March 18th Worship Service

Numbers 21:4-9 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,[a] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. Numbers 21:4-9 God Can’t Stand Grumbling! I. Grumbling Poisons God’s People. II. Only God Can Supply The Cure. In the name of Jesus, the One and Only, dear fellow children of God The Bible has this warning concerning the things that happened to God’s Old Testament people. “Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did…. We should not test the Lord, as some of them did—and were killed by snakes. And do not grumble, as some of them did—and were killed by the destroying angel. These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don’t fall!” Sometimes God’s warnings are quiet and subtle. Think of Jesus warning Judas in the upper room and in the Garden of Gethsemane. At other times, God’s warning stand out like tornado sirens. This warning in God’s Word today is a tornado siren. God can’t stand grumbling. As the sirens wail in God’s word today let’s see that Grumbling poisons God’s people. II Only God provides the cure. It only makes sense that the Book of Numbers centers around numbers- numbers counted when the Children of Israel left Egypt and numbers taken after the 40 years of wandering in the desert. The numbers show how good God is at keeping His promises. He preserved Abraham’s family through 40 years in the desert. When the Children of Israel left Egypt the census read just over 600,000 men. Remember that the Children of Israel didn’t go right into the Promised Land because they doubted if God would help them so God let them wonder in the desert until all the adults who doubted God’s power had died. You might expect that after 40 years in the desert the population would have just dwindled away but in the second census, there were again just over 600,000 men in addition to women and children. That’s makes for a total of about 2 miillion Israelites ready to move into the Promised Land and find a place to settle down. They just needed to take the shortcut across Edom and then into the Promised Land. But the King of Edom would not let them cross. Bitterly disappointed the camp of 2 million people turned around and took the long way around. When things didn’t go the way that they wanted, Satan used the opportunity to stir up some grumbling- grumbling that would poison God’s people. “They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,[a] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses. Except for the occasional quail night, the Israelites had only one thing on their menu for 40 years. So on this day they fixed some grumble soup. “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” Can you imagine going into a restaurant and seeing only one thing on the menu- or imagine eating the same food for breakfast, lunch and supper? We can understand why the Israelites might grumble after years and years of the same food. That’s the scary part. We can sympathize with the Israelites telling their loving creator that He didn’t know what he was doing even though he had provided for this camp of 2 million mouths in the desert for 40 years. We can understand how the Israelites could think that they knew better about what they should be eating than the God who carefully designed and knit their bodies together. Want to know something even scarier? We haven’t wandered in the desert for 40 years eating mostly a food with the name translated ‘what is it?” We can stare into full cupboards and say, “there’s nothing to eat.” We don’t have to to be diverted at the last moment out in the desert to complain. We can complain when God has us waiting in line too long at the checkout counter. Even though a policeman will never pull you over and slap the cuffs on you for grumbling and you won’t receive a sentence in a human court for complaining. God can’t stand grumbling. Again and again Exodus and Numbers God says, “How long will this wicked community grumble against me? I have heard the complaints of these grumbling Israelites.” Grumbling is one of those sins brings out into the open what’s on our insides. I can remember cleaning my room by shoveling everything under the bed. It worked for a while until mom looked under the bed. Grumbling might seem harmless but it shows what is under the bed. It shows the discontented heart that is never happy. Our grumbling words tell the world that we think God isn’t providing for us. It shows the me o centric world we live in- where the world revolves around me. It gives a nasty mouths to our sinful hearts. It shows how my little mind question if God really has a good reason for having me wait a few moments in traffic or in the check line. Grumbling puts my sinful fist into God’s face. We better not be falling back on the old excuse, “Well that’s just the way I am.” That’s right. We’re grumblers and God can’t stand grumbling. If there is any doubt if God takes grumbling seriously, just look at God’s response to the grumbling of his people. “Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died.” Besides “Jesus Loves Me” I think one of the first songs I learned as a child was the Mr. Yuck song explaining the Mr. Yuck stickers. “Mr. Yuck is mean. Mr. Yuck is green.” Grumbling hearts and words should be marked with the green frowning face. Grumbling brought poison to God’s people out there in the desert. Grumbling brings poison to God’s people today. Not only does the grumbler rob himself of the content and joyful life his creator intended for him but the grumbler also ruins the day of everyone else by poisoning the environment in the home or at work or at church. “Likewise the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.” Grumbing is contagious. How often doesn’t a grumble ruin another person’s day that ruins another person’s day? Does a grumble ever help anyone? God makes that clear to us in His Law and God made that clear to the Israelites in the desert. The truth is it hurts everyone. “The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us.” An antidote for the poison was needed. In Central Park in New York there is a statue of a sled dog named Balto. Balto was the lead dog on the relay team of 150 dogs and 20 mushers that brought the diphtheria serum 674 miles through the snow from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska in 1925 when the town was almost wiped out. The bronze dog statue pointed back to a rescue. The bronze snake statue pointed ahead to a rescue. It was a rescue where only God could provide the cure. “So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.” A snake on a pole bringing life seems strange to us but Jesus helps us in our Gospel lesson. Jesus explained the snake on the pole for us Remember that during their talk Jesus reminded Nicodemus of this time when the Lord sent poisonous snakes through the camp and many of the people were bitten. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” The bronze snake wasn’t meant to God told Moses to make a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Anyone who looked at the snake was healed. That bronze snake lifted up on a pole foreshadowed the work which Jesus would do for us. God’s Son would grow up to do something we could never do- keep God’s commandments. He kept them for us-in our place. God’s Son would be lifted up on a cross bleeding and dying to wash away our sins. Our complaining our murmuring has all been paid for. That great news moves us to do what God says, “Do everything without complaining or arguing” and “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.” Luther once explained about how earthly peace and spiritual peace are different. The peace the world gives seeks to get rid of the thing causing the problem like war, sickness etc. But true spiritual peace comes not from having the problem removed but by having Christ who brings peace even when the troubles remain around us. Our Jesus who loves us and gave His life for us gives us true peace. His love gives us the backbone to not feast on grumble soup when we’ve got the grumblin’ gang all around us. His love shown at the cross reminds us of his care even when it appears to our human eyes that he doesn’t. His words drive the things we say even when the stress is on. Do you find yourself grumbling more and more lately? Hear God’s sirens of warning. God can’t stand grumbling. Look to the cross where God brought the cure. Amen