We often shout that the Lord provides but what happens when we don’t like what He provides? How do we cope with feeling stuck between pain and paradise? We start by renewing our gratitude for the One who gives us exactly what we need, even when we don’t think it’ll work. Remember that God created the cure of salvation from the curse of humanity — and that cure is Jesus Christ. Look to the hills from whence comes your help and let Jesus’ light illuminate your path.

[Music]

i will get in this word i’m excited

about this word go to numbers chapter 21

verse 1 through 9 and there you will

find the text that we’re going to

explore tonight

and the interesting subject that we’re

going to use to

uh

to really diagnose and analyze this text

when the canaanite king of arad who

lived in the negev heard that israel was

coming

it’s our customs stand for the reading

of the word let’s do it all together

amen thank you for respecting that

when the canaanite king of arad who

lived in the negev heard that israel was

coming along the road to atharium

he attacked the israelites and captured

some of them

then israel made this vow to the lord if

you will deliver these people into our

hands we will totally destroy their

cities

the lord listened to israel’s plea and

gave the canaanites over to them they

completely destroyed them and their

towns so the place was named

horma

they traveled from mount hor along the

route to the red sea to go around edom

but the people watch this closely but

the people grew impatient on the way

are you impatient on the way

they spoke against god and against moses

maybe it’s out of their frustration but

they spoke

against god and against moses and said

why have you brought us up out of egypt

to die in the wilderness

there is no bread

there is no water

and we detest

this

miserable

food

[Music]

do you hate what god’s given you

do you hate god what god’s given you

because it’s not what you had in mind

do you hate who god’s given you

[Music]

got a little quiet there yeah yeah yeah

sometimes we pray for things and then

when god provides it we don’t have an

appetite for what god has given us

we only have an appetite for what we

expected and what we had in mind and

they spoke against god and they spoke

against moses and they complained about

not having any water and they complained

about not having any bread and even

though what they had eaten was better

than the bread they wanted

because what they had eaten sustained

even their clothes

even their shoes didn’t wear out

what they had eaten was stronger than

the bread they wanted

sometimes i’m glad god didn’t answer my

prayer

if god would have gave me what i wanted

i wouldn’t have made it what i threw up

what i made it through but when god gave

me what he wanted me to have i had to

learn to like it oh y’all don’t hear

what i’m saying

you have to be willing to make changes

but these people weren’t willing to make

change 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

wait lord we’re trying to get rid of

snakes

that’s what we’re praying about we’re

trying to get rid of the snakes

we want you to drive the snakes away and

you want me to make a snake

why would you have me make a snake

when i’m trying to escape

snakes

ah

i’m confused the lord said to moses make

a snake and put it upon a pole

and anyone who is bitten

can look at it

and live

so moses made a bronze snake

and put it on a pole

then when anyone was bitten by a snake

and looked at the bronze snake

they lived wait

god didn’t get rid of the snakes

because they said when anyone else is

bitten they can look on the snake you

made

and i thought we was trying to get rid

of the snakes

i want to talk tonight the mysterious

ministry of snakes

[Music]

