His Servants' Ministry

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HIS SERVANTS' MINISTRY

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Types of Christ in the Old Testament

The Brass Serpent as a Type of Christ

Numbers 21:4-9 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. [6] And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. [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. [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. (KJV)

Israel murmured and complained (belly-ached) and disobeyed God time after time. Sound familiar? The Lord got fed up with it all and here He sent a plague of poisonous snakes as a judgment against the people.

The creatures mentioned here by Moses, were abundant (Deut.8:15) in the wilderness where the people were at that time. I would just be guessing, but it seems logical to me, that these critters had been restrained by God, kept away from the people, but now because of the Lord's wrath against Israel, they are let loose and SENT among them. God is a God of love, YES! But God is also a God of wrath too.

They may have been called fiery from their bright, vivid color and/or the horrible effects of their bite, because their poison caused intolerable heat and burning, and thirst in the Israelites, which aggravated the condition because there was no water. Their bite, caused a violent inflammation through the whole body, and a fiery appearance to the flesh.

And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died. Israel was being punished for their disobedience to God and Moses. He had enough!

The people realized that they were to blame and asked Moses to intercede for them. 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 even though the people murmured against Moses too, Moses had compassion. And Moses prayed for the people.

The Lord answered Moses' prayer. 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. In obedience to God, Moses made a brass serpent and put it on a pole in the middle of the camp. If a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived. All those who were bitten by a serpent were commanded to look up at the brass serpent on the pole and they would not die.

That brass serpent was a foreshadowing of the lifting up of Christ at Calvary. John 3:14-15 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. (KJV) Just as the brass serpent was lifted up from the earth, so too was Christ lifted up at Calvary. He was raised up on the cross. Just as the brass serpent was the ONLY remedy for the fiery serpent's bite (Num.21:8) . . . it is the same way that Christ's death is the ONLY remedy for the poisonous bite of sin (Rom.5:6-10).

The cross is the ONLY remedy for the poisonous venom of sin. Just as there were NO other remedies offered by God for the poison in the snake bite in the wilderness, NO other alternate cures . . . there are NO other remedies offered other than Christ on the cross. Jesus tells us this! John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (KJV) . . . ONLY Jesus has the remedy to be cured from the deadly poison of sin . . . there is NO other WAY!

Just as those Israelites who looked up by faith on the brass serpent were cured, those who did NOT have faith to look up at the brass serpent died. The full 100% cure was there because of the mercy of God . . . BUT the Father did NOT force anyone to accept it. Those people in the wilderness accepted the cure by their own free will. My friend, it is the same way today! Jesus sets forth the same principle for us today! John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (KJV) John 3:36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. (KJV) John 8:24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins. (KJV) Matthew 25:46 And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. (KJV) . . . Can you SEE the contrast? The remedy for sin is the death of Christ and obedience to His Gospel. All that take advantage of the remedy shall be cured from the sting of sin (NO Hell). All those who refuse to take advantage of the cure will die from the poison of sin. BUT, just as the people in the wilderness were not forced to take the cure for the snake bites, neither are we forced to take Jesus! You can die in the everlasting destruction of Hell if you so choose.

Question?? . . . Did that brass serpent cure to people of their snake bite?

Answer! . . . NO! Absolutely not! It was the fact that they believed God and had FAITH that He would do as He had said. It is the same with us today. We must believe God and accept His only begotten Son as our Saviour and Lord.

1 John 5:10-12 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. [11] And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. [12] He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. (KJV) . . . BELIEVE God!
John 3:15-16 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. [16] For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (KJV) . . . Our Remedy today!

Types of Christ in the Old Testament

Type of Israel, Jonah

Types . . . Eve Bride of Christ

Types of Christ's Death, Coats of Skin

Types of Christ's Death, Old Testament Sacrifices

Types of Christ's Death, Tabernacle

Types of Christ, Adam

Types of Christ, David

Types of Christ, Elijah

Types of Christ, Elisha

Types of Christ, Examples

Types of Christ, Isaac