Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
I know many people who are afraid of snakes; I have seen men run and women weep until they cannot walk because of the proximity of a non-poisonous slitherer. It would be most unexpected, then, to find Jesus in the midst of snakes in the desert, but that is exactly what we find in Numbers 21:4-9. These “fiery serpents” (verse 6) were lethally poisonous, and “much people of Israel died” (verse 6) from this judgment brought about by the Israelites’ unbelief and complaining (verse 5). What was the antidote? Verses 8 and 9 tell us that God’s provision was to have Moses place a serpent of brass on a pole. Then, any person who was bitten would be healed if only he looked at the upraised snake. There was no magic involved; it was simply a matter of faith. Would an afflicted person trust God’s way of healing – and live – or not – and die? The same imagery is used of Jesus in John 3:14-15. Nearly 1500 years after the brazen serpent was lifted up, Jesus was uplifted on the Cross. His death provides the antidote for our sin. However, we must look to this upraised Savior in faith to pass from death to life, to pass from everlasting separation to eternal life. Lord, may we continue to marvel that You save sinners like us.