Numbers 21, Pitfalls to the Promised Land: Unexpected Opposition

Numbers chapter 21 starting verse 1 reading the entire chapter. We hear the word of the Lord When the Canaanite the king of Arad who lived in the Negev? Heard that Israel was coming by the way of a Harim He fought against Israel and took some of them captive and Israel vowed about of the Lord and said if you will indeed give this people into my hand then I will devote their cities to destruction.

And the Lord obeyed the voice of Israel and gave over the Canaanites and they devoted them in their cities to destruction. So the name of the place was called Hormat. From Mount Hor they set out by the way of the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom and the people became impatient on the way.

And The people spoke against God and and against Moses. Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness for there's no food and no water and we loathe this worthless food. Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people and they bit the people so that many people of Israel died.

And the people came To Moses and said we have sinned for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord that he may take away the serpents from us. So Moses prayed for the people and the people said to Moses make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole and Everyone who was bitten when he sees it shall live.

So Moses made a brought break a bronze serpent and set it on a pole and if a serpent bit anyone he would look at the bronze serpent and live and. The people of Israel set out and camped at Oboth and they set out from Oboth and camped at ie Abiram and in the wilderness that is opposite Moab toward the sunrise.

From there they set out and camped in the Valley of Zered. From there They set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon Which is in the wilderness that extends from the border of the Amorites for the Arnon is the border of Moab between Moab and the Amorites.

Wherefore it is said in the in the book of the wars of the Lord Wahib and Zufa and the valleys of Arnon and the slope of the valleys that extends to the seat of our and Leans to the border of Moab and from there they continued to beer.

That is the well of which the Lord said to Moses gather the people together so that I may give them water. Then Israel sang this song Spring up a well sing to it the well that the princes dug that the nobles of the people delved with a scepter and with their staffs and From the wilderness they went up on to Matanah and from Matanah to Nahalel and from Nahalel to Barnath and from there.

And from Barmoth to the valley lying in the region of Moab by the top of Pisgah that looks down on the desert. Then Israel sent messengers to Sihon king and the Amorites saying let me pass through your land.

We will not turn aside into field or vineyard. We will not drink the water of a well. We will go by the Kings Highway until we have passed through your territory. But Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his territory.

He gathered all his people together and went out against Israel to the wilderness and Came to Jaha's and fought against Israel and Israel defeated them with the edge of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok as far as the Ammonites for the border of the Ammonites was strong and Israel took all these cities and Israel settled in all the cities of the Amorites and Heshbon and in all its villages for Heshbon was the city of Sihon the king of the Amorites who had fought against the former king of Moab and taken all his Land out of his hand as far as the Arnon.

Therefore the ballad singers say Come to Heshbon. Let it be built. Let the city of Sihon be established. For fire came out from Heshbon flame from the city of Sihon. It devoured our of Moab and swallowed the heights of the Arnon.

Woe to you Oh Moab you are undone. Oh people of Chemosh. He has made his sons fugitives and his daughter's captives to an Amorite King Sihon. So we overthrew them Heshbon as far as Dibbon. Perished and we laid waste as far as Nofah fire spread as far as Mediba thus Israel lived in the land of the Amorites and Moses sent to spy out Jazir and they captured his villages and dispossessed the Amorites who were there.

Then they turned and went by the way of Tubation and all the king of Bation came out against them. He and all his people to battle Edra at Edry. But the Lord said to Moses Do not fear him for I've given him into your hand and and all his people and his land and you shall do to him.

As you did to see Han king of the Amorites who lived at Heshbon. So they defeated him and his sons and all his people until he had no survivor left and they possessed his land. May the Lord had his blessings the reading of his Holy Word.

Have you ever been surprised by opposition? I? Surprise that there is opposition. I don't think any of us are that naive. I Mean surprised that someone you thought was on your side a supporter. Who cared for you?

Maybe I was supposed to be a teammate one of someone who thought you thought one of the best for you. Turned out to be the opposite. Have you ever been totally surprised that so-and-so? Turned against you or maybe they were always against you and you were just surprised to finally see it.

I think one of the great things about sports or even business is that the opposition is clear. You know exactly who they are right? They wear the uniforms of the other team. You don't resent them for being your opposition.

