30 Jun Recap | Miracles of the Old Testament | The Bronze Serpent
This weekend we continued our series exploring the miracles of the Old Testament. The consistent theme running alongside our teaching has been that God has chosen to reveal Himself in a variety of ways, and this revelation necessitates a response from us.
This week’s teaching was taken from Numbers 21 which joins the Israelites amidst their wandering through the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. In Numbers 21:14, we see the Israelites in a state of desperation. After wandering for years, they have resorted to an impatient cycle of complaints and frustration. This is a place we’ve all found ourselves in at some point in time. Sometimes we examine our circumstances and genuinely can’t make sense of why God has us in a particular place. We may feel like our time, talents, and resources are being wasted on something we see little value in.
This thinking often results in a downward spiral to resentment. The Israelites found themselves genuinely angry and resentful towards God for allowing them to be in the desert for so long. The irony, however, is upon a quick glimpse into history we see that the reason they’re stuck in this rut is due to their own sin and unfaithfulness. Exodus 3 tells us that God came to rescue and deliver them. In the same way, we often fall into a cycle of sin that leaves us with a victim mentality instead of actually assuming responsibility and taking the blame for our own actions.
What unfolds next in verse 16 is a two-fold miracle of justice and mercy. In reaction to the people’s complaints, God sends snakes to poison and terrorize the people. Initially this may look like an overreaction, but the last few chapters prove that God actually delayed punishment for their sinful behavior for some time. Their resentment of their current situation was a result of a sense of entitlement. This mindset is one that quickly leads to an elevation of self, coupled with a degradation of God, leaving little room to doubt whether God’s enactment of justice was appropriate. This example of sin being dealt with should raise a couple questions for us. Do we believe that our actions and entitlement deserve death, and do our actions show that there is already death in us?
The second act of the miracle is that of mercy. As a means of escape, God has Moses put a snake on a pole, asking only that a person look to this raised serpent for healing. This event is a clear reference and symbol of the Savior, Jesus Christ, who would be lifted up on a cross as a means of salvation. All of the discontentment shown by the Israelites (and in a broader context, all of the sin of our world) can be covered through a Savior.
Despite God providing them a way to live, not everyone chose to look at the snake. One probable reason is that not everyone assumed they were actually sick or poisoned. Similarly, some of us are quite apathetic, not believing we are in need of a Savior. This eventually renders church, Scripture, and community irrelevant to us. In reality, even small manifestations of sin are a big problem. If we don’t view ourselves as truly needy, we won’t understand our need for Jesus and the Gospel.
A second reason for many choosing to not look at the pole is that it could have appeared foolish to some. After all, the source of the poison is the very same object the people were told to look upon in order to bring healing. This is representative of yet another irony. Jesus, who was without sin, was actually made sin for us. The perfect God Man, whose sole purpose on earth was to remove a curse from us, became a curse for us.
John 3:14-16 recounts the familiar story of Jesus’ nighttime dialogue with Nicodemus. In this text Jesus directly references the events of Numbers 21, stating that just as Moses raised up the serpent in the wilderness so must the Son of Man be lifted up. We can take away two truths from this parallel reference. It is by His sacrifice that mankind has any hope of recognizing the errors of its ways, and our only source of eternal reconciliation comes solely through looking, seeing, and believing in the finished work of a Savior.
-Nate Emery
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