Dictations From The Spirit

Numbers 21:9: So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.

Today’s verse is a foreshadowing of the Gospel.  The fiery serpents, mentioned in Numbers 21:6, are symbols of sin.  Our introduction to Satan himself is in the form of a serpent in the Garden of Eden.  It is not an incidental fact that the serpent that Moses made was made of bronze.  Bronze is a symbol of judgment in the Bible.  Consequently, we see the symbol of sin, the serpent, being made of bronze – a sign of judgment, being put on a pole.  Those that would look upon it after being bitten would live.  Jesus referenced this verse in the Gospel of John in verse 3:14 saying, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up”.

I grew up in a very judgmental home.  In fact, when I think of the majority of my relatives I’ve known during my life, being judgmental is a core component of our family system.  I always hated being judged, and I still do.  Before I became a Christian, my main problem with judgment was that I felt whatever I did was never enough – or always wrong.  I would think I’ve done something right or well, but would come to learn that it would fall short of someone’s standards or expectations.  Moreover, those standards and expectations seemed to vary from moment to moment and from person to person.  I couldn’t win, and it felt so unfair.  When I did do something wrong, I often found the judgments seemed overstated in light of the crime.  In many situations, I didn’t even know I had committed a crime – yet was being judged!

In my years of being a Christian, I’m still mentally, emotionally, and spiritually processing the sovereign interaction of God’s judgment and God’s grace.  An important hurdle for me in coming to appreciate God’s judgment was that there was a uniform standard of conduct to aspire to.  God doesn’t change and neither do His statutes.  God is good, and God is love – so it only stands to reason that His standards are rooted in goodness and love.  Therefore, it makes perfect sense that there are consequences to disobedience to God’s desire for our conduct.

One of the great “features” of true Christianity is that the foundation of our relationship with God is rooted in our belief and faith in Jesus Christ and the works He has done and continues to do on our behalf.  This is the grace of God and no clearer evidence of His awesome love for us. He has stayed true to His perfect holiness by judging our sin, yet He paid the only possible price that would both satisfy the Father’s judgment of our sin and allow us to comprehend His desire and ability to forgive us to the fullest extent. Our faith in this Divine-initiated transaction allows us to build an intimate relationship with Him. We can then freely and joyfully fellowship with Him without being crippled by the lingering effects of our sin.  This is God’s will for us.

Today’s verse is an early example of God’s grace to those He loves.  His people were sinning, they confessed, and they sought relief from the judgment of their sin.  God did judge their sin, but He, out of His love and compassion for them, gave them a way to live despite their sin.  If we’re honest, we’re not really all that different from the people of Israel.  Thank God He isn’t any different either.

John 1:29b: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

A popular story theme in movies and television is centered on prisoners who attempt to escape from jail. A slang term for those that break out of jail is that they are “on the lam”. They are fugitives – seeking to escape the judgment for their crimes. These stories can admittedly be entertaining at times, but there’s an important thing to remember as we watch these stories – even though they may have temporarily escaped from their prison cells, it doesn’t change the fact they are still guilty and are subject to the judgment for their crimes. They can try to run as fast and as far as they want, but they can never truly escape their judgment. They will forever have the concern that they will one day be caught. That is the truth of life living on the lam.

There’s a clear parallel with this concept of living on the lam with the spiritual life. The non-believing human is, in effect, living on the lam from the eventual judgment of their sin. Scripture is very clear on the judgment for sin – it is death – spiritual death. (Romans 6:23) Moreover, all humans are guilty due to their sin. (Romans 3:23) Therefore, until someone acknowledges the truth of their sinfulness, he/she are spiritually living on the lam. Thankfully, God chose to not leave us in this hopeless state of eventual judgment for all of us. God chose His only begotten Son to take the judgment for all the sin of human history on the Cross. Jesus’ willing sacrificial death satisfied the wrath of God’s judgment on sin, and as a result of that, was raised to life in a glorified body – defeating death and opening the door to eternal life free from the judgment of sin. Praise the Lord!

In today’s verse, John called Jesus “The Lamb of God” meaning Jesus was to be the sacrificial lamb for the payment of humanity’s sin – for those who choose to believe in Him and what He did. The concept of a sacrificial lamb for the payment of sin was established in the Old Testament. However, the sacrificed lamb would only cover the sins that were being confessed. Jesus’ sacrifice washed away and took away the sins – as if they were never there. This is significant as the guilt and shame that comes with sin that isn’t forgiven no longer exists from God’s perspective. For those who come to understand this truth, the freedom and liberty from the bondage of sin overwhelms us and allows us to live a new life – loving God and others. That new life is living daily – communing and walking with Jesus as He teaches us about living in the Kingdom of God now and into eternity. Our love for Him grows and grows, and eventually we are no longer as easily tempted to sin because we so love Him and trust His provision to take perfect care of us. The provides us a peace that passes all understanding and a rest that is not available to the unbelieving world.

So the question you need to ask either yourself or your loved ones is, “Which would you rather be? – Living on the lam constantly trying to run away from your judgment in perpetual fear you’ll be caught, or would you rather be living with the Lamb Who takes away your sin and liberates you from your judgment? You can’t escape the judgment of your sin by yourself. You need the Lamb of God to be your judgment for you and take away your sin. Will you ask Him?