You don't hate them and you shouldn't at least. Or you don't think something must really be wrong with them for wanting to beat you and whatever you're playing. You know, it's just part of the game or part of life.

The other team is trying to beat you. You know that they're open about it. It's not a surprise. It would be a surprise if it weren't the case. You don't feel betrayed if they succeed at beating you, you know and running the other runner is trying to run faster than you.

They don't mean to harm you. It's just the way it is the way the race works. But my cross-country coach in college taught us that we teammates who were on the same team are not supposed to race each other.

We may run with each other but not against each other. We race against the opposition. There's a way of running you do run with other people there's a way of running you to encourage them to stay with you to do better than they can by themselves and there's a way of running with someone to try to break their will so that they Drift they let go and kind of drift further back if you're running against opposition.

You want to pass them and you want to break their will so they can't stay with you. But if it's a teammate, you're supposed to help them in any way you can of course, it's all psychological. But does this stay with you you help each other do to do better if you comes down to the finish line and you're neck-and-neck.

Then you're supposed to you're on the same team cross the finish line side by side. Simultaneously, that's the theory. Anyway, it would be a disappointing surprise if your own teammate tried to out sprint you at the end and Business, too.

You might be surprised by who the opposition and maybe you're not surprised actually, you know the opposition May not want to drive you into bankruptcy. But they are trying to maybe they're trying to outbid you for a project or maybe they're your customer.

They're trying to lower your profits, you know, they want to get what you have for cheaper than you want to give it to them. You're trying to raise your profits even at their expense and that's business it's not as they say in the Godfather Personal don't take it personally and get angry that they're trying to keep you.

From making money or they're trying to keep you the business is trying to keep you from saving money. It's just expected. It's just the way the world works. But there is unexpected opposition people you never thought.

Who never thought were against you and then they turn out that way maybe the teammate who Sabotages you so we can try to take your place of the co-worker who won't work well with you. To make you look bad.

I Think a lot of Christians are surprised where their opposition their spiritual opposition comes from. You can tell from how the Lord Jesus put his warnings to us. You know, I've told you this it's coming To us that the way he told us that that he knew that we're often naive.

That we're often surprised by who our opposition is now sure we recognize, you know, we recognize sure. There's Isis terrorists out there. There's atheists me who hate everything we believe in but we kind of you know.

They're far away and they're detached from us and they don't have much to do with us. But the Lord Jesus warned us that often are enemy. He said exactly that they will be sometimes Members of our own family.

We don't really believe that do we. I don't think most Christians really believe that. That's why we're often surprised when it is turns out to be one of our own family who tries to undermine our commitment to the Lord who maybe makes excuses for a cultural faith and.

And thinks we're just maybe we're just too radical we're too you've taken it too far. You know, they're they're at home with a Religion that is at home with racism or with being detached from the church.

They are they don't really go to church much. But they talk liberally of the Lord and they think you should be the kind of the same way. And so some are surprised. Some Chris real Christians are surprised by that opposition and some I think are so surprised by it that they pretend It's not really opposition at all.

This is a difference of opinion. They just have different ways of doing things. They're not believe but they are and then maybe we're most surprised. I think we're most surprised when the biggest enemies the greatest opposition.

We're surprised where that comes from. It comes from within. One of the pitfalls on the way to the promised land is.

Unexpected.

Opposition they were expecting a lot of opposition when they got into the promised land as part of what you know. Kept them from going in there and when they first should have they were expecting some opposition.

There some great opposition there. But they run across a lot of opposition they weren't expecting on the way there we see that here in four parts a surprise attack. Serpents a song and Seehan in og. First Israel suffers a surprise attack now.

They've just finished bearing Aaron from the end of last chapter and they're starting to turn south. So the kids they have to detour all the way around Edom. They're just starting to do that when a Canaanite King Arad Attacks them basically out of nowhere.

They weren't heading in his direction. They weren't threatening him, but he attacks them and he takes some Israelites captive. They're probably heading south and he attacks him from the north and take some, you know in the back of the caravan.

Captive 40 now 40 years before this the Israelites, you know when it remember when they were desperate not to have to when they you know, but they were first said we're not going in and then the Lord said if you.

