Gtcotr/ss031217
Today
we are going to read two short stories from the Bible. The first story is an
account of something that happened when Moses and the Children of Israel were
wandering in the wilderness about 1400 years before Christ. The second story
takes place over 700 years later during the reign of a king named Hezekiah who
ruled over Judah and had his palace in the city of Jerusalem.
It
will be interesting to see where these two stories intersect and how they fit
together to teach us some important truths for today. During our family Bible
study this morning we are going to discover:
1. God’s way is the best way even when it is a
hard way.
2. Acknowledging our need is the first step to
recovery.
3. God’s help is a blessing which may take some
time.
4. The blessings of God should never take the
place of God.
The first story:
Numbers 21
4 ¶ And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way
of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the souls of the people were
very discouraged because of the way.
5 And the people spoke against God, and against
Moses, Wherefore have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?
for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul
loathes this light bread.
6 And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the
people, and they bit the people; and many of the people of Israel died.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said,
We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against you; pray unto
the LORD, that He take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the
people.
8 And the LORD said unto Moses, Make a fiery
serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that
is bitten, when he looks upon it, shall live.
9 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.
If
the Children of Israel had have used the main road from Egypt to Israel it
would have taken them only about 10 days to 2 weeks at most. The well-established
trade route would also have afforded known sources of water. Of course, there
were some 600,000 men between the ages of 20 and 50 plus the women, children
and those who had already retired. The straight-line approach appeared the
easiest but it was not the best.
The
shorter way would have led them straight through the heart of the land of Edom.
Edom was also known in the Bible as Esau the brother of Jacob. God knew these
two sides of the family would end up fighting and killing each other or else He
would have to decide which one lived and which one died. Esau and Jacob were
both the sons of Isaac and God wanted the brothers to live in peace. So, God
led the Children of Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, to go all the way
around the land of Edom. It was harder and longer but it was after all best for
everyone concerned.
When
the people began to complain about God and the way Moses was leading them God
counted it as sin. The serpents were a manifestation of the wages of sin. These
attacks did not come upon the innocent but rather upon the guilty. Many people
began to get sick and die of the poison. Thankfully some of the people had the
good sense to realize what was happening. They confessed their sins and ask for
prayer. Moses prayed and God gave the remedy.
However,
it took some time to make a mold and pour a cast of a brass serpent. These
things don’t just happen automatically. The serpent was a symbol of sin and the
very thing with which the people were plagued. Moses placed the brass serpent
on a pole and raised it high in the camp so that whenever a person sinned they
could, if they so chose, look upon the serpent and be healed and delivered from
death. Only those who identified themselves as sinners in need of salvation
were delivered. Looking up at the serpent was a public acknowledgement of the
need to be saved.
So
far, from the first story today, we have seen how:
1. God’s way is the best way even when it is a
hard way.
2. Acknowledging our need is the first step to
recovery.
3. God’s help is a blessing which may take some
time.
Now for the second
story … over 700 years later …
2 Kings 18
1 ¶ Now it came to pass in
the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of
Ahaz king of Judah began to reign.
2 Twenty and five years old
was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Abi, the daughter of Zachariah.
3 And he did that which was
right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father did.
4 He removed the high places,
and broke the images, and cut down the groves, and broke in pieces the brass
serpent that Moses had made: for in those days the children of Israel burnt
incense to it: and he called it Nehushtan.
5 He trusted in the LORD God
of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah,
nor any that were before him.
6 For he clave to the LORD,
and departed not from following him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD
commanded Moses.
7 And the LORD was with him;
and he prospered whithersoever he went…
King
Hezekiah was a good king and he did what was right in the sight of the God.
Verse 4 says:
4 He removed the high places,
and broke the images, and cut down the groves, and broke in pieces the brass
serpent that Moses had made: for in those days the children of Israel burnt
incense to it: and he called
it Nehushtan.
What
does the word Nehushtan mean?
Nehustan =
It’s just a piece of brass
That
brass serpent had been among the children of Israel for over 700 years and
everyone knew the story of how it had healed their forefathers in the
wilderness. It had been given to the children of Israel by God in a critical
time of need. But it was just a piece of brass. However, the people believed
that the brass serpent possessed the power to heal, deliver and answer prayer. They
took the blessing of God and misused it.
·
How
can God’s blessings be turned to evil? When the blessing of God begins to take the
place of God.
·
God
is to be worshipped and adored. He is to hold the first and only number one
place in our lives.
·
We
are to appreciate the blessings of God … not allow the blessings of God to take
the place of God.
·
First
things first … and God is always and only first!
This
brings us to our last point for today:
4. The blessings of God should never take the
place of God.
After
all, they’re just blessings! Nothing more than a piece of brass …
Conclusion: When we are in
trouble, even trouble we may cause ourselves, we can call on God and He will
help us. However, whatever remedy God supplies, it is not meant to dominate or
take over our lives or take us farther from Him. We should appreciate every
blessing but never allow the blessings of God to take the place of God. I know,
sometimes the way seems hard but God knows what is best for everyone concerned.
Deliverance may take some time but our first step is to acknowledge our need
for His help.
Let’s
renew our commitment to put First things First
this year:
1.
God
2.
Family
4.
The World
Everything else is simply Nehustan!
