Lead Me to the Cross…When You’re Fed Up…Look up AND Live! (Part 1)
Daily Devotions based the Sermon on Numbers 21:4-9 from March 14, 2021
THIS WEEK: Lead Me to the Cross…Find the Snake…Find the Cross!
Life and situations in life can be challenging. Perhaps you are in one of those seasons now.
I have to say, often my first reaction is to complain about the situation and blame God for putting me in it or not removing the situation from me.
What I’m learning from Israel and God’s patient interaction with them (See Numbers 21:4-9 and the earlier devotions this week) is to go through life seeing things from God’s perspective.
Three things happen when you look up to the Lord. (Here’s the first two…read tomorrow’s devotion for #3)
- You live trusting God’s Plan.
The reason Israel had been wandering years in the dessert is because they lacked trust in God and Moses to conquer the land of Canaan. They were ready to go back to Egypt. Like Joshua and Caleb, all should have trusted God’s plan.
Numbers 14:7-9 “The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. 8 If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. 9 Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will swallow them up. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them.”
This is only one of many reasons the Lord has given us to trust him and his plan. Look up and live, trusting God’s plan for you and your life.
- You live believing God’s Promises
Look at what God had promised Israel before they set out into the desert:
Exodus 6:6 “Therefore, say to the Israelites: ‘I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. 7 I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the Lord your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you to the land I swore with uplifted hand to give to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob. I will give it to you as a possession. I am the Lord.’ ”
Six times in three verses God makes a promise…”I will…” When God says he will…he will. His promises are always trustworthy. His promises will never let you down.
What are the promises God gives you to look to when life challenges you? Here are a couple…
When you feel all alone and perceive that God is gone and doesn’t care:
Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
When you feel life is too challenging and you feel like giving up:
Revelation 21:2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”
Which promise of God is your favorite?
Life can certainly provide its challenges…so don’t forget, when you are fed up, remember to look up!
Apply: Here’s a “promise a day” resource if you’d like one verse a day to reflect on, memorize and carry with you (https://www.365promises.com/).
Prayer: Lord, thank you for being always faithful and trustworthy. Lead me before I get fed up, to always look up and be reminded to trust you in all things and believe your promises are real for me. Amen.
Lead Me to the Cross…When You’re Fed Up…Look Up!
Daily Devotions based the Sermon on Numbers 21:4-9 from March 14, 2021
THIS WEEK: Lead Me to the Cross…Find the Snake…Find the Cross!
“Only when you hit bottom, do you start to look up.”
Israel had hit bottom. They complained of detestable food. They claimed they were out in the desert to die. They wanted a new leader. They wanted a new God.
If that wasn’t enough, now they had poisonous snakes lunging at them wherever they went.
Their first step: Repent (see yesterday’s devotion). God woke them up with the snakes.
They asked Moses to intercede for them. Moses did and God answered.
Ironically, God didn’t take the snakes away. In fact, it appears he allowed individuals to continue to be bitten. But he did provide a way to not perish from the snake bite.
Numbers 21:8 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.
The issue wasn’t the snakes. It was the people’s hearts. What would they do now? Would they continue to complain and blame God for the poisonous snakes and their negative impact on life? Would their hearts stay full of complaining, blaming and lack of trust? Or would they listen to their leader Moses and once again trust the Lord their God.
How? By looking up…at the bronze snake on the pole and trusting the promise the Lord attached to it: “Look and live!”
The bronze serpent lifted up on the pole saved people from snakebites.
Jesus would use this event to describe what would happen to him:
John 3:14 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.
Jesus lifted up on the cross would save people from the bite of THE serpent, Satan.
Satan would and still does prowl around looking for someone to bite with the poison of sin. Sin still has it’s sting of death. Only when we come to the realization that we cannot save ourselves from the curse of sin, do we look up for a solution.
That solution is in Jesus. The Lord allowed his Son to be lifted up on the pole of the cross to not just pay the punishment our sin deserved, but to provide the promise our heart needed to believe.
That promise is powerful to compel our heart to believe it. By believing we have eternal life. That means we will never be threatened by sin and its consequences any more. We will be in the “promise land” of heaven, with our Savior, Jesus.
