Detours of faith

1. Detours of faith Methodist Youth Fellowship March 15, 2015 Numbers 21:4-9

2. Numbers 21:4-9 4They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” 6Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. 8The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” 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, they lived.

3. Numbers 21:4-9 • Mount Hor, by way of the Red Sea, go around Edom – see map. Also read Num 21:1-3 (recent victory) and Duet 2:4-6, 8b-9 (forbidden to contend) for context. • Impatient – why? Circuitous route? Are we there yet?Man’s timing vs God’s. We forget many of God’s lessons are in the journey, along the way, and not only in the destination. • Curiously God’s direction are sometimes not direct but indirect and always contain a lesson. Do we gripe for no reason or grope for the reason? • They spoke (out and up) discontentedly (present – food sucks) against God and against Moses and distrustfully (future – to die?) of what God would do • WHY … always ‘Why’.. Me? • Brought out of Egypt to DIE… so melodramatic, don’t they KNOW that’s not God’s intention… but they spoke out anyway • A time to speak? A time to keep silent? What about you?

4. vs4: From Mt Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom detour

5. God… who? • What is the nature and character of God (do you/we know?) in how He receives and regards man’s complaints, whining's, … is there a difference between speaking up, out and speaking against? Even if we do not speak up/out, surely God already knows too well what lies in our hearts and minds! • Examples of speaking up/out and speaking against • Is God the same today as of yesteryears? Has He changed? • Why bring us out of Egypt? The very same people who cried to God for deliverance now question God’s deliverance?! // The very same crowd who shouted ‘Hosanna’ also shouted ‘Crucify him’ • How quickly we forget, how easily we turn from our words • Contrast how unchanging and faithful God is, coz what all this amounts to is unfaithfulness.

6. God … why? • Die in the wilderness? They do not see ahead to the promised land but got diverted and focused on the present. As a people, we have a short-sighted problem… we always have, especially when things are not going on well or as we expect them to be • There is no food and no water • We loath this “worthless food” or ‘light bread’ in reference to manna that is given to them • ‘light’ denotes something vile and worthless • So contemptuously did they speak of manna • The ‘light bread’ is the Bread of Life, the Word of God. Let not the contempt and belittling which some cast on the Word of God, make us value it less

7. god… when? • Manna, manna, manna, … for 40 years! A lifetime of the same food. The people complained and sought for a better and more varied fare (enjoyed by a settled people) and thought back of what they had back in Egypt. The old/sinful ways are better? • We need to consider our longing for variety, for novelty, for change – the way of the world. Change is the only constant. Change-ableness has crept into church and is in vogue • The world’s concept of change is about improvement, about getting better. No change = stagnation, out dated, failure but God doesn’t need to change as He is already perfect… • How can you eat the same breakfast day in and out? Some of us are experts at seeking out the best foods and the different places to eat around Penang… • But beware we don’t repeat their error – 1 Cor 10:9 • Manna becomes “mianna” – no need or don’t want in Hokkien

8. God… no!!! • Then … the Lord sent fiery serpents… bit them, so that many died • “Fiery” may denote the color/markings or the burning inflammation due to the venomous bites. Are colorful snakes more poisonous than black ones? Red touches yellow, dangerous fellow. Red touches black, friend to Jack. • Color can be a good indicator of a venomous snake, though again, there are alwaysexceptions to the rule. Most solid colored snakes are not poisonous. The most colorful the snake, the more wary of it you should be • MH’s commentary: We see the righteous judgment God brought upon them... He sent fiery serpents among them, which bit or stung many to death. It is to be feared that they would not have owned the sin, if they had not felt the smart; but they relented under the rod

9. God… forgive • And the people came to Moses, and acknowledged / confessed their sin.. For speaking against the Lord and against you/Moses • The deaths brought about by the serpents also (thankfully) brought about realization of their sin, and more importantly the action taken to come to Moses to confess of their sin • … pray to the Lord, that he takes away the serpents from us • Firstly – they sought Moses to intercede, to pray to God. Today we can come to God directly… do we? • Secondly – they sought to have the serpents taken away • God’s response was NOT to take the serpents away, nor the danger of being bitten but for the people to look TO God if they are stung. The consequences of their sin remained but God provided a way out that drew them back to Him.

10. God… this? • God in His wisdom did not remove the serpents – that would potentially revert things back to square one, no progress. This way, while the serpents remain • While the consequences of our sins invariably remain (unless by His divine and gracious intervention) God does provide us with deliverance if we confess our sins and turn to him – that’s the Gospel in a nutshell. • Lessons? • What are the ‘serpents’ in our lives. We may be able to account for some of them, but not all… that’s irrelevant • How can we learn to see beyond these ‘serpents’ to God’s grace, mercy and deliverance

11. God… help • We live in a time of grace… while there are ‘serpents’ in our lives, some of which we know our own doing due to sin, there are others which we know not the rhyme or reason. We also should realize that there are absent ‘serpents’ due to His grace and mercy • So rather than to complain and be disappointed with past, discontent with the present and distrustful of the future we should look beyond all things to Him who is able to deliver us from all thing unto Himself by His grace through His Son Jesus Christ

13. John 3:14.15 – And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life • John 3:16 …

14. Imageries & parallels Then Now

15. A lighter look

18. Thoughts… • When there are snakes on the ground where you live, do you look down to live or do you look up to live? • When the people looked towards the bronze snake they were saved from death but they would still have to bear the pain and suffering of the bite – the consequences of our sin remains but God in His grace has saved them from the final consequence of sin, which is death