Lessons for March 26, 2006 – Fourth Sunday in Lent

The first lesson

Numbers 21:4-9
 
Then the people of Israel set out from Mount Hor, taking the road to the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom. But the people grew impatient along the way, 5and they began to murmur against God and Moses. "Why have you brought us out of Egypt to die here in the wilderness?" they complained. "There is nothing to eat here and nothing to drink. And we hate this wretched manna!"  6So the Lord sent poisonous snakes among them, and many of them were bitten and died. 7Then the people came to Moses and cried out, "We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take away the snakes." So Moses prayed for the people.  8Then the Lord told him, "Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to the top of a pole. Those who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!" 9So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to the top of a pole. Whenever those who were bitten looked at the bronze snake, they recovered!  (NLT)

Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22
 
L.  Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. 
C.  Has the Lord redeemed you? Then speak out!
L.  Tell others he has saved you from your enemies. 
C.  For he has gathered the exiles from many lands, from east and west, from north and south.
L.  Some were fools in their rebellion; they suffered for their sins. 
C.  Their appetites were gone, and death was near. 
L.  "Lord, help!" they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. 
C.  He spoke, and they were healed—snatched from the door of death. 
L.  Let them praise the Lord for his great love and for all his wonderful deeds to them. 
C.  Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and sing joyfully about his glorious acts.  (NLT)
 
The second lesson

Ephesians 2:1-10
 
Once you were dead, doomed forever because of your many sins. 2You used to live just like the rest of the world, full of sin, obeying Satan, the mighty prince of the power of the air. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. 3All of us used to live that way, following the passions and desires of our evil nature. We were born with an evil nature, and we were under God's anger just like everyone else.  4But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so very much, 5that even while we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God's special favor that you have been saved!) 6For he raised us from the dead along with Christ, and we are seated with him in the heavenly realms—all because we are one with Christ Jesus. 7And so God can always point to us as examples of the incredible wealth of his favor and kindness toward us, as shown in all he has done for us through Christ Jesus.  8God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. 9Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. 10For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.  (NLT)

The Gospel Lesson

John 3:14-21
 
And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so I, the Son of Man, must be lifted up on a pole, 15so that everyone who believes in me will have eternal life.  16"For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.  18"There is no judgment awaiting those who trust him. But those who do not trust him have already been judged for not believing in the only Son of God. 19Their judgment is based on this fact: The light from heaven came into the world, but they loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. 20They hate the light because they want to sin in the darkness. They stay away from the light for fear their sins will be exposed and they will be punished. 21But those who do what is right come to the light gladly, so everyone can see that they are doing what God wants."  (NLT)