the mysterious

ministry of snakes i know this is going

to be tough

i know it’s going to be hard because i

know y’all don’t like snakes

yeah i know it you don’t want to hear

nothing about snakes but you’re going to

hear about snakes tonight

because that’s what god gave me anoint

this word lord overshadow it with your

spirit

move in a supernatural way

endow us and enable us with the grace

that enables us to receive everything

that you have for us

in the name of jesus christ our lord we

pray all the people of god said amen

said amen

and said amen again

you may be seated in the presence of god

well the children of israel are

leaving egypt and going into the

wilderness trying to make it to the

promised land

now the wilderness as you know is a

desert place and for the most part is a

very dry place

that was not habitable by many

and those that were in the wilderness

were nomadic

groups and troops of people who moved

here are there and control different

regions that they had to pass through

on their way to their destiny it’s

amazing who all you have to pass through

on your way to your destiny

yeah all the different kinds of people

that you have to deal with to get to

where god wants you to go but they’re on

their way and they’re on their journey

and in the process of being on the

journey it is not just the heat

by day

or the cold by night

or the lack of water or resources or

cities to draw from that makes the

wilderness such a difficult place to get

through

it is not even the external wilderness

that is the primary wilderness that i

want you to understand tonight the

wilderness that they walked through was

treacherous and dangerous and difficult

and not accommodating for that mass

amount of people with children and women

and men to make it safely through to the

other side now the promised land was

ready for them it flowed with milk and

honey the promised land was amazing they

could build houses there and live there

and reclaim their territory and the

promised land was what they had in mind

when they left egypt but in between the

promised land is always

the wilderness

that nebulous indescript place that has

no zip code for which you cannot explain

through gps systems exactly where you

are

that that somewhere in between places

most of us spend most of our lives

somewhere

between

places

we’re not where we used to be

but we’re not where we’re gonna be

we are somewhere

between places

and when we are in somewhere in between

places we have to deal

with the wilderness walk

how do i walk with god in a wilderness

how do i walk with god in a place of

uncertainty and a place of discomfort

and a place that is full of foreign

people that i have encountered for the

first time seeing as i have been

cocooned in egypt for 400 years i call

egypt a cocoon because they went into

egypt a family and they came out a

nation

that god put them in egypt to gestate

the promise that he gave abraham

that ultimately they would become a

great nation and they grew a great

nation under tribulation

because tribulation often though the

enemy means it for evil it often makes

you greater

and you come into an awareness and a

deeper understanding and multiply in

fact the bible says it clearly in exodus

the more they afflicted them the more

they grew

so the way to grow is to endure

affliction

if the enemy were wise he would never

afflict you because instead of it

killing you and it caused you to grow

it made you stronger it made you more

prayerful it made you pay attention it

made you come to church in the middle of

the week it made you long on this

broadcast in the middle of the week and

quiet all the kids and cut down the tv

and shut down the noise because you’re

going through something where you need

to hear from god because you’re in a

wilderness but the wilderness is not

just about dry land and cold nights and

about inclement weather and the

wilderness is not just about the dryness

and the lack of food and the lack of

comfort and the lack of being at home

the wilderness is also

the the uncertainty that lives inside of

us when we know we are not there

the uncertainty that lives in our own

mind when we are not sure do we have

what it takes

to get there

the uncertainty that lives in our mind

when we can’t really describe where

there is but we are groping after it

hoping that we might find it because we

have concluded that anything is better

than backwards

some of us have made up our mind we

don’t know what heaven looks like but we

know that we’re not there yet

we know that we have not seen jesus yet

and we don’t know exactly what he looks

like and we argue amongst ourselves

about what he looks like what color he

was how long his hair was how he would

handle what would jesus do and we argue

about what would jesus do and none of us

know exactly what we’re talking about

because the jesus i know is

unpredictable

the jesus i know is unpredictable the

jesus i know is a rule breaker the jesus

i know is not particularly religious the

jesus i know did not fit in with the

priests the jesus i know was not

welcomed in the synagogue the jesus i

know was not appreciated amongst the

pharisees or the sadducees that jesus i

know hung out with wine members that

jesus i know you don’t have theology for

the jesus i know forgave a woman caught

in the act of adultery the jesus i know

ate on the sabbath day the jesus i know

healed people against the rules that

jesus i know was radical oh my god i

wish that they would come back that we

would serve a radical jesus and not a

religious one not one that we’ve been

taught not one that we’ve been induced

to believe because you don’t know god

until you know him in jesus

are you hearing what i’m saying and so

they are somewhere in between where they

are going

and somewhere in between where they were

and they’re out in this nebulous place