Because of that you're gonna have to wonder 40 years and they were desperate not to have to do that. And so. Not to have to wait for a whole generation to die off. And so then they launched an attack.

Against what Moses told them. Moses told him don't do it. The Lord is not with you that you can't win.

But they.

Weren't going to listen and. They were then beaten back by the Canaanites there and they were chased all the way back. It says they're on Exodus chapter 9. Exodus numbers chapter 14. To a town called Horma in the desert.

Now 40 years later. After that generation has died off the king from that same area from Horma. Thinks he can get away with a surprise attack on Israel. After all, you know, they were easy pickings a generation ago.

They probably still are he thinks. So he goes he take attacks them take some hostages. Now. What would Israel do? This was the same place of their earlier defeat, you know, they're thinking this is bad luck.

It's not a good place for us. They don't need to go there and attack that kingdom. It's not on their way. It's it's not the land that they really want.

But.

The only thing do they leave these hostages that they leave some of the people of God in the hands of the Canaanites. No, they make a vow to the Lord in verse 2. If you Lord will indeed give this people into my hand then I will devote their cities to destruction.

Then it says the Lord says it said actually the ESB puts it he obeyed them he did what they wanted. They would they would attack but here what they the pledge they're making is they would attack not for the profit.

That they can get from this enemy that they can loot from them. But because they would end up destroying everything and anything that can be destroyed. They would give to the temple but only to rescue the people of God.

There won't be any ulterior motives. So in verse 3 the Lord heeded their their vow and gave them victory over the those Canaanites. They kept their vow. They destroyed everything that could be destroyed gave everything else to the tabernacle.

And so the place was called Destruction. That's what Horma means.

What would you do?

What will you do if you're suddenly attacked? You're on your way To the promised land to give your cross seeking to follow the Lord, but out of nowhere maybe out of a place of a weakness of where you've been defeated before.

You're surprised by an attack. You thought you were leaving that problem. Whatever it is the temper problem. Maybe with the pornography behind you were beaten by it before and now it comes back. Do you leave it?

Or destroy it. Maybe it's greed. Materialistic idea that life really does consist in the things that you possess you you used to be driven by that. But you think you thought you were free from it. You used to be working all the time to make put more and more on the bank.

You thought that's what life was all about. And you thought you overcame that but then you're shocked. Maybe a bill comes due and the old ideas come back. I need to chase more dollars most of all. Or maybe you're surprised by an attack of Someone you thought was really for you.

It's for your pilgrimage to the promised land. Actual another person you trusted them, but now their actions show That he or she is Really more of a cultural Christian than you had dreamed. Saying the right words, but breaking covenants justifying themselves while falsely accusing others.

Infected with hypocrisy and trying to spread that infection to you. You can pretend it's not really an attack. You can be naive if you want. You can understand that on the way to the promised land there are unexpected attacks.

What would you. What you should do is? Devote yourself to the Lord and dedicate sin to Destruction. Be as ruthless with it as you would be with a hand or an eye that would send you to hell if hands or eyes Could send you to hell.

But make vows that you won't succumb To whatever it is to pornography or whatever it is. Again that you'll submit to accountability to someone to tracking software if you have to. That you won't serve money anymore.

That you'll continue to give even when you're tempted to hoard or splurge for yourself. That you'll take every thought. Captive to obey Christ. That you'll speak truth to the betrayer. The the empty talker, you know the one Paul calls the false brother.

John says, you know, we. They went out from us because they were never of us. It was unexpected. We didn't expect them, but there are some like that. There's unexpected opposition on the way to the promised land.

You will be attacked and some of those attacks will be Surprises from places you didn't see coming. Next on the way to the promised land. They'll be serpents when they bite. You need to know where to look.

The story of the serpents comes in three parts and this takes up the bulk of a message this morning about the serpents. There's the sin second the sender and third the sign. Now they've been barred from going the easy way.

I remember last week. It would be much easier to cut across go right through Eden. There's a highway there. That they can't do that, you know might won't let them so they have to detour. Wish I kind of wish I had a map there if you have a map in the back of your Bible you look at it.

