In this episode of the International Gospel Hour, we delve into the spiritual practice of looking upward, inspired by the stories in Hebrews 12 and amidst contemporary challenges. Host Jeff Archie takes us on a reflective journey beginning with the biblical account from Numbers 21, where the Israelites faced affliction through fiery serpents and found salvation by looking up to the bronze serpent. Through this story, we learn valuable lessons about perspective and the power of keeping our gaze on higher truths.
Looking unto Jesus from Hebrews 12. Lift up mine eyes unto the hills from the psalmist. Well, friends, let’s look up today. That’s coming up from the International Gospel Hour. Please join us.
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Hi, this is Jay Webb for International Gospel Hour. Welcome to our broadcast today. For over 90 years, Churches of Christ have proclaimed God’s Word through our broadcasts. Just ahead is another Bible-based lesson with Jeff Archie of International Gospel Hour. Let’s begin.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, thank you to our J-Web, and greetings to everyone. We’re honored you’ve joined us today for our study here from the International Gospel Hour. Let me mention something very briefly, that all of our material that we share with you Material that we send through the mail, material that we try to make available to you online, will always be free. That’s right. You’ll never hear us asking for your money here from the International Gospel Hour. We are blessed with a number of wonderful Christians and friends that give to our broadcast, churches of Christ, that encourage and support our work with a number of gifts, and we make it possible for you to receive all this material absolutely free. It is our honor, and we thank you for listening. And now, friends, let’s look up today, shall we? When we find ourselves low or down and out, let’s look up. Really, there’s no other way to look at it, is it? You know, I love this little ditty that I came across a number of years ago that said, Two men looked out from prison bars. One saw mud and the other saw stars. In other words, it was the attitude they took. The one that looked up could see something far better than the one that looked down. Romans 15 and verse 4 states, For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that through patience and comfort of the Scriptures, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope. Well, just ahead in our study today is an Old Testament account that has us looking up. And then we will see Jesus using that same account within his teachings. We’re going to begin with Numbers 21 in a moment. But first, our J-Web concerning the International Gospel Hour app.
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Please download the International Gospel Hour app on your iPhone or Android. A free download awaits you at the App Store or Google Play. Just search International Gospel Hour and download our app free and have access to all our work. It is all there through the IGH app.
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Numbers 21. Let’s begin with verse 4. Numbers 21 beginning with verse 4. Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to go around the land of Edom, and the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way, and the people spoke against God and against Moses, Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread. So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people. And many of the people of Israel died. Therefore 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 take away the serpents from us. So Moses prayed for the people. Then the Lord said to Moses, Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and it shall be that everyone who is bitten when he looks at it shall live. So Moses made a bronze serpent and put it on a pole, and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. Proverbs 21, verses 4 through 9. So friends, let’s look up at the serpent in the wilderness. Now, let’s notice three things. Let’s notice the affliction. Let’s see the antidote and let’s see the application. Okay, the affliction, of course, the bite of the serpents. We know how serpents have venom. Venom will spread through the body. Therefore, it will be widespread throughout the camp. No doubt the bite was painful. And verse 6 reminds us that much people of Israel died. And it was incurable by human means. Here’s the antidote. The Lord told Moses to place a serpent upon a pole to lift it up. The resemblance of the cause and the cure, and it was published throughout all the camp. If you look unto the serpent, you will live. Now let’s apply this. The simplicity. You had to look at the serpent on the pole. And the necessity. If you don’t look at the serpent, you will die. The affliction, the antidote, and the application. Now, let’s go to the New Testament when Jesus in John 3, 14 and 15 said, And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. So let’s look up, not at the serpent in the wilderness, but the Savior in the world. Let’s see the affliction. Let’s see the antidote. Let’s see the application. The affliction, of course, sin. And you know, the old serpent, as he is described in Genesis 3 and verse 15, in Revelation 12 