel, but he still needed to understand and receive Christ’s teaching.
• Receive Jesus’ testimony with humility: He speaks what He knows and testifies to what He has seen.
• Do not resist the light Christ has already given you: rejecting what He teaches closes the heart to greater understanding.
• Look to Christ as the only One who truly reveals God: He is the Son of Man who came down out of Heaven.
• Recognize your need for salvation: Jesus speaks about not being wasted and receiving eternal life.
• Believe into the Son who was lifted up: eternal life is in Him, not in human ability or religious position.
• Rest in God’s purpose: the Son of Man was lifted up so that everyone who believes into Him may have eternal life.

Summary

In John 3:9–15, Nicodemus still does not understand Jesus’ teaching about the new birth and asks how these things can be. Jesus answers by pointing out that, as the teacher of Israel, he should understand them. He then affirms that His testimony is true because He speaks what He knows and testifies to what He has seen, although many do not receive it. Jesus explains that if they do not believe the earthly things, they will not believe the heavenly. He then directs attention toward Himself as the Son of Man who came down out of Heaven, the only One who can reveal the things of God with authority. Finally, He compares His work to the snake Moses lifted up in the wilderness, announcing that the Son of Man must also be lifted up so that everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.

Prayer

Our Father, we thank You because Your Son came down out of Heaven and has made the truth known to us.

Lord, deliver us from an outward religion that hears but neither understands nor receives Christ’s testimony. Give us humble hearts to believe what Jesus teaches and to recognize our need for eternal life.

Help us look to the Son of Man who was lifted up, trusting that salvation is found only in Him. Do not allow us to rest in our knowledge, position, or effort, but in the work You have provided through Your Son.

Thank You because everyone who believes into Him should not be wasted, but should have eternal life.

We ask this in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.