So, next time you’re fed up, remember to look up. Look up and see your Savior who loves you, was lifted up on a cross for you, and has a place in heaven waiting for you!
Apply: What sin continues to “bite” you? Look up to the cross to see Jesus who lived and died for you. Look up to the cross for power and strength to say “No” to that sin.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for honoring Moses’ request to provide deliverance for your people. Thank you for providing deliverance for me by your Son’s death on the cross. AMEN.
Lead Me to the Cross…When I’m Fed Up…God Wakes Me Up!
Daily Devotions based the Sermon on Numbers 21:4-9 from March 14, 2021
THIS WEEK: Lead Me to the Cross…Find the Snake…Find the Cross!
Not always, but sometimes…
God allows tough situations to wake us up and turn from a path that is spiritually destructive.
I just hope it’s not snakes…like he did for Israel.
I hate snakes.
But maybe that’s the point.
When we are fed up and start complaining against God for the situation we are in and blaming him for our circumstances, we need a wake-up call. God could allow worse. Sin is serious and God wants us to realize that.
For Israel he sent snakes…poisonous ones. Ones that led to the loss of life.
Number 21:6 Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died.
I suppose we could react to this and get even more mad at God and simply turn from God and try to outrun the snakes. (Pretty sure I can guess how that will end up!)
Or we could wake up and see into our heart the sin that God desires we acknowledge and repent of. Israel got it. (Better choice.)
Numbers 21:7 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.
I am not going to try to label every hardship in your life as God calling you to repentance for some sin you committed. However, when we reach a point of being fed up with something in life and begin to blame God for it, it is now a sin that is captivating our heart. We may believe God is out to punish us. Truth is, God is out to save us from our sin and its eternal consequences. If necessary, he’s willing to take extreme measures to turn our heart away from sin and back to him.
God, in his justice, could have wiped out all of Israel. But he didn’t. He wanted to wake up all of Israel.
Same is true for us.
When I’m fed up with God, God wants me to wake up. Wake up and return to him.
Here’s his promise:
1 John 1:8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
God wants nothing more than the hearts of people to trust him…always. God wants nothing more than people to live with him forever…everyone.
So next time you reach a point where you are fed up, consider God may be calling you to wake up. Wake up, repent, and receive his love and grace once again.
More tomorrow…
Apply: Is there a situation in life for which you are blaming God and struggling to not do so? Try this. Acknowledge the hurt you experienced to God. Repent of blaming God for it. Ask God to give you strength to see the spiritual blessing that he desires to work out of a very difficult physical situation.
Prayer: Lord, lead me to trust you always. Forgive me when I blame you for things my sin creates in life. Help me when I am fed up to wake up to your call to repent and live. Amen.
Look to the Cross…When You’re Fed Up!
Daily Devotions based the Sermon on Numbers 21:4-9 from March 14, 2021
THIS WEEK: Lead Me to the Cross…Find the Snake…Find the Cross!
We’re having that again? We just had that yesterday!
That’s just after two days. How would you feel after eating the same thing for nearly 40 years???
There’s only so many ways you can make manna and cook quail. Finally the people of Israel had it.
They were fed up…and let God know about it.
4 They 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 desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”
This wasn’t just “the Israelites were having a bad day” situation. This was a deep rooted disgust, frustration, and complaint against God. Every morning when they picked up the manna God provided, they had a strong negative reaction.
They were fed up…and wished God would do something about it.
Can you relate?
It may not be eating the same food year after year, but it may be a relationship challenge that is not resolving and you’re fed up. It may be a situation with your work or career that makes work miserable and you’re fed up. It may be a classmate that has an annoying habit that bugs you endlessly every day and your fed up.
What do you do when you are fed up?
Our natural reaction is to become impatient, to blame and complain.
Does this solve the problem?
No, but it’s our default reaction and maybe vents a little steam. However, it often makes the situation worse, especially when we blame God for the situation in which we find ourselves. Here’s three reasons why.
- When I grow impatient, my trust is diminished. I start to believe that God can’t be trusted. I believe he is part of the problem, why would I trust him.
