By Guest Writer
You know you’re getting older when you keep antacids on hand. In my purse, my bedside table, and the kitchen cupboard, you can find them stashed throughout the house. Foods that once went down easily send my tummy rumbling. It’s often a problem of my own choosing, but when the inevitable pain sets in, I thank God for antacids to relieve the ache.
You see it’s a natural part of life, this cause and effect. There are always consequences to our actions. Some are positive, and some are negative, and as the Bible puts it “For whatever a person sows he will also reap” (Galatians 6:7). When I eat something greasy, I know it will likely hurt my belly. When I go to bed early, I know I will likely wake up well rested. And when the Israelites spoke out against God, they found themselves surrounded by venomous snakes.
Even though the Israelites realized the error of their ways, God didn’t take away the snakes as they asked. However, God did provide a path to healing—antacids if you will. The Israelites still had to deal with the consequences of their sins, but God was merciful to them in the midst of their struggle.
Oftentimes we want to make poor choices and then pray we don’t have to deal with the fall out. I admit that more than once I’ve ignored the time when getting ready and then prayed for all green lights so I wasn’t late. Of course, there have been more serious actions, sins I’ve committed, ignoring the repercussions that would surely follow. Just as the snakes bit and killed many Israelites because of their sinfulness, we know that our sin deserves death too (Romans 6:23). Can you think of a time recently where you’ve chosen the wrong things and then had to pay the price?
The good news is that while God doesn’t always erase the consequences of our actions, He is happy to heal His people. God did this for the Israelites by providing healing through a golden snake on a pole. All they had to do was look at it. It was that easy.
Our Father is merciful to us too. All we have to do to be healed from all our sins that lead to death is to lift our eyes to the risen Christ (John 3:14). While we still live in a broken world full of darkness, we know that God promises an eternal world full of light. We may not see the perfect healing of our mind, body, and soul here and now, but one day we will experience a place free from tears and pain (Revelation 21:4).
So let’s raise our eyes to heaven. Our merciful God has paid the price of sin and death for us because of His inexhaustible love. All He asks is that we “repent and believe the good news” (Mark 1:15). Healing and eternal life are available to all of us today if we will simply fix our eyes on our Savior, Jesus.
Written by Kaitie Stoddard
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