Sermon Index
March 11, 2018, Lent 4B
Old Testament Lesson Numbers 21:4–9
4From Mount Hor they set out by the way to the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom. And the people became impatient on the way. 5And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” 6Then the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died. 7And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. 8And the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” 9So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.
We are now in the season of Lent. It is 40 days long. Jesus spent 40 days in the wilderness, tempted and tested by the devil. And the people of Israel spent 40 years in the wilderness, not only tempted and tested by the devil, but often they were the ones who tempted, or tested, God.
Today’s Old Testament reading is one of those times when the Israelites tested God. They had been in the wilderness for a few months now, after leaving slavery in Egypt. They had left Mt. Sinai and were proceeding toward the Promised Land. In the wilderness there is little water and no food. Therefore the Israelites often grumbled against Moses and the Lord God. God daily gave them fresh manna to eat, and they learned to trust the Lord for their daily food. But they got bored of the manna. I do not blame them; I too would get tired of eating the same refugee camp food every day for 40 years. But it was more than that. They had lost trust in Moses and the Lord; they were ready to go back into slavery.
God sent poisonous snakes that bit and killed many of the people. I think the purpose of this was so that people would know that God was in control. He could kill and he could make alive. He could let them starve, or he could lead them to the Land Flowing with Milk and Honey. The people confessed their sin of not trusting God and asked for forgiveness and deliverance. “7And the people came to Moses and said, ‘We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you. Pray to the LORD, that he take away the serpents from us.’ So Moses prayed for the people.” God had mercy on the people he loved. He gave instructions to Moses who made the bronze snake and set it up on a pole for the people to look at. And when they looked at it, they would know Moses had made it because God wanted them to live. To look at the snake was to have faith in the power and love of God. To look up at the bronze snake was to pray to God for healing and salvation. In this way the Israelites learned to trust God for everything they needed in their daily life.
When I read a story in a novel or in the Bible, I put myself into the story. I become one of the characters: perhaps the hero, perhaps only an on-looker. When I read today’s Old Testament lesson, I become one of the Israelites. I have been in the wilderness eating that manna everyday and am getting tired of it. For example, I like apples, and I could eat one every day for breakfast, but I do not want to eat apples and only apples morning, noon, and night at each and every meal. Surely I would be one of the people who spoke against God and against Moses, 5 “Why have you brought [me] up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and [I] loathe this worthless food.” And do not tell me that you would be satisfied with manna. You too would soon be wondering why God was leading us all around the wilderness. When are we going to get to the Promised Land of Milk and Honey? I know that we would grumble like the Israelites then because we grumble against God all the time now. With the uncertainties and troubles of life, perhaps our faith in God is being tested. Perhaps God is testing us. Perhaps we are testing God. And when the poisonous, fiery snakes bite us, do we know that it is punishment from God? When pain and disease and debt and debate and destruction and defeat and other dire predicaments descend upon us, do we see God’s hand directing us to him? We thank God for blessings, but do we blame God for our troubles? It is time to pray the Lord’s Prayer, “Forgive us our trespasses, save us from the time of trial, deliver us from evil.” And as we pray, look up to Jesus who was raised on the cross. See Jesus who heals and saves us.
As I read this Old Testament story, I also found myself taking the part of another character. Not only Moses, of course, but also I became one of the fiery snakes. Like a fire-and-brimstone preacher perhaps? It is easy to criticize the Israelites and think that they should be punished for doubting God. It is easy because we all criticize everyone all the time for everything. And often we would only be too glad to punish people for their sins. Like a snake: bite them, poison them, lie to them, scare them, make them run. Yes, sometimes we are snakes. But have we been sent by God, or have we been sent by that old serpent who is Satan? Satan only bites and kills. If you think it is your job as a fiery serpent to bite someone, you must also take the responsibility to become the bronze serpent on the pole. You must show the love and mercy of God and show the healing forgiveness of Jesus Christ who was lifted up on the cross. He was lifted up in order “15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.” Or as the Lutheran Church always says, you must always without fail proclaim both Law and Gospel to repentant sinners. With the bite comes the antidote. With judgment comes salvation. With testing comes assurance. With fear comes peace.
That love and mercy is John Three: Seventeen. “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
I wonder, if I had been one of those Israelites that had been bitten by a fiery poisonous snake, what would I do? Would I look up at the bronze snake and pray for forgiveness and healing? Or would I stay in my tent and hate and curse God for all the trouble he has given me? Maybe I think that the snakes were just a natural phenomenon, having nothing to do with God, thinking that the bronze serpent was just an idol or superstitious charm that would be ineffective. Would I have faith or no faith?
That is the question people have today. Do we look up at Jesus on the cross and pray for forgiveness and healing and salvation? Do we think that God does not care that we are dying? Do we think that the death of Jesus on the cross has no power to heal us? Is a cross or a crucifix just a superstitious charm?
After 40 years in the wilderness when the Israelites crossed the Jordan River and entered the Promised Land, they knew for sure that God was with them. After 40 days of Lent when we come on Easter to the empty tomb, we know for sure that God is with us. John 3:16 & 17 become our creed. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
Amen.
Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church