There is a strange story in Numbers 21 that Jesus chose as one of the clearest pictures of salvation when he gave one of His most profound statements. When Jesus revealed to Nicodemus that we must be born again in John 3, He used the story of the brass serpent to create the image of Himself being lifted up to become the curse of the Law and experience judgment for all of humanity.
Israel had lived for nearly forty years under supernatural provision. God fed them with manna every day. He gave them water in the wilderness. Their clothes did not wear out. A cloud led them by day and a pillar of fire by night. God had delivered them from slavery and sustained them through an environment where they should not have been able to survive.
And eventually, they got bored with it.
Numbers 21:4 says, “the soul of the people was much discouraged because of the way.” Then something important happened:
“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.”
—Numbers 21:5
Notice how distorted their perspective had become.
They said there was no food while they were eating food God miraculously provided every day. They complained about having no water after God had repeatedly sustained them with water in the wilderness. They looked at supernatural provision and called it worthless.
They stopped seeing what God had done and became consumed with what they thought was missing.
Then the snakes came.
“And the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people; and much people of Israel died.”
—Numbers 21:6
We are not under that covenant today. God is not sending sickness, financial trouble, marriage problems, flat tires, difficult children, or other forms of suffering to punish Christians for complaining. Jesus already bore our judgment at the cross. It would be illegal if God judged you for your sin, since Jesus was already judged and punished for them.
But there is still a principle here we shouldn't miss:
When complaining becomes your perspective, the snakes of life will eventually come for you.
Galatians tells us that God is not mocked: whatever a person sows, that is what he will reap. We still live in a world of seed and harvest.
A consistently negative perspective produces something.
Complaining changes how you see your spouse. It changes how you interpret your circumstances. It changes what you notice about your job, your church, your children, your future, and eventually even God.
Fear does the same thing.
Some people excuse negativity because they're afraid. But whether it comes from fear, disappointment, bitterness, or frustration, if you continually train yourself to look for what's wrong, you will become incredibly good at finding it.
Eventually, what is happening inside of you begins producing something outside of you.
The snakes of life come in different forms.
Maybe the snake is bitterness. Maybe it's a marriage slowly deteriorating because every disagreement becomes an opportunity to blame the other person. Maybe it's insecurity that causes you to manipulate people. Maybe it's fear that keeps producing bad decisions.
Maybe it's resentment, lust, anger, isolation, cynicism, or a constant dissatisfaction that makes it impossible to enjoy what God has already put in your life. Sometimes we're asking God to remove a snake that our own attitudes and decisions keep feeding.
That's why gratitude is so powerful.
Gratitude trains your eyes to recognize grace. Complaining trains your eyes to recognize lack.
Israel had manna on the ground, water available, freedom from Egypt, and the presence of God in their midst—and still concluded that they had nothing.
That's what complaining can do to the soul.
Look and Live
When Israel finally recognized what was happening, they came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD, and against thee.” They asked Moses to pray that the serpents would be taken away (Numbers 21:7).
God's answer is fascinating.
“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.”
—Numbers 21:8
Moses made the bronze serpent, lifted it up, and Numbers 21:9 says that when someone who had been bitten “beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.”
They looked and lived.
God did not tell the bitten person to prove that he had changed. He didn't require him to keep the Law perfectly for seven days before healing him. He didn't tell him to make up for every complaint he had made.
He gave him something to look at.
Thousands of years later, Jesus is having a conversation with Nicodemus, a teacher of Israel who understood Torah, Law, sacrifice, priesthood, and righteousness.
And Jesus takes Nicodemus directly back to this story:
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”
—John 3:14–15
Then Jesus makes the statement that has become the most famous verse in Scripture:
“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.”
—John 3:16
And He continues:
“For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”
—John 3:17
Jesus preached faith righteousness.
Look and live.
Believe and receive.
What Are You Looking At?
Later Jesus returned to the imagery of being lifted up:
“Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.”
—John 12:31–32
The cross becomes the place where we look.
Christ became the curse for us. He bore our sin. He entered into death. He took upon Himself what separated humanity from God and defeated it through His death and resurrection.
So when the snakes of life come for you, the answer isn't to spend the rest of your life staring at the snakes.
Look at Christ.
This is where Christianity has to become more than information.
Hebrews says:
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword… and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
—Hebrews 4:12
Don't just read the Word. Let the Word read you.
Ask yourself what your reactions are revealing.
Why am I so angry?
Why am I constantly offended?
Why am I afraid?
Why do I need everyone to approve of me?
Why do I keep manipulating situations?
Why do I keep sabotaging relationships?
Why can I walk into a room with a hundred things going right and immediately notice the one thing that's wrong?
Those are snakes worth identifying.
But once you identify them, don't make the snake your meditation.
Look to Jesus.
The areas where you're still struggling are often the areas where you need to see Him more clearly.
If you're insecure, look at the cross until you see your value.
If you're bitter, look at Jesus until you understand how completely you've been forgiven.
If you're afraid, look at Him until His faithfulness becomes more real than what you're afraid of.
If you're hurting people because you're hurting, look at how Christ has loved you until His love begins healing the place inside you that keeps producing destruction.
This isn't merely behavior modification.
It's transformation through beholding.
Don't Call the Manna Worthless
One of the saddest parts of Numbers 21 is that the Israelites were surrounded by miracles and couldn't see them anymore.
The manna had become ordinary.
The provision had become expected.
The presence of God had become familiar.
And familiarity turned into ingratitude.
We can do the same thing with the gospel.
We can become so accustomed to hearing that we're forgiven, righteous in Christ, reconciled to God, filled with His Spirit, and destined for eternal life that we start looking for something more exciting.
Don't call the manna worthless.
Don't let the gospel become boring.
Daily grace is miraculous. Daily communion with God is miraculous. Having the Spirit of God dwelling within you is miraculous. Knowing that your name is written in heaven is miraculous.
Learn to enjoy today's bread.
Learn to recognize God's goodness again.
Learn to be grateful for what is already in your life instead of continually rehearsing what isn't.
Because complaining has a cost.
If you spend your life looking for what's wrong, eventually the snakes of life will come for you.
But when they do, don't stare at the snakes.
Don't stare at your failure.
Don't stare at your circumstances.
Don't stare at everything that's wrong.
Lift your eyes.
Look at the One who became the curse for you.
Look at the One who bore your sin.
Look at the One who loved you enough to enter into death and bring you out of it.
See your value in Him. See your righteousness in Him. See His kindness, patience, purity, faithfulness, strength, and love.
And let what you see in Him change what is happening in you.
Gratitude keeps your eyes on grace. Complaining keeps your eyes on lack.
So when the snakes of life come for you, remember the simplicity of the gospel:
Look to Jesus and live.
Discussion Questions
Where have you seen complaining or consistently focusing on what’s wrong become a “snake of life” that produces consequences in your attitude, decisions, or relationships?
What does it practically look like to “look to Jesus” in an area where you’re currently struggling rather than continually looking at the problem?
Israel became so familiar with God’s daily provision that they called the manna worthless. What has God already provided in your life that you may need to recognize again with fresh gratitude?
