Serpent in the Wilderness
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4 And they journeyed from mount Hor by the way of the Red sea, to compass the land of Edom: and the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.
5 And the people spake against God, and against Moses, Wherefore have ye brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? for there is no bread, neither is there any water; and our soul loatheth this light bread.
Explain: Israel was wandering in the wilderness…How God fed Israel with Manna…but yet they wined and complained.
Well this made God very upset and angry with Israel.
Note: We should never complain but should always be thankful.
And so God sent a plague to judge Israel.
Explain: (very animated) a man in bed and feels something in bed with him, and it was a serpent!
Suddenly, fiery serpents began to appear everywhere in the camp!
6 And the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.
Explain: How people began to die from the bites of these serpents.
So what did they do?
Well, God is a merciful God, and so the people came to Moses and asked him to pray to God so that they could be saved from the plague of serpents.
7 Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord, and against thee; pray unto the Lord, that he take away the serpents from us. And Moses prayed for the people.
Do you think God would help them?
Yes, because God is so merciful and wonderful, He gave instructions to Moses that would heal the people.
8 And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
9 And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.
Explain: How Moses had to make a brazen serpent and put it on a pole
Explain: How people would be healed when they looked at the serpent on the pole.
Now why would God do something so strange as this in order to heal people?
Well, the Bible tells us that all the stories in the Old Testament are to teach us today truths that are very important.
In this case, Jesus Himself gives the answer about what it was all about.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
Explain: How the serpent represented Jesus
Explain: Salvation from sin, and how all of us are dying of sin
Application to missions
Now I want you to think of something, what if you were in this story.
You were a little boy or girl who had been bitten by a serpent and someone picked you up and took you to the center of camp so that you could look on the brazen serpent and be healed?
Wouldn’t you be very grateful?
And what if you learned that there was another little boy or girl who had been bitten that didn’t even know that they could be healed?
What should you do?
You should go and tell them.
Well, that is what missions is all about.
Explain: The picture of missions in this illustration.
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
And that is what missionaries do.
All Christians, need to tell their friends and family and others in their town about Jesus Christ.
And some need to go to other countries around the world so that we can tell them that Jesus died for their sins.
And even Jesus Himself asked us to pray that God would send missionaries all around the world to tell them the gospel.
38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest.
Maybe one day, God could even use one of you to be a missionary as well.
Story: How missions scarred me and how the chief of the village got saved.
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