· Numbers 21:4-9
· Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 (19)
· Ephesians 2:1-10
· John 3:14-21
I love the fire snakes. I find them hilarious. The Hebrews are whining in the desert, again. So God says "you wanna cry? I'll give you something to cry about." And he sends the fire snakes. That in itself cracks me up. Then Moses intercedes with God. Does God recall the fire snakes? No. He authorises the bronze snake. Now you have to look at the bronze snake to survive a snake bite. Why? As a gesture of obedience to God. In effect, God is saying "you can bloody well kiss my Almighty arse – and you STILL get bit by the fire snakes."
That's just hilarious. Not least because it's very human. When I have to look after an ill-mannered kid, I don't give anything that's not asked for politely. But if they do ask politely, I still don't have to give them everything they ask for. God is like that too. You don't get by asking rudely, but he's not obligated to give you just because you ask politely, either. You can say "we ask this in Jesus's name" all you want, that's not gonna force God's hand. And there are some things you're just not gonna get, period. If a kid asks me for a Slurpee, he's not gonna get it. Period. I'm not wasting my money on a paper cup full of crushed ice and artificial flavour. I suspect God has his list of "I'm not wasting my money on that", too. For example, several people have been praying that God would send me a boyfriend. Well God is not gonna do that. God has things to do.
Now Jesus gives us an analogy between himself and the bronze snake. You get bit by a fire snake, you die – unless you look at the bronze snake. Likewise, you get bit by... worldly things, and you die – unless you look at Christ, then you live. But with Christ, he's talking about the afterlife, not this one.
The thing is, the Jews don't have much of an afterlife. They have Sheol, which is similar to limbo. It's not Heaven, it's not Hell, it's just dark and quiet, and you mostly spend your time sleeping. It's probably boring, but no worse. There were other ancient people who shared this view of what comes after death, for example the Greeks. Others, like the Egyptians, saw the afterlife as full of life, but they generally figured that whatever status and wealth you have in this life, you'll have in the next. So the idea that you can have things completely different in life and in afterlife was a paradigm shift, even apart from the notion that you would earn status in the afterlife by worshipping a human as the Son of God. Yet oddly, the early Christians understood this much better than the average modern Christian.
I keep harping on this, sermon after sermon, and as far as I can tell, no one is listening, so let me say it again: Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
Please say it with me: Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
Christianity is not about asking God to do stuff for you.
(ad lib.)
Thank you.
So let's get back to our fire snakes. The Hebrews are complaining in the desert, just like we Christians are complaining amid our appalling plenty.
God sends the fire snakes to the Hebrews; for the Christians, he sends the outer darkness, with wailing and gnashing of teeth.
The Hebrews repent; the Christians... well, not so much, really. Christians say they repent, but I don't believe a word of it. I think most of us, when we say we repent, are just moving our mouths. Of course, God knows our hearts, but I'm fairly good at spotting hypocrisy myself, and I tell you, most of us are lying when we say we repent.
God gives the Hebrews the bronze snake, that you can look at for salvation when the consequences of your rebellion come back and bite you. Then he gives the Christians Christ, to whom we look for salvation when the consequences of our rebellion –
Wait a minute... No we don't! We look to Jesus and ask for more loot! Is that what the Hebrews did? I'll tell you; if the Hebrews had been like us, Numbers 21:9 would read "So Moses made a serpent of bronze, and put it upon a pole; and whenever a serpent bit someone, that person would look at the serpent of bronze and complain some more."
Stop complaining about what God is giving you. You hear me? That's what you're doing when you ask God for this, that and the other thing. What you're saying is "God, we detest this miserable food. All this stuff you've given me is not good enough, I want more and better stuff. I want wealth, perfect health, great sex, absence of any hardship, I ask this in Jesus's name, amen."
You know what you're gonna get? You're gonna get a fire snake, that's what. Something unpleasant is gonna bite you in the arse. Then God will see whether you turn to Christ, or not. If you turn to Christ, you still won't get what you asked for. You won't get excused from an unpleasant consequence, either. But because you turned to Christ, you will be counted as God's own, and you will be permitted to live in Christ. And living in Christ, I'll remind you, means serving your neighbour. It's a privilege that God graciously grants to those who choose to obey rather than complain.
Maybe you should make yourself a bronze snake. Some people pray over crosses, or put a cross in their prayer space and pray towards it. Many people ascribe some kind of idolatrous meaning to crosses. The reality is, a cross is an inanimate object. God does not inhabit it, and it has no power to do anything. It's only a sign: a sign to remind us of our covenant with God, and a sign to indicate to others that we belong to the Lord. Likewise with a bronze snake. It's an inanimate object. It has no power, it is not a god or a carved image. It's a reminder for the people of God. And what it reminds us of is this: "keep crying, and I'll give you something to cry about; or remember that you are my people, and live." So maybe you should pray before a bronze snake rather than a cross, so that you will stop thinking Jesus owes you something, and start remembering that God has already given you everything and would like to see some respect and obedience rather than belly-aching.
Praise be to God, the All-Aware, the Forbearing, the Incomparably Great.
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