- When I grow impatient, my belief is limited. I become cynical and skeptical that God will be faithful to his promises. Doubt begins to overshadow belief.
- And, when I grow impatient, my perspective is narrowed. I find myself focused on what is going wrong, and the horrible situation in which I find myself.
Ultimately when we are fed up with life or a situation in life, we are tempted to give up. That’s not the place God wants our hearts to go. We’ll see in the next days where God takes Israel, but let me give you this Word of God for your day…especially if it’s a day you find yourself fed up.
Remember this:
Romans 5:3 Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
Life can be challenging and disappointing, but here’s the truth. God still loves you. God has given his Spirit of power to you. And God can and does work what you are going through into an opportunity to grow you.
More tomorrow…
Apply: If you have gone through an “I’m fed up…” season of life, as you look back what did God teach you? If you are in one of those situations today, what might God be teaching you?
PRAYER: Lord, I know I can become impatient and fed up with you and life. Forgive me for Jesus sake and remind me that you can use these challenging moments to develop me as your child. AMEN.
Lead Me to the Cross…Stealing stuff and a Good Name
Daily Devotions based the Sermon from March 7, 2021
THIS WEEK: Lead Me to the Cross…Read the Tablets…Find the Cross!
Friday: Lead Me to the Cross: Stealing Stuff and A Good Name
Taking something that is not rightfully yours…that’s stealing.
The seventh commandment, “You shall not steal” is another one we like to easily cruse past and “check off” as “kept.” But our image of putting on a mask (oh, wait, that’s ok these days J ) and holding up a bank demanding sacks of cash as the only way to break this commandment is far from accurate.
But again when I take a closer look, I ask, “What can I take that is not rightfully mine?” Answers from a classmate? Time surfing the web from my employer? Deceptive transaction on Facebook Marketplace? Failing to give an offering to the Lord?
Wait, what do you mean? I can steal from God? Yep. Consider Malachi 3:8-10. (But see the promise too!):
8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’ “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.
Stealing again starts in the heart, desiring to have what we have not been given, or what is not rightfully ours. The seventh commandment God protects our possessions. The ninth and tenth guide our heart away from the desire that leads to stealing:
Exodus 20:17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
Luther put it this way in regard to stealing and coveting:
(On the Seventh Commandment): We should fear and love God so that we do not take our neighbor’s money or possessions, or get them in any dishonest way, but help him to improve and protect his possessions and income.
(On the Ninth and Tenth Commandment): We should fear and love God so that we do not scheme to get our neighbor’s inheritance or house, or get it in a way which only appears right, but help and be of service to him in keeping it. We should fear and love God so that we do not entice or force away our neighbor’s wife, workers, or animals, or turn them against him, but urge them to stay and do their duty.
One of the ways we can connive to get something not ours is by stealing our neighbor’s reputation. If I can make someone not trust another individual, it may work for my advantage. (Insert political campaigns and politics in general here!) Telling something false, or even spreading the truth with intent to harm someone’s reputation takes away their good name, often with the intent to build up our good name.
Luther put it this way: We should fear and love God so that we do not tell lies about our neighbor, betray him, slander him, or hurt his reputation, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain everything in the kindest way.
The irony? We usually damage our name greater when it is found out we have lied about another person. So let’s give up the telling of lies, and rather work to build up and speak well of others.
Need the cross? I do. The last four commandments lead me to crawl back to Jesus and his cross and look for his heart and life that perfectly cover mine and his suffering and death that were paid on my behalf.
I love the commandments and I hope you do to. Why? Because they first lead me to the cross and then forgiven and empowered by Jesus’ love, the lead me from the cross to better love God and love the people around me.
Apply: Take the Malachi challenge. Put God first in your financial wealth. Find blessing in returning to God what is his. Enjoy the blessings he gives as you live on 90% of your income!
Prayer:
Lord, your law is good and wise;
It sets your will before my eyes
Shows me the way of righteousness,
But dooms to death when we transgress.
To Jesus I for refuge flee
Who from the curse has set me free,
And humbly worship at your throne,
Saved by your grace through faith alone. AMEN
(Adapted from Christian Worship, Hymn 287:1,4)