At the Cross
A Sermon on John 3:14-15
Originally preached May 1, 1966
Scripture
14¶ And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Sermon Description
Why is the cross of Jesus Christ so important for Christians? Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones gives a very practical reason: it is the basis of sanctification. He says that often times Christians separate their walk with Christ from what He has accomplished on the cross. They think that the Christian life is only a matter of striving and seeking in one’s own power, but this is wrong. For Christians can only live the Christian life in the power of Jesus’s atoning work and sacrifice. The power of the cross is to see the glory of Christ as the redeemer and Lord who has saved, who preserves, and who will glorify on the last day. This sermon on John 3:14–15 titled “At the Cross” offers hope for all, believers and nonbelievers. It exhorts everyone to put their trust in Jesus Christ as the only hope for this world, and as the only one that can redeem each and every fallen sinner that believes upon His name.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon focuses on John 3:14-15 which discusses how Jesus must be lifted up like the serpent in the wilderness.
- The sermon warns against the danger of neglecting or departing from the foundation of the cross. This can lead to an unbalanced and exaggerated focus on certain aspects of faith.
- There is a danger of dividing up Christian truth into separate compartments and focusing on some parts while neglecting others. But truth is one whole in Christ.
- Forgetting the cross leads to pride, boastfulness, and spiritual imbalance. We must maintain a sense of wonder at the cross.
- The correction is to see Christian truth as an interrelated whole. We must keep the cross central, as seen in Scripture and church history.
- The cross humbles us by showing us our sin, disease, condemnation, and helplessness without Christ.
- The cross exalts Christ by showing that salvation is His work alone. We have nothing without Him.
- The cross reminds us that we must keep looking to Christ, as the Israelites looked to the bronze serpent to be healed. We must look to Christ crucified and risen.
- A holiness teaching that dispenses with the cross will do more harm than good. We must test ourselves by our view of the cross.
- The cross humbles us, exalts Christ, and shows us the path to receiving from His fullness.
Sermon Q&A
Questions and Answers from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' Sermon on John 3:14-15
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the main theme of the Gospel of John?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, the main theme of the Gospel of John is found in chapter 1, verse 16: "and of his fullness have all we received and grace upon grace." This is what Christianity means—a Christian is one who is in Christ and receives from Christ's fullness, not merely someone who does good or has noble ideas, but one who has a personal, vital, organic relationship with Christ.
Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasize the importance of not departing from the cross?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones emphasizes that the cross is not merely a starting point but continues throughout the whole Christian life. He warns against the danger of thinking we can leave the cross behind and move on to "higher experiences." The cross remains vital for ongoing sanctification and spiritual growth. He states: "If you, my friend, this morning, have lost your sense of wonder at the cross, if you feel that the doctrine of the cross has nothing to say to you, well, then I think you are in an extremely dangerous condition."
What are the dangers of compartmentalizing Christian truth according to Lloyd-Jones?
The dangers of compartmentalizing Christian truth include: 1. Dividing Christian truth into separate, watertight compartments (evangelism, sanctification, prophecy) 2. Placing wrong or exaggerated emphasis on particular aspects of faith 3. Developing spiritual pride and boastfulness 4. Creating an imbalanced, lopsided Christianity 5. Losing the wholeness and completeness of the Christian message 6. Unconsciously trying to justify oneself by works rather than grace
How did a curate named Bull Teal discover he was in spiritual danger?
Bull Teal, who was involved in the Irvingite movement, told B.W. Newton that he began to suspect something was wrong "when he discovered that though he could speak about the second coming or holiness and other subjects, he found difficulty in speaking about the cross." This realization opened his eyes to the danger he was in. Dr. Lloyd-Jones comments: "when a man gets into a state and condition in which he finds it difficult to speak about the cross, all else is useless, and all else may indeed be the encouragement of the devil acting as an angel of light."
What parallel does Jesus draw between Moses' serpent and His own crucifixion?
Jesus draws a parallel between Moses lifting up the bronze serpent in the wilderness to heal the Israelites who had been bitten by serpents, and Himself being lifted up on the cross. Just as those who looked at the serpent were physically healed and saved from death, those who look to Christ crucified are spiritually healed and receive eternal life. Jesus says: "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."
Why does Dr. Lloyd-Jones say the cross is always humbling?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that the cross humbles us because it: 1. Reveals our truly sinful state and condition 2. Shows we are diseased spiritually with "no health in us" 3. Demonstrates we are condemned and perishing under God's wrath 4. Proves we are completely helpless to save ourselves 5. Reveals that the Son of God "must" die for us because of our desperate condition He states: "The cross, above everything else, humbles us and brings us to realize the truth about ourselves and our perpetual need."
What does Lloyd-Jones identify as a primary problem in evangelical circles of his time?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies "the absence of being humbled, broken, convicted of sin down in the very depths" as the greatest trouble in evangelical circles of his time. He says, "We don't go up because we've never been down. We don't receive of the fullness because we've never realized our emptiness. Self-satisfaction and glibness are the greatest enemy of receiving, of his fullness and grace upon grace."
How does Dr. Lloyd-Jones describe the proper approach to spiritual growth?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones describes spiritual growth as a paradox: "Do you want to go up? Well, the quickest way of going up is to go down." He teaches that we must continue looking to Jesus crucified throughout our Christian life. We start by looking to Christ on the cross, and we must continue looking to Him. As he quotes: "Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising the shame." True spiritual growth comes not from moving beyond the cross but from continually returning to it.
What critique does Lloyd-Jones make of certain devotional and mystical writings?
Lloyd-Jones critiques certain Catholic types of theology and mystical writings that focus on "rules of the holy life" and "guidance in the mystic way" while neglecting the cross. He mentions William Law's "Serious Call" and Thomas à Kempis's "Imitation of Christ" as works that have both helped and hindered Christians by potentially leading them away from the centrality of the cross. His concern is with any spiritual teaching that neglects the cross in favor of mystical experiences or self-improvement.
How does Lloyd-Jones explain the relationship between the cross and sanctification?
Lloyd-Jones asserts that "if you have a doctrine of sanctification which is not always intimately associated with the death on the cross, it is a false teaching of sanctification." He argues that you cannot separate holiness from the cross, and that attempting to do so leads to trying to justify oneself by works rather than by grace. He states emphatically: "A holiness teaching which can dispense with a constant repetition of the message of the cross is already a teaching that has lost its balance and will eventually do more harm than good."
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.