In Numbers 21 we again see the Israelites grumbling against God and Moses. They had no excuse not to trust God because they had already seen many amazing signs of his providence and care for them. But still they complained and, in doing so, they played into the hand of the same tempter, the serpent, who defrauded Adam and Eve of their inheritance. Now again Satan is tempting the Israelites away from their inheritance in God. And so, God shows them exactly whose hands they are playing themselves into in an act of judgement that is profoundly symbolic of the issues at stake. He sends snakes among them. There is not a moment when Satan is not trying to defraud you of your inheritance in God. When you yield to his temptations you open the door for him to come in and sink the venom of his deceit into your heart. The consequence of sin is great. But greater still is the consequence of what Christ did for us on the cross. The bronze snake was a symbol of the judgement that had come upon the Israelites. As Moses lifted up this symbol in the desert, it became the means of healing for the Israelites. In the same way the cross of Christ is the symbol of God’s judgement upon mankind, but it becomes our way of healing and salvation. Through the cross our inheritance is given back to us. It is secure in Christ for those who look to him.
Think about whether you are letting Satan’s deceit sink into your heart in any way.
Read Numbers 21