But if the detour all the way south, I don't know how many miles maybe hundreds. But all the way south around Edom then east and then back up north again all to get around Edom. It's a long way out of their way and you figure you know.

They you've been wandering for 40 years now and up now we have to go so much further again. Oh Drag, you know, I get irritated if I have to make an unnecessary trip upstairs. Only I would have remembered to do the two things.

When I went upstairs and I only remember one I have to go back upstairs again to do the thing. I forgot. Ah Imagine how irritating would be to have to walk so many extra miles and we're talking about maybe hundreds.

Through the desert all because these people. Wouldn't let us go through their territory. And so it says in verse 4 the people became impatient on the way.

I can imagine I.

Would be too but this brings on the sin the long detour makes them vulnerable to sin. If you're to fight sin to devote it to destruction. You need to know what makes you vulnerable to it. And sometimes that's different from likes it makes other people vulnerable to it.

But here what are these people been vulnerable to in the past? Well for us maybe though some some things on the internet are on cable TV. If you if you can't have HBO or Showtime without watching some of their pornography then you can't have it at all.

They cut it off. It's like an alcoholic. Can't have just a glass of wine or beer. I've had times, you know with the the gym guys here as it happened in a long while now, but. Some of those they were being just real disrespectful and provocative.

You know, I just have to walk away because I know if I just stay there. They're gonna I'm gonna get tempted. I know I'm getting to an area where I could be tempted with sin and so try to avoid it. Here the detour makes them vulnerable to the impatience.

That's led them into temptation so many times before all the units all through Exodus and numbers all these incidents where they get impatient with The Lord and they get crazy. They should know better by now.

Right you have to so many times they've been they've they've sinned and they've been afflicted. They should be guarding their attitude and their words, but they don't they slip back and old habits whining against God in Moses.

You know, maybe it started with something kind of mild, you know, maybe hey. Moses had been a better negotiator. He would have convinced the Edomites to let us take the easy way to go take the shortcut.

But it by the time it gets really into a pitch of a fever in verse 5. They're saying stuff like in verse 5. Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?

You brought us here to die you brought it you set it up to kill us.

Now notice the implication of the complaint. Moses. They're saying Moses you brought us out of Egypt for the purpose of Killing us here in the desert. Why have you done it? Why are you so diabolical? It's all been part of this the scheme you concocted to destroy us.

You know all those plagues in Egypt all the Passover the Going through the Red Sea parting it now 40 years of manna every morning provision in the desert water when we needed all of that. Which you said was good gifts from the Lord to rescue us.

It was really just. They think in their hysterical conspiracy theory nuttery. All of it was just to set us up for extermination. That's just crazy right. But that's sin and. Then they continue. For there is no food in no water.

Of course, that's not true.

You know.

They just got sufficient water. And just in the chapter before. And where they were with Moses himself sin has struck the rock and surely they fill up their canteens and whatever else they had. They get enough food every morning, right?

We know that with a manna, but they're tired of it. It's it's not what they want. So it's not literally true. There's no food. It's just and. They even say they whine the next thing we loathe this worthless food.

They don't see that this admission that they have food Contradicts the complaint that they just made that they don't have food. You know, we have no food. We hate this food. Wait make any sense. Their sin takes three parts.

Resentment regret and ingratitude. They resent having to suffer in the desert.

You know some.

Some things they hard times they have to go through having to wander for 40 years, even though it's their fault. Don't forget that having they don't resent having to eat mostly manna, although it's sufficient.

They resent the situation they're in a lot of people today are in a situation in life. Whatever a lousy but maybe paying job. Dysfunctional relationships. Guess who made them dysfunctional and it's all the result of their Decisions or maybe it's actually better than they deserve.

They would see that yet. They resent it. They regret here the Israelites here regret not their sin. You know, they they don't catch themselves and their self contradictory complaint, you know, we have no food.

We hate our food. Wait, that means we have food forgive us for lying about not having food. We've been so ungrateful. We should have we should change our hearts. We should change our attitudes Lord. Forgive us.

No, they don't do that. They regret being brought out of Egypt perhaps. For us today if you want to say it, but sometimes. Sometimes Christians are tempted to regret becoming a Christian. Imagine fantasize all the pleasure and the ease.

