Let's look at what the Lord said:
"Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life." - John 3:14-15
Now, in case you didn't know about the snake in the desert bit:
They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!"
Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people.
The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. - Numbers 21:4-8
The lesson here is to trust God. Christ was lifted up on the cross for us, and those who look to Him and what He did are forgiven for their sins. We are to look to Him for salvation, in faith. We are supposed to be baptized, but we are not to look at baptism as the work that will save us. We are to look at Christ's work on the cross, and His resurrection from the grave as what saves us. Our faith should be in Christ, not in religious works (though we still do the works).
That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, "Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame." - Romans 10:9-11