4 Minute Read

Prepare Your Heart

To the best of your ability, get rid of all distractions. Take a few minutes to breathe deeply and quiet yourself in the Lord’s presence. Then, ask the Lord to speak to you in this time. Let Him know that you will listen and make whatever adjustments He will reveal to you.

Read God’s Word

Numbers 21-22
Mark 10:46-11:11

A Verse for Today

Slowly and reflectively read the following verse(s) and listen to what God will say to you through His written Word. Consider writing down any insights He reveals to you.

Numbers 21:8-9 (CSB): “Then the LORD said to Moses, ‘Make a snake image and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will recover.’ So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole. Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered.”

Reflecting on God’s Word

If you love the thrill of discovery, you will have fun reading the Old Testament! Why? Because it contains so many hidden meanings and “road signs” in the Old Testament that point to the reality of Jesus in the New Testament.

For instance, we read in Numbers 21:4-10 that the people of Israel started complaining (again!). They “spoke against God and Moses” when complaining about their food and drink in the wilderness.

God doesn’t take complaining lightly because it is generally the response of someone unsatisfied with what God has sent or allowed into their life. So, “the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people.” The snakes bit the people, and many of them died.

When the people acknowledged their sin and pleaded with Moses to intercede with the Lord on their behalf, the Lord told Moses to build a bronze pole with a bronze snake mounted on it. When the people looked at the snake on the pole, they recovered.

Fast-forward about 1,500 years to a night when a Pharisee, Nicodemus, was speaking with Jesus (John 3:1-21). Nicodemus seems to have been sincere in his desire to question Jesus and listen to His answers. As the Apostle John wrote about this in his Gospel, he honed in on Jesus’ response to Nicodemus’ question about being born again. In Jesus’ response, He gave the following words.

John 3:14-16 (CSB): “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God loved the world in this way: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

Did you catch that? Jesus referred back to the event written about in Numbers 21. Jesus made it clear that the snake on a pole was a shadow of the reality (Jesus hanging on a cross). The Israelites were to look at the snake and be healed, a bronze snake representing the very thing that had bitten them and was killing them. New Testament believers look to Jesus, who became sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), that we may be saved and born again.

Friend, all sorts of signposts, like the bronze snake, appear in the Old Testament and point to the reality found in the New Testament in Jesus. I will highlight some of them as we read the Bible this year. But I won’t be able to address them all (Luke 24:27)!

So, realize that the whole Bible (the Old Testament, too) is about Jesus! The whole Bible points to Him!

Here’s a serious question: Does your life do the same thing (Colossians 1:18)?

Spend Time in Prayer

  • Ask God to help you realize just how gracious He is. He sent Jesus to become sin for us so that we might look to Him and be made righteous.
  • Ask God to help you find the next person you can tell about the wonderful news of the Gospel.

Going Deeper

If you want to dig a little deeper into the bronze serpent and Jesus on the cross, consider reading the following GotQuestions article:

“Why is a bronze serpent used to save the Israelites in Numbers 21:8-9?”

“Why did Jesus say that the Son of Man must be lifted up (John 3:14)?”

Sharing

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Matt Ellis is the pastor of First Baptist Church in Polk City, Florida (fbcpolkcity.com)