A lot of people wonder how the children of Israel, who were led out of Egypt by Moses, turned against God after seeing all the miracles He had done. After all, this was the generation of Israelites that had been present during the 10 plagues of Egypt, walked on dry ground through the Red Sea, and had been fed heavenly bread in the desert. This was the generation who was being led by the Lord Himself by a pillar of fire and one of a cloud.
There are several instances recorded in the Bible where these Israelites rebelled against God.
- Exodus 32 recounts the story where the Israelites rejected the deity of God. This happened shortly after Moses had gone to Mount Sinai to meet with God and ultimately receive the 10 commandments. The people, including Moses’ brother, Aaron, turned to idolatry and made a golden calf to worship.
- Numbers 11 tells us about the Hebrews bitterly complaining about having only manna to eat. Manna was a food sent from heaven to sustain the people as they traveled. Their dissatisfaction led God to sending quail to the people that also resulted in a plague that killed a great deal of the people.
- Exodus 15 states that after wandering for 3 days without finding water in the Wilderness of Shur, they arrived in Marah to find bitter water and complained again to Moses. God miraculously made the waters sweet, reinforcing to the people that He was fully capable of taking care of their every need.
- Numbers 14 tells about the 12 spies who return from researching the land of Canaan. After hearing the report about the “land of giants”, the people begin to complain against Moses and Aaron, saying, “Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness! And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?” Additionally, they began to make plans to choose a new leader to take them back to Egypt.
The children of Israel continued to grumble against God and Moses until finally God chose to pass judgement on them for their murmurings against Him. The Bible tells us in Numbers 21 that God sends fiery serpents among them. Whoever was bitten by these creatures were sure to die a horrible death. (Snakes living in this region today have venomous bites that can cause intolerable burning pain and inflammation from the poison.)
It wasn’t long before the Israelites realized they had sinned against God (again!), and they begged Moses to intercede for them. Numbers 21:7 records, “Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee; pray unto the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.”
The Lord then gives Moses instructions on what needs to be done in order for the people to be saved from the fiery serpents.
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.” (Numbers 21:8-9)
Salvation was available to any bitten Hebrew. If they repented, believed God, and looked at the brass serpent, they would not die. Look and live. It was as easy as that.
We are really no different than the Hebrew children.
God continually performs miracles around us every day, yet we so easily forget those times when He has done so. Maybe it’s in the birth of a child; the good news from a physician; the offer of a job desired, or an incredible sunrise.
But our sin nature never rests, and like the wandering Israelites, we encounter our own moments when we “forget” God. We choose an idol over God (social media, sports, food…etc.) We grumble about having aches and pains as we grow older, or we become discontent about a situation at the office. We allow undesired circumstances to make us bitter or angry toward God. We forget the blessings that He has given; the life He has allowed us to live; the prayers He has answered in the past. We murmur against God. In our discontent, we become just like the children of Israel. And like them, we need to “look” in order to “live”.
Today, we don’t have to look at a brass serpent on a raised pole; instead, we need to look at an old rugged cross. This is the cross upon which the Son of God, Jesus Christ, sacrificed His life so that he could become sin for us and pay the debt that all humanity owed, but could never pay ourselves. By taking our sins upon Himself and then dying on the cross, Jesus bought our salvation. When He rose from the grave three days later, He proved He was truly the Son of God, as He had said, and He alone was qualified to be the Saviour of the world.
All we have to do is look and live! Look to Christ, accept Him as your Lord and Saviour, and you will LIVE forever with Him.
I’ve a message from the Lord, Hallelujah! The message unto you I’ll give.
’Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah! It is only that you “look and live.”
Life is offered unto you. Hallelujah! Eternal life your soul shall have
If you’ll only look to Him. Hallelujah! Look to Jesus, who alone can save.
“Look and live,” my brother, live. Look to Jesus now and live.
’Tis recorded in His Word, Hallelujah! It is only that you “look and live.”
(from “Look and Live” by W.A. Ogden)
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: “That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” – John 3:14-16
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“My most cherished possession I wish I could leave you is my faith in Jesus Christ, for with Him and nothing else, you can be happy, but without Him and with all else, you’ll never be happy.” – Patrick Henry