The things you could have had if you live for money and pleasure for sex for self. If this picture and you have more money, you'd have to give it. It's absurd. Of course We don't see the slavery like they don't see the slavery here.

But that's what sin does to the mind and then they're ungrateful for what they have. They exaggerate their sufferings can't see their provisions that that's sin because sin comes from our self-absorbed Hearts if we don't have the food we want that means we have no food.

That's what sin does to you where we think in our hearts so self-absorbed that every good thing that we get we deserve. So we'll have to be grateful for it. We we deserve it every discomfort. We suffer every mile that we have to march out of our way all the way around Edom.

Is this the greatest injustice? Imagine we have to suffer this we reason as.

If.

And this is the way people think as if we were God because for God good is what God says it is good is what's good for him and bad is what's evil is what's against him. We reason as if we were God and good is determined by what's good for us and evil by what makes us feel bad.

That's the way people think but it's sin. Well, then there's the sender. The Lord sends it says Fiery serpents that just means poisonous snakes. Among the people so they're biting the people many are dying of poisonous snake bites.

Now many people today, but like to argue. Well, he just allowed it. You know, he just left it up to their free will to get beaten by snake bites and he had nothing to do with it. Just you know, it's just nature and the people.

You know, there's a lot of poisonous snakes in that area. That's true. And that God is just allowing them to stumble on the snakes that nature has. And he's feel sorry about it. But you know, they freely chose.

I don't know it to be in a bunch of snakes that is through nature that the snakes come. Well, that's kind of true. But here the Bible cuts out the middleman Nature and says bluntly here. The pastor says the Lord is the center and of course that's because He is in control of nature.

Here's the surprise of all the unexpected opposition that we encounter on the way to the promised land if we fall into sin. You want to know what opposition you may be very unexpected may come upon you.

The Lord may be your opposition. The Lord will be against you at least against our sin. He will send whatever it takes into our lives to separate us from our sin even poisonous snakes. Our bad relationships when we make an idol out of relationships or bankruptcy or high interest rates on credit card debt because we just We spent like by having to have that stuff was God.

If we're going to walk in sin, he will be against us, of course. When the Lord's against us his people He is doing it Really to be for us. To bring us to repentance.

That's.

What happened to happen to these people here for the first time that I know of. And all the Exodus to numbers all the stories. They really repent. Numbers chapter 1440. You can say hey, wait, wait back there, you know that whole story about when they Were first told they can't go to the promised land now because they didn't want to go to the promised land.

They said then in numbers 14 we have sinned they said it in that repentance just saying it. Please people say now you just say the words you're say. I'm sorry. You say they're lynch sinners prayer. You're converted.

This is that. But they said we have sinned.

Surely then.

You know, is that that all there is to it just saying it now sure they said they we have sinned. But that was only because they had just been told they're gonna have to suffer for their sin. That they really weren't repentant Is obvious because they wouldn't obey.

Remember, they were told not to attack the promised land. They were told it wouldn't work. But they wouldn't listen. So they try it anyway, and they're beaten back. They have the Word of God at the first night the Word of God go into the promised land.

They say no. They won't listen to that they don't have faith. Then they're told not to attack and they say no to that. They won't believe that either. They don't believe the word which shows that they're not really repentant and they're defeated.

They're driven all the way back to Horma now here 40 years later is the first time They sincerely confess We have sinned Here finally. And all these kind of almost gets to be where it's dreary so much defeat and so many this bad news here.

Finally is a sign That something is different.

Something's better.

About this generation repentance is a sign of.

Grace a.

Lot of people today, you know think of repentance as something we do. It's what we do repent to get grace. Grace is out there and I have to repent in order to get it, you know, just like you buy milk at the store.

But in that case, it's not really grace anymore. Is it? You know it since it's earned since it depends on something we have to do. But the Bible repeatedly talks about God giving grace as a gift. Giving repentance as.

As a gift the grace comes and he and it expresses up in repentance. He gives us repentance. In Acts chapter 5 give you three examples real quick. In Acts chapter 5 verse 31 God says God exalted Jesus as Savior so that he could quote grant repentance.

In Acts chapter 11 verse 18 the church there celebrates that God has quote.

Granted.

