The Look that Saves | John 3:14-17

[00:00:00] Real Truth Daily. This is Daily Truths with Dave Ahlman.

[00:00:07] Grace, mercy, and peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

[00:00:16] The text for today, John chapter 3 verses 14-17. Many of you have memorized these words. They are powerful and comforting at the same time.

[00:00:30] And 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.

[00:00:41] For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

[00:00:48] For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.

[00:00:58] That is the text, and it's a powerful one.

[00:01:02] So have you ever had it where you're in your car, and we have a kind of a particular intersection at our house that sometimes is quite easy to get struck by another car?

[00:01:13] Here's why. Because it curves on this way, it curves on this way, and this is kind of our driveway.

[00:01:19] And so by the time people get to this part, you don't see them.

[00:01:24] By the time they get here, you don't see them.

[00:01:26] So you've got to look two or three times in order not to get struck by another car.

[00:01:30] And I call that the look that saves.

[00:01:36] Right?

[00:01:36] Now, when you go to a restaurant, if you're like me, if you're a senior citizen and elderly, right, you look at the senior citizen menu.

[00:01:46] And if you look at that, you find out that it's a lot cheaper than the regular menu, and so you can call that the look that saves. Right?

[00:01:55] If you go to the grocery store and you want to save some money, they will send you coupons now in the email.

[00:02:02] How cool is that?

[00:02:03] And if you buy the stuff that they have on the coupon, you can say, I looked at the coupon, and that's the look that saves.

[00:02:12] We need the look that saves.

[00:02:16] But I'm not talking about today something that saves money or saves you from a car wreck.

[00:02:22] I'm talking today about something that saves your eternal soul.

[00:02:27] We need the look that saves.

[00:02:31] Why?

[00:02:32] Because we're born in sin, and our sin separates us from God.

[00:02:37] And we sometimes know through our thoughts and words and deeds and the things we do and leave undone, say and leave unsaid, that we transgress God's holy law.

[00:02:46] It's an offense.

[00:02:47] It's something we carry out.

[00:02:49] It's a sin against him.

[00:02:51] And as a result of that, we feel tremendous, starts with the letter G, guilt because of what we do.

[00:02:59] And then Satan comes along, and he throws temptations at us all the more.

[00:03:04] And sometimes, because we're born with this sin nature, you know what I'm talking about, that temptation comes.

[00:03:09] There's a part of you that says, I don't want to have anything to do with that.

[00:03:13] But there's another part of you that says, I want to have everything to do with that, right?

[00:03:17] And so you feel the civil war inside of you when temptation comes your way.

[00:03:22] And then what happens?

[00:03:24] If you succumb and you fall into temptation, you feel this tremendous guilt.

[00:03:29] And then Satan comes to you and he says, how could you blow it like that?

[00:03:34] How messed up are you?

[00:03:36] How could have you ever sin in such a way?

[00:03:40] So he accuses us.

[00:03:41] And then he speaks to our subconscious and says, you're not worthy to be saved, to be a child of God, to be forgiven and get to go to heaven.

[00:03:50] Temptation comes.

[00:03:51] We succumb.

[00:03:52] We fall.

[00:03:53] We feel guilt.

[00:03:53] He accuses us.

[00:03:56] And we need the look that saves.

[00:04:02] And then we struggle with the fear of death.

[00:04:05] It's amazing to me how many people I've ministered to down through the years who are strong, faithful followers of the Lord Jesus.

[00:04:12] But then as I'm bending over their bedside and they're ready to leave planet Earth, I'll say, are you ready to go to heaven?

[00:04:18] And they say, well, I hope I'm saved.

[00:04:21] I sure hope I make it as if salvation was dependent on them.

[00:04:29] Now, you've been hearing me preach for two years and you know that salvation is not dependent on us.

[00:04:36] What we do, what we say, how we live, what we avoid, how we carry out holiness or go to church or whatever it is, we cannot save ourselves because we're born in sin, separated from God.

[00:04:48] And we need the look that saves.

[00:04:52] Hmm.

[00:04:53] So you might be saying, well, what are you talking about, Pastor Dave?

[00:04:56] Rod said it so beautifully in this text.

[00:04:59] Jesus is talking to a bunch of people and he says this just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness.

[00:05:07] Now, what in the world was that about?

[00:05:09] It was a reference to what Rod was talking about today.

[00:05:12] The people of God were rebelling.

[00:05:14] They were complaining.

[00:05:16] They weren't satisfied with what God was providing.

