Look and live!

Written by Pastor Nathan Gonmei | 03 June 2010

Numbers 21:8-9
8 The 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, he lived.

You probably have read this incident that occurred when the Israelites were in the wilderness. Due to their complaining and ungratefulness, they opened themselves to the poisonous snakes that were already in the desert.

God's instruction for them to not be harmed by the poison was very unusual. He told Moses to make a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. And he said anyone who looks at it will live. Now, this was a very unusual instruction but it was also quite simple. Many times, God's instruction for us to be healed, experience blessing and success, or see restoration of a marriage relationship or a financial breakthrough could seem to be unusual. It may sound illogical. But nonetheless, it will bring supernatural results. God's instructions must not be reasoned but believed and obeyed.

In this story we see that anyone who obeyed God's instruction to look at the bronze snake on the pole was not harmed by the poison but lived. They just had to LOOK!

Now, in the Gospels we see Jesus quoting this portion and talking about His work on the cross.

John 3:14-15
14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

In essence, Jesus was saying anyone who sees me having paid the price on the cross for them and believes will have eternal life. My friend, Jesus is saying the same thing God told the Israelites – LOOK AND LIVE! When you look at Jesus taking all your sins, curses, sicknesses, hurts, fears, and poverty you will live the abundant and the victorious life!

Now, many believers look at Jesus just casually. Some just look at him in only some areas of their lives. But God wants us to fix our eyes on him every day and for every area!

How do you do that? Every day you put the finished work of Jesus in the forefront of your mind. You meditate on it and you declare that Jesus became a curse for you so that you can be blessed. He became sin for you so that you can be righteous. He took your sicknesses so that you can have divine health. He took your poverty so that you will never live in lack. He defeated fear so that you can live in peace. And, He was rejected so that you can be totally accepted! Hallelujah!

Maybe you have been "bitten" by many things in this life. Maybe you are sick, or you have financial challenges, or you have gone through a bad divorce or whatever it is that has bitten you. I guarantee that if you look at Jesus you will effortlessly come out victorious over all these things.

The truth is this Jesus hung on the cross just for you. He was judged for you. He was condemned for you. All this He did because He loves you.

I want to encourage you to stop looking at the "bite marks" and start looking at your savior who took every "bite" upon himself and defeated all of them at the cross!