There Are Snakes Out There

Do you like snakes? I don't like snakes! I really can't say why, it's just that they are so long and slimy, and slither around in a menacing sort of way.

Perhaps because of God's curse upon the serpent, most of us naturally feel uncomfortable in the presence of a snake. Since the devil’s use of this once beautiful creature, the snake has come to depict sin or evil, something to be feared, indeed. 

Jesus declared to the rulers of His day, "Oh generation of vipers...!" (Matthew 3:7) and “You snakes, you brood of vipers...!" (Matthew 23:33), condemning the sinful way they preyed upon the unsuspecting believer.

When Moses and the children of Israel were in the desert, they had a disastrous encounter with this wily reptile. As their impatience for the journey grew, so did their complaining. The story is found in Numbers 21:4-9. "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!’" 

The manna which was designed to be a blessing, and was a symbol of Christ Himself, was unpalatable to them. They wanted a blessing, but wanted a say as to what that blessing should be. A blessing to them would consist of leeks, garlic, onions, and the delicacies of Egypt.

Is it a sin to detest God’s blessings?  Or is the sin preferring captivity to the seemingly difficult road to freedom?

Either way, sin lay at the door, and the symbol of sin slithered into Israel's camp in abundance. The viper raised it's ugly head to strike a death blow, and the people began to die everywhere. They didn't have to be told what went wrong.

They knew exactly what they had done.  1 Corinthians 15:56 says, “The sting of death is sin.” 

“We have sinned,” they said to Moses.  “When we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us." (Numbers 21:6,7)

God answered the prayer of Moses, but in a very strange way. "Make a snake and put it on a pole. Anyone who is bitten may gaze upon it and live."

Why would they need to look at the symbol of sin in order to receive life? Why didn’t God just make the snakes disappear?  Regardless, for those who were willing to look, there was life. But those who refused to look, perished.

If the snake represented sin, how is it that it also brought life?

The glorious news is that, “God made Him Who had no sin to BE SIN for us.” (11 Corinthians 5:21)  They were looking at the symbol of the One who took their sin and died in their place.

He was, and continues to be, raised up for ALL who have been bitten by sin. He died so that we might live.

Sometimes the blessings (time of learning) may not be very palatable to us. We may wish for a different way, but no matter how detestable it may feel, God’s way is the way of the free and God’s way brings life.  

If sin lies at your door, keep the door closed. There are snakes out there.

But if you open the door and find your home filled with snakes, you know what to do.  Look to Jesus and you will live. 

 5/9/2016