of not really understanding who they are

because they themselves have been slaves

for 400 years

and anytime you have been slaves for 400

years 10 generations of slavery has

washed most of the religious religious

faith out of them the theology out of

them the torah out of them their

understanding of scripture has been

dismissed from them and they’re

struggling to understand who god is they

see his glory fall on mount sinai

and they’re trying to understand that

they are sons and not slaves

but under pressure

under pressure under pressure we have a

tendency to revolt back to what is

familiar even if what is familiar is not

what we like under pressure we’ll go

back to it under pressure we’ll date

somebody again that we knew didn’t work

the first time under

uh y’all not gonna get with me un under

pressure

under pressure we’ll go back to things

that didn’t work for us the under

pressure the alcoholic will start

drinking again under pressure the drug

addict could go back to drugs again

under pressure people have a tendency to

go back to the familiar just because we

don’t like the ambiguity of being in

between in that ubiquitous place of not

quite being there yet but not being here

yet and not fully understanding what it

means to be a son how do you teach a

to be a son

yeah and they’re they’re dealing with

this and while they’re dealing with the

internal conflict

of not fully embracing what it meant to

be a son of god he delivered them like

they were his sons he fought pharaoh

like they were his sons he drove back

the enemy like they were his son he

released plagues like they were his sons

they walked through the red sea on dry

ground like they were his sons they came

up and danced like they were god’s sons

and daughters they shouted like they

were god’s sons and daughters but how

many of you know that you can shout and

still go home and worry

you can shout and still go home and be

restless you can shout and still go home

and be depressed in the moment you can

be excited because you see what was

chasing you was destroyed but then when

all of that calms down you still aren’t

sure because you are not there yet the

real wilderness i’m trying to see trying

to get you to see is not just around you

it is also within you

so you can sit in an air-conditioned car

and still be in a wilderness you can

drive a mercedes and still be in a

wilderness you can have a full-time job

and still be in a wilderness you can get

married and have two kids and still be

in a wilderness you can have more

degrees in a thermometer and still be in

the wilderness as long as you wrestle in

your mind because you are not certain as

to where you are and who you are and

most of your life you’ve been a slave

and now you’re trying to be a son but

how does the son of god act when you

have not seen any any influence that

reminded you of a son of god for

400 years

such is the case and while they are

struggling with their own identity and

their circumstances around them and the

environment in which god has placed them

in to prepare them for better while they

are struggling with all of that here

comes the canaanites to attack them

along the way

i wouldn’t mind going to god’s school if

everything else would be quiet while i’m

being educated

i wouldn’t mind being in transition if i

didn’t have problems while i was in

transition i would mind being in

transition if people didn’t die while i

was in transition i wouldn’t mind being

in transition if i didn’t have to

experience grief while i’m in transition

i wouldn’t mind having transition if i

didn’t discover a lump in my breast

while i’m in transition the enemy has a

way of catching you off guard catching

you not quite there yet catching you in

between places and attack you and he

attacked them before they got there and

let me tell you right now that the enemy

will not wait till you get there and you

get comfortable and you get your bags

unpacked and you become etched into the

fiber of a community called there the

enemy will attack you while you’re on

your way and everybody in here knows it

whether they admit it or not while you

are still trying to get yourself

together the enemy will attack you and

try to destroy you and knock you out and

if your faith is not strong in god you

will not be able to withstand the wows

of the

enemy and the bible said the bible the

bible said the bible said that they

became weary along the way

and i’m wondering tonight if there’s

anybody in the room or anybody online or

anybody that will watch this that is

weary along the way how long lord before

we get there

taking your children on vacation loading

up the car putting all the suitcases in

the trunk and a little bit of food in

the back and all they ask you is are we

there yet are we there yet are we there

how much longer do we have to go how

much longer do we have to go and like a

child sometimes i get down on my knees

and i must confess i myself have asked

god how long before

i get there this is taking longer than i

expected i thought i’d be married by now

i thought i’d have my house by now i

thought my business would be up by now i

thought i would have recorded by now i

thought i would have written my book by

now i thought i would have been

established by now but here i am in this

nebulous place called wilderness

internally and externally and now i got

to fight

while i’m worried

[Applause]

i don’t mind having to fight but i don’t

want to have to fight while i’m worried

i don’t want to fight while i’m trying

to balance on the beam of uncertainty i

don’t want to have to fight and

certainly not the canaanites and the

canaanites got in and killed some of

them

and the israelites were angry

and they said to god if you give us this

nation we will utterly destroy them

and he did

and he did

and they were still not there yet

have you ever got the victory

[Music]