[00:05:18] And so God said, I'm going to punish them.

[00:05:20] They're going to be bitten by snakes and they're going to die.

[00:05:23] And that's exactly what happened.

[00:05:26] And then they said to Moses, what do we do?

[00:05:30] And Moses said, I don't know.

[00:05:32] God, what do I do?

[00:05:34] And God said, take a serpent, a brass serpent and put it on a pole.

[00:05:39] And when the people look at that, they'll be saved, rescued and delivered from death.

[00:05:45] So we call that the look that saves.

[00:05:47] Now listen to this.

[00:05:50] Jesus said, just as Moses lifted up the brass serpent in the wilderness, so will the son of man be lifted up.

[00:05:59] That all who believe in him will have eternal life.

[00:06:02] For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

[00:06:10] Listen to this.

[00:06:11] Through the eyes of faith, which the Holy Spirit has produced in your hearts, you can go back 2000 years and apprehend and appropriate and see by faith what Christ has done.

[00:06:25] And what has he done for you?

[00:06:27] He went to that cross.

[00:06:29] He shed his blood.

[00:06:31] He paid for your sin.

[00:06:33] He conquered death.

[00:06:35] And through faith and faith alone in him, all your sins are forgiven and you're headed to heaven.

[00:06:42] And God wraps up eternal life and gives it to you.

[00:06:46] And he says, take it and live.

[00:06:48] And you say, through faith, through the eyes of faith, through the look that saves, I've got it.

[00:06:56] And you know what that means?

[00:06:59] God doesn't hold sin against you.

[00:07:02] He doesn't keep a record of all your wrongs.

[00:07:06] As a matter of fact, I like to look at an Etch-A-Sketch.

[00:07:09] How many of you know what an Etch-A-Sketch is?

[00:07:11] Raise your hand.

[00:07:12] Remember those things, right?

[00:07:14] As a matter of fact, my daughter, Emery, has a little mini Etch-A-Sketch.

[00:07:18] I didn't know that they have those little things, but it's about this size, okay?

[00:07:21] It's only about three inches by two inches.

[00:07:24] And so she scribbles stuff on there.

[00:07:26] She turns the little dials and stuff.

[00:07:27] And what happens?

[00:07:28] You know what happens?

[00:07:30] You turn it over and it's erased.

[00:07:33] Through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ, the Etch-A-Sketch of God's love erases your sins.

[00:07:41] He doesn't hold them against you.

[00:07:44] I think of a little boy, maybe I've shared this story before,

[00:07:47] of a little boy who got off the bus after his first day of school.

[00:07:52] And he got off the bus at the wrong place, okay?

[00:07:55] And he was frightened.

[00:07:56] And there was an older man standing there.

[00:07:59] And the older man said, what's wrong little fella?

[00:08:01] And the little fella, he was crying.

[00:08:03] There were tears running down his cheeks.

[00:08:04] He said, I can't find my way home.

[00:08:07] I can't remember where I live.

[00:08:10] I'm lost.

[00:08:11] And the old man reached down and he said, well, tell me where you live, young man.

[00:08:15] He said, well, I live right next to the community church.

[00:08:18] Now, the old man knew there was a community church in that town with a high steeple.

[00:08:23] And upon that steeple was a very visible cross.

[00:08:28] And he bent down and he said, little fella, do you see that steeple?

[00:08:32] Yep.

[00:08:32] Do you see that cross on that steeple?

[00:08:34] Yep.

[00:08:35] You just keep your eyes on that steeple.

[00:08:37] You keep your eyes on that cross and you'll find your way home.

[00:08:44] We call that the look that saved him, right?

[00:08:47] The look that took him home through the eyes of faith.

[00:08:51] You look at the cross of Jesus and that will lead you all the way to your eternal heavenly home.

[00:08:58] How cool is that?

[00:09:01] Salvation is a free gift.

[00:09:04] It's not anything we earn, merit or deserve.

[00:09:08] As I said before, God takes forgiveness and eternal life earned and merited through his son.

[00:09:14] And he offers it to you and says, take it.

[00:09:17] It's yours.

[00:09:18] And through the eyes of faith, through the look that saves, you say, it's mine today.

[00:09:25] Amen?

[00:09:26] Amen.

[00:09:27] I'm not done, but a lot more I want to say.

[00:09:32] Because this is Reformation Day.

[00:09:35] And Martin Luther, for 33 years of his life, did not have the look that saves.

[00:09:42] As a matter of fact, he thought if anybody can get to heaven, it has to be someone who goes to a monastery and becomes a monk, a professional Christian.

[00:09:52] Now his dad, you probably know this, his dad wanted him to be a lawyer, an attorney.

[00:09:57] Here's my vision for you, son.

[00:09:59] I want you to be an attorney.

[00:10:01] But Martin Luther struggled so much with his guilt and shame and regret and remorse over his sin.

[00:10:07] He thought, there's no way I can make up for my sin if I become an attorney.

[00:10:14] The only way I can make up for my sin is if I become a monk.

[00:10:21] And so he goes to a monastery and there he fasts and he prays and he reads the scriptures and he literally beats himself up.

[00:10:30] And he lies prostrate before the Lord, showing how dedicated he is to God.

[00:10:36] But the harder he tried to appease God's wrath and earn heaven, the more miserably he failed, the more guilt he felt, and the more separated from God he became.

[00:10:49] Because he thought that salvation was something you could earn.

[00:10:55] And what he was lacking was the look that saves.

[00:11:00] Here he was, a professional Christian.

[00:11:03] He had a doctorate in theology, teaching at Wittenberg University.

[00:11:10] All these would-be, you know, priests.

[00:11:16] And you know what?

[00:11:18] He didn't know Jesus.

[00:11:20] He didn't have salvation.

[00:11:23] He didn't have the look that saves.

[00:11:25] Until he's reading the book of Romans and he comes upon this passage in Romans chapter 1.

[00:11:30] And it says this,

[00:11:32] The just shall live by faith.

[00:11:34] For I am not ashamed of the gospel.

[00:11:37] For it is the power of God unto salvation for all those who believe.

[00:11:40] The Jew first and also the Gentile.

[00:11:43] All of a sudden, boom!

[00:11:44] His eyes were opened.

[00:11:46] The unbelief was removed.

[00:11:49] The blinders were taken away.

[00:11:52] And he understood, I'm saved not by what I do, but rather by appropriating the merits of Jesus by faith and putting my trust in him.

[00:12:01] And so now he says, I gotta write about it.

[00:12:04] And I gotta teach it.

[00:12:05] And I gotta confess it.

[00:12:06] And I gotta share it.

[00:12:08] And I gotta translate the scriptures so that people know that they're saved by grace through faith in Christ alone.

[00:12:14] And not by their works.

[00:12:15] They need to know the look that saves.

[00:12:21] So he writes and he teaches and he confesses and he proclaims.

[00:12:25] And the Roman Catholic Church at that time was absolutely fine with it.

[00:12:32] No.

[00:12:33] No, they weren't.

[00:12:34] They were really, really upset.

[00:12:36] As a matter of fact, they got all his writings, all his teachings, all his confessions, and they piled them on a table in front of him.

[00:12:43] And he's standing there all alone and there's like 50 religious leaders in front of him.

[00:12:48] And they're telling him, you've gotta take that stuff back.

[00:12:52] You can't say that stuff.

[00:12:54] You can't teach that stuff.

[00:12:56] That's false theology.

[00:13:01] And Luther could have escaped right then.

[00:13:04] He could have said, I'm not up to this.

[00:13:07] Where's the trap door?

[00:13:08] Where's the side door?

[00:13:09] I'm out of here.

[00:13:11] But that's not what he said.

[00:13:14] He grabs his Bible and he says,

[00:13:18] Unless I'm convinced by Holy Scripture that what I'm saying is wrong,

[00:13:23] I will not and I cannot take back the things that I've said about the Lord Jesus Christ.

[00:13:28] Here I stand.

[00:13:30] I can do no other.

[00:13:31] God help me.

[00:13:33] Amen.

[00:13:34] And right then, you could have heard a pin drop.

[00:13:39] Because these guys didn't know what to do or what to say.

[00:13:42] And those were advocates and proponents of what Luther was teaching.

[00:13:46] Said, you've gotta escape.

[00:13:48] We gotta take you away.

[00:13:49] And so they take him away and he escapes to the Wartburg castle.

[00:13:53] And there he translates the Old Testament, New Testament scriptures into the language of the people.

[00:13:59] The German language.

[00:14:00] And now it's distributed through the printing press that happened to be embedded at that time.

[00:14:06] Now the word of God is distributed to hundreds, thousands of people.

[00:14:09] And they compared what Luther said to what the scriptures said.

[00:14:13] And they said, Luther is right and the teachings of the church are wrong.

[00:14:18] We are saved by faith in Jesus Christ alone.

[00:14:21] We have the look that saves.

[00:14:23] And so that fanned into flame, this incredible thing we call the great reformation.

[00:14:31] Because Luther rediscovered the look that saves.

[00:14:40] Now we need the look that saves too.

[00:14:44] Because we are guilty as charged because of our sin.

[00:14:49] And we carry that guilt around.

[00:14:51] But do you know what I tell you today?

[00:14:54] That you don't need to carry that guilt anymore.

[00:14:57] That Jesus Christ shed his blood on the cross to take away the guilt of your sin.

[00:15:02] And all that guilt and shame and remorse and regret that you feel over your transgressions.

[00:15:07] It's all been taken away through Christ.

[00:15:10] You stand before God.

[00:15:12] Holy, clean, righteous, pure, sinless.

[00:15:15] Without fault.

[00:15:17] Without accusation.

[00:15:18] Through the look that saves on Jesus Christ.

[00:15:23] So you don't carry that guilt anymore.

[00:15:25] And when Satan says, okay, you fell into sin.

[00:15:29] How wrong is that?

[00:15:30] How bad are you?

[00:15:32] How deep is your sin?

[00:15:33] All we have to do is point him to the finished work of Jesus and say, I have the look that saves.

[00:15:40] And I'm a child of God.

[00:15:42] And when we're ready to face death, we don't have to be frightened of it.

[00:15:46] What does the psalmist say in Psalm 23?

[00:15:50] Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

[00:15:55] Why?

[00:15:56] Because Christ is with me.

[00:15:58] And if Christ is with us, when we pass through that dark corridor called death,

[00:16:03] he takes us by the hand and he leads us to the other side and we'll see him face to face.

[00:16:09] You talk about a look that saves?

[00:16:12] That's ultimately it.

[00:16:16] I mean, we can look at death and say, oh, death, where's your sting?

[00:16:20] Oh, grave, where's your victory?

[00:16:22] The sting of death is sin.

[00:16:24] And the power of sin is the law.

[00:16:26] But thanks be to God who gives me the victory through my Lord Jesus Christ.

[00:16:34] Christ defeated death through his resurrection.

[00:16:38] Therefore, through the eyes of faith, through the look that saves, death has no power, dominion, or strength over us.

[00:16:48] Sin is gone.

[00:16:50] Guilt is gone.

[00:16:52] Shame is gone.

[00:16:54] Death has been defeated.

[00:16:56] Eternal life is yours.

[00:16:57] Pardon is yours.

[00:16:58] All through faith in Christ.

[00:17:01] And the look that saves.

[00:17:07] So Jesus is ready to begin his public ministry.

[00:17:11] John the Baptist, as you remember, baptizes him.

[00:17:17] And the heavens open and the spirit of God descends.

[00:17:20] And God the Father says about his son, it's the one of the few times in the entire scriptures where all three persons of the Trinity are present, right?

[00:17:28] Okay?

[00:17:29] Jesus is baptized.

[00:17:30] The spirit of God descends in the form of a dove.

[00:17:32] And God the Father speaks from heaven saying, this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased.

[00:17:39] Now, a few days pass.

[00:17:42] And Jesus comes on the scene.

[00:17:44] And John the Baptist is preaching.

[00:17:46] You heard me talk about this in the children's message.

[00:17:48] John the Baptist is preaching.

[00:17:50] And all of a sudden, right, right in front of him, Jesus is walking by.

[00:17:54] And he stops right in his tracks in the middle of his sentence.

[00:17:57] And he says, for we not, takes away the sin of the world.

[00:18:11] Do you know what I tell you today?

[00:18:14] Through the eyes of faith.

[00:18:17] Lift up your eyes.

[00:18:18] Focus it on Christ.

[00:18:20] Because he is the lamb of God that takes away your sin today.

[00:18:26] And you have that through the look that saves.

[00:18:33] Amen?

[00:18:34] I told you I had a lot more to go, right?

[00:18:38] And now may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus until life everlasting.

[00:18:48] And may the Holy Spirit grant to every one of you here today the look that saves.

[00:18:57] Amen and amen.

[00:18:59] Thank you for tuning in to Daily Truths with Dave Allman.

[00:19:02] Pastor Dave Allman is the pastor of Mount Hope Church in Boulder, Colorado.

[00:19:07] If this ministry is blessing you, please consider supporting us by sharing this channel with a friend.

[00:19:11] You can also like, comment, subscribe, or leave a review.

[00:19:15] This helps us tremendously.

[00:19:17] Come back tomorrow for your next Daily Truth.