Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” —Numbers 21:8 NKJ

The lamb dinner was well behind them. The washed-ashore bodies of Pharaoh’s army had long since become scavenger food. The fine chariots now lay buried at the bottom of the Red Sea, gathering coral. Nothing but barren, dusty, rocky terrain loomed ahead of them as far as the horizon could take them. Day in and day out, the rituals of daily life and worship took place. Pitch tents. Pull up stakes. Move on. Only to do it all over again. And again. And again. In this short season, they already had a lifetime of challenges and hardships tucked under their tunic belts. It’s easy to see how they could feel times of great discouragement. The Lord was leading them, but let’s face it, navigating a strange desert with unpredictable food and water sources and dangers around every corner, life was just plain hard. It would take continual leaning on Him to survive the trek that was marked with the graves of loved ones along the way.

Sure. They had up days, good times, celebrations, provisions, and joyous moments of worship and praise to God. There were times of extra closeness with God and blessings from Him, of trusting Him and seeing His hand over their lives. Yet, they somehow always found time and reasons to complain, to find fault, and not to do what God asked of them. Their rebellion had cost them lives and even kept all but two of the adults from the original group out of the Promised Land. Even Moses would miss out on that opportunity because he’d blown his stack. What lay before them now was a decades-long march in indestructible sandals. So, they trudged on, vacillating between trusting and obeying God, and complaining and rebelling against Him. God kept leading them. Providing for them. Protecting them. Sustaining them. Claiming them as His own special people.

Aaron had died; a new high priest had stepped in; more difficulties arose; and more grievances were filed. Then it happened! They complained one more time, but this time their complaint was different. Every fiber in them now longed to go back to the old life, the old way. They absolutely hated the bread from heaven. The quail was no better. They were exhausted, and they’d had enough. They no longer wanted God’s Land. They no longer wanted His Provision. In that moment, it would be fair to say that they did not even want Him.

So, what did God do? In their ugliest hour, He loved them with a living reminder of His very first promise of the Coming Messiah: “… He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel”  (Genesis 3:15b NKJ). How did He remind them of that promise? With serpents!! Lots of serpents!! Bite after bite after bite. As the bodies began to drop around Moses, God gave them an unforgettable picture of His coming greatest act of love: the Messiah. The Cross. Sin and its curse would be nailed and lifted up with Christ. The sting of sin and death would be removed. Likewise, if the bitten Israelites wanted to be healed, they’d have to look up—look upon this bronze snake. It was the only way.

It wasn’t the snake that brought healing to the people. Not really. Moses could have taken that snake and touched them all with it to heal them, but he didn’t. He had to put the snake on a pole and lift it up high above them so that they had to look up at it. I wonder just how big a scope of realization Moses had of what he was doing when he fashioned and fastened that bronze serpent to the pole? What were his thoughts when he raised it up in front of them? Or was He just caught up in the moment of doing what God had called him to do? Can’t you just hear the depth of Moses cry for them to, “Look up!! Please!!”

I hate snakes!! They’re scary. They’re ugly. But my sin is a whole lot uglier. My sin is also no less ugly than the sin of those desert wanderers of old. It requires nothing less than theirs required. I have to look up and see my sin nailed to His Cross. As ugly as my sin is, there’s also nothing more beautiful than seeing my Savior carrying it on the cross for me. When I’m humbled enough to admit my sin and bring it to Him, He carries it away so far that I can never reclaim that territory. I can never go back to that old life again. I am now a brand-new person. Fully cleansed, fully forgiven, fully clothed in His righteousness. With the Promised Land before me.

I wonder, is my heart cry to those around me, just as deep as Moses’ cry had to have been to his people? Are they hearing from me, “Look up!! Please!!”

Father, make my burden for souls way bigger than my fears and my self-centeredness. 

I love You, Lord!
Donna Perkins

Sweet Selah Ministries

Vision
To inspire a movement away from the belief that “busy is better”
and toward the truth of God’s Word that stillness and knowing
Him matter most—and will be reflected in more effective work and service

Mission
To offer biblical resources and retreats that help women pause (Selah)
and love God more deeply as they know Him more intimately (Sweet)

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