Repentance to the Gentiles in 2nd Timothy chapter 2 verse 25, it says Paul's telling Timothy Be be gentle be respectful so that God may grant Repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth to opponents.

Here that finally Israel repents when afflicted is Because God has softened their hearts he's granted them grace that leads to repentance. Repentance is a sign of grace. So to show that repentance is a sign of grace the Lord gives them the sign.

The people asked that the Lord take away the poisonous snakes. That's the request take the snakes away and Moses again intercedes for the people at the end of verse 7. But instead of taking The poisonous snakes away the Lord tells Moses in verse 8 to make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole make an image in other words of Just the kind of snakes that are now killing the people out of bronze or it could be copper and put it on high on a pole so that everyone can see it's plainly visible all over their campground and then He says God says Everyone who is bitten when when he sees bitten and then when he sees it He shall live.

The snake bite victims notice that they don't have to do anything Other than look at this sculpture of a snake on a pole. They don't have to say any magic words. They don't have to do any rituals to perform that they don't have to give a seed.

Faith offering. You know prove you really believe send your check to my ministry here. No, just look. So Moses did it and it says in verse 9 if a serpent bit anyone so the snakes are not taken away. They're still there still biting people but when they're bitten says he would look at the bronze serpent and live.

Notice God didn't take away the snakes right away like they asked. He gave them instead something to look to. For salvation for physical salvation for healing. For us now God has not taken away our sin.

Sometimes maybe we were surprised at that. You become a Christian. You're zealous and you realize you still have sin. He's not taking away our sin. He's given us someone though to look to for salvation.

After we've been bitten by sin.

Now.

Why make a model that seems weird, isn't it? Make a model of the very creature that is killing the people. Why do that? Why not some kind of soothing? Pleasant image like a teddy bear. Put a teddy bear on a pole something like that.

Well for the same reason that we look to the cross. Which is an instrument. It's not a decoration piece of jewelry. The cross is an instrument of execution.

To crude.

Symbol of death. The cross was in Roman times. It was. The cross was considered in Roman times something so repugnant that well-mannered people didn't even use the word. It was. It was a profane where you didn't you didn't talk about it.

You don't mention it in polite conversation and. Into that culture came the Christians then always talking about the cross. Preaching nothing. But Paul says I decided to preach nothing but Christ crucified.

But talking always about a Savior who for the joy set before him endured cross. The snake here was killing them.

Sin now.

Is killing us. But on the cross Jesus became sin for us. He became The very thing that kills and condemns us. He bore on the cross that which brings us death. And so we look at that crude instrument of the worst kind of death To bring us life.

The Lord Jesus said in John chapter 3 verses 14 and 15 as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness So must the Son of Man be lifted up that whoever believes in him May have eternal life. Now if you believe in him You look to him.

Now you don't let it mean you superstitiously look to a literal image of a cross like we have here the front. It means your gauge of your mind of your heart your attention your hopes are cast on Christ.

On the cross people make it So complicated. People wonder what they have to do. All you have to do is.

Look a.

Young man about 16 years old in London England about 150 years ago was desperate to know How to be saved. So one Sunday morning He couldn't make it to the church. He was intending to go because there was a big snowstorm.

So he ducked into a small Methodist Church on the way only about a dozen people there. It's all they could make it out and the snow and the minister couldn't even make it. So from the congregation a tailor or a cobbler got up to preach in his place as best he could.

He took a verse from Isaiah chapter 45 verse 22 Look at to me and be saved all ye ends of the earth. The man was so badly educated He couldn't even pronounce the words correctly, but that didn't matter to the to the desperate young man.

So the substitute preacher began. This is a very simple text indeed. It says look now look and don't take a deal of pain. It ain't lifting your foot or your finger it's just look. Well a man needn't go to college to learn to look.

You may be the biggest fool and yet you can look. A man needn't be worth a thousand a year to look. Anyone could look even a child can look but then the text says Look at to me. I Many of ye are looking to yourselves, but it's no use looking there.

You'll never find any comfort in yourselves. Look to Christ. Look at to me. I'm hanging on the cross. Look at to me. I am dead and buried. Look at to me. I rise again. Look at to me. I ascend to heaven look at to me.