only to remember that you’re still not

there yet

have you ever fought off whoever you had

to fight off or survive whatever you had

to survive and only not you couldn’t

even enjoy the victory because you still

had to wake up to the reality i’m still

not there yet i got you straight i gave

you a piece of my mind i put you in your

place i got you together but i still go

home to deal with the uncertainty of

having not arrived at the place that i

had in mind when i started to walk such

is the text

before us tonight

and the bible said that they

they railed against moses and they rail

against god because whenever we are

disappointed we look for somebody to

blame and it is always easier to blame

somebody else and to blame us

when you write the books that you read

you will always be the hero

nobody writes a book about themselves

and writes in that they were the victim

nobody comes in and lays down on the

couch and say i was wrong they will

always blame somebody else because we

always want to push away from us a

responsibility for being where we are so

they blame moses why

did you leave us in egypt

why did you bring us out here to die

there is no

food out here

there is no food out here what were you

thinking about to bring all these people

out here and now we have to walk by

faith and not by sight and our

provisions are gone and all we have is

this invisible god

who will not show his face to us if he

would show his face to me maybe i

wouldn’t feel like this but they are

frustrated

they say there’s no food and there’s no

water and we loathe this bread this

manna

this stuff that falls from heaven is

tasteless

it does not taste good where god has me

i want to talk to somebody tonight that

where god has you doesn’t taste good

it’s not that god didn’t sustain you but

it doesn’t

taste good it’s not that you’re not

making it but it doesn’t taste good it

doesn’t appeal to your appetite it is

not what you had in mind it hadn’t it’s

not the life you would have fixed for

yourself and yes you are still here but

it does not

taste good

manna they said what is it what is this

that god has given me it’s keeping me

but it’s not satisfying me

to be kept by jesus that’s what my

grandmother used to say oh to be kept by

him oh sometimes being kept doesn’t

taste good

the mana wouldn’t even let their shoes

wear out but it didn’t taste good

they

they had on the same clothes they had

when they left egypt not a thread was

worn on their garments but it didn’t

taste good we’ve got to learn how to be

grateful beyond how things taste

yeah

we got to be grateful based on results

this is working for me type on the line

this is working for me

yeah i don’t know whether you like it or

not but it’s working for me i don’t know

whether you like me or not but i don’t

care it’s working for me i don’t know

whether you like what i got on or not

but i don’t care it’s working for me you

got to get to a perspective of does it

work for you and if it’s working for you

you got to tell your taste buds shut up

this may not be what i planned on but if

this is what god wants me to have lord i

thank you that it’s working for me i

thank you that i made it this far and

it’s working for me i thank you that you

sustained me and it’s working for me

it’s not what i wanted but it is working

for me to god be the glory and if you

can’t say that come on and let me take

you to the aids ward and the cancer ward

and the homeless places that show you

some real suffering because sometimes

you don’t have gratitude cause you got

too much

if you get down low enough you’ll learn

how to be grateful for little stuff but

in the absence of an example of worse

you won’t appreciate better because it

ain’t best

[Applause]

you didn’t hear what i said that was so

good

in the absence of something worse you

won’t appreciate something better

because you’re holding out for best and

when you get the best you’re going to

praise god but god is raising up a

generation of people that will praise

him for better they haven’t got the best

yet but they’re thinking right where

they are are you one of those people

that can be right in the middle of the

wilderness not exactly sure how to be

his son but you’re gonna stand right

here in your little tent and give god

the praise

the strange praise

of a nebulous place

the strange praise that comes from being

in between

the strange place of honoring god in

neutral i’m not in reverse and i’m not

in drive but i’m gonna put it in neutral

and still give you the praise i don’t

know how long i’ll have to be a neutral

but i’m gonna give you the glory right

where i am i will not be unthankful

because i have not arrived i will be

thankful right where i am see most times

our faith is always in front of us or

behind us look what the lord did or look

what the lord is going to do but nobody

is looking at what god is doing right

now did you know that god is doing

something in your life right now at this

present moment right at this time of

nothingness and blandness at this time

of incompleteness at the time that

you’re murmuring and complaining and

talking about the indecisiveness of the

world around you did you not know that

god is present right now

[Applause]

they failed to acknowledge god because

they were uncomfortable

they failed to acknowledge god because

they didn’t like the food

ain’t that pitiful

i don’t like the food

i don’t like the food so i want to go

back to being a slave

isn’t that a little stupid

i don’t know about you but i could eat

just about anything rather than to go

back to being a slave

yeah yeah yeah i could make do i could

make do i don’t like radishes but i

could eat them if i had to eat them yeah

yeah i don’t like radish i just don’t

like it i don’t like it i know what it

is but i can eat it

before i go back to being a slave

i i i mean i like being single but i can

live single before i go back to being a

slave i may not like the circumstance

that i’m in right now but i can put up

with it lord because when i think about

where you brought me from

at least this is better than that and i

thank you for this while i’m waiting on

the other

oh god i feel like i’m preaching already

and i haven’t even really got to my text

yet but i feel something going on in

this place

and they murmured against god

and they murmured against moses

and the bible says

that the lord sent circuits

it doesn’t say the devil sent them

it doesn’t say the witches said them

it doesn’t say some evil enemy release

them

instead it says that the lord

sent serpents

we never preach about the lord sending

serpents

because people don’t like to talk about

serpents they don’t like to look at

serpents and they don’t like to realize

the fact that sometimes god sends

trouble

sometimes god sends things to sting you

sometimes god sends sting to sense

things to wake you up sometimes god

sends things uh to to to chastise you

sometimes god says see and it’s not just

that the serpents came the bible is

clear the lord sent them

how do we explain in our theology

a snake sending god

i can do good with a man ascending god i

can do good with water coming out of a

rock but how do i explain a god

who works through the mysterious

methodology

of sinning snakes

and i i looked at it and i was amazed

and they said to moses

they said to moses we have sinned

against god i guess they did confess

because when you get bit bad enough

you’ll

confess have you ever had to deal with a

liar and they kept a lie going but if

you got them trapped deep enough they

would come out with the truth i’m amazed

that the people that are lie to you like

you’re stupid and you have to act like

you don’t know and all the while you

know that they’re lying to you all the

while liars just lying all the way and

all of a sudden they had to come clean

because when you get big bad enough

[Applause]

you come in and talk about well i wasn’t

going to tell you but we

you know you know i mean somebody knows

what i’m talking about i i wasn’t going

to bring this up but but but something

happened the other night there is a

snake bite that will make you tell the

truth there is a snake bite that’ll make

you come clean there is a snake bite

that’ll make you go to somebody you were

talking about and say i’ve been talking

about you and i’m sorry they weren’t

coming if they hadn’t been bitten but

there is a way that you can be bitten in

such a way that it’ll humble you down

and make you say

i i talked about you and i was wrