No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. (Jn 3:13-17)
Son of man must be lifted up. Death on the cross is a must for Jesus. St Paul in his letter to the Corinthians says: “For Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles.” (1 Cor 1: 22-23). Cross was not a positive sign among the Romans. They crucified the criminals on the cross.
Eternal life is offered to everyone who believed on the man who was crucified on the cross. Not any belief was needed for salvation. A belief on the one who was crucified becomes a sign. Belief also is directed to the cross. This is the reason for the exaltation of the cross.
Belief on the cross leads to salvation. Son of man had not come to condemn the world. He has come to save the world. Though the cross was a sign of condemnation, it becomes a means of salvation for a believer because of the son of man.