and verse 9, Revelation 20 and verse 2, the old serpent indeed has the venom of sin and how sin will poison the whole body. Matthew 15, 18 and 19 affirms that sin comes forth from the heart through the mouth and defiles the man. And how sin is widespread throughout the whole world, Romans 3, 23. And we know how sin brings forth death. In the days of Hosea, in Hosea 13 and verse 9, O Israel, you have destroyed yourself, but in me is thine help. And in Ezekiel 18 and verse 4, Behold, all souls are mine as the soul of the Father, so also the soul of the Son is mine. The soul that sins, it shall die. And friends, sin is incurable by human means. For it took the sacrifice of Christ only, and it is the only sacrifice and death that would matter and be effective to redeem man. Hebrews 9.26 So what’s the antidote? The uplifted Christ on the cross, as noted from John 3, and later in John 12, 32, And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. And yes, we see the resemblance of the cause and the cure. In Romans 8 and verse 3, For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin condemned sin in the flesh. And 2 Corinthians 5.21, For he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. And so we see the cause and the cure. When we see the cross of Christ that is bearing the sin of man, the cause of the problem, but the cure is there on the cross as well. And how that is published to all the world, friends. The antidote is the gospel of Christ, Matthew 28, 19. Go ye therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. And in Mark 16 and verse 15, but go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. It is the message. And now the application. We are reminded to look unto the serpent, to look unto the cross. What about Isaiah 45, 22? Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth, for I am God and there is none else. The simplicity. Jesus will not cast us out if we but will respond to Him. We think of John 6 and verse 37, that wonderful chapter of Jesus, as later on He taught about the beauty of His Word and how that He is the Christ, the Son of the living God, how Peter acknowledged that, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. But yet in John 6 and verse 37 earlier, Jesus said, All that the Father gives me shall come to me, and him that comes to me I will in no wise cast out. The simplicity, I come to Jesus. And if I fail to believe or to respond, we go back to John 3 verse 18, I am condemned already. Only if I do the will of the Father will I enter into heaven. Matthew 7 in verse 21, Not everyone that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter the kingdom of God. But he that does the will of God abides forever. The same Christ upon that cross, when we look unto the cross, we hear of His teaching of belief, John 8, 24. We hear of His teaching of repentance in Luke 13, 3. The teaching of confession in Matthew 10, 32. And yes, the belief of baptism, the words, the teaching of baptism in Mark 16, 16. And as we noted moments ago from Matthew 28, 19. Oh, dear friends, we must always look up to see the Savior of the world. What a great study. And friends, we want to share with you another study. Now, what we are going to offer is an online, a special video study with our friend Rob Whitaker. And here is our J-Web to tell you how you can send us the information that we need to send you the information that you’ll need.
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Let’s go back to the Bible, shall we? On International Gospel Hour, we always desire to go back to the Bible for our studies, and now we are delighted to offer a special video series through our friends at World Video Bible School. It’s called Back to the Bible with our friend Rob Whitaker. a simple yet thorough study that deals with authority in religion, the church, and your salvation. It’s free, friends. Call us at 855-444-6988. Tell us your email address, say, back to the Bible, and we will send the link to you. It’s that easy. You can go to our website at internationalgospelhour.com, click on the Contact tab, leave us your email, type Back to the Bible in the message box, and we will send the link right away. We look forward to hearing from you.
SPEAKER 01 :
And friends, we hope that online study will be of help to you. It’s a great study, and you can work on it at your own pace. Wonderful video series. Now, let me also add, for those of you that do not have access to Internet, that our Bible studies are always available by mail. You can do the same thing. Call us at 855-444-6988, and you can leave us your name and address, and you can say, Home Study, or… God and Man, and we will mail you your studies by the U.S. Mail. We’re grateful to help you, and we’re going to continue our studies together at another time. But for now, thank you for joining me on the International Gospel Hour. I’m Jeff Archie, and friends, keep listening.
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God be with you till we meet again.
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Thank you for listening to our broadcast today, and we hope you continue onward with your search and study of God’s Word. Please join us next time and visit our website at internationalgospelhour.com God be with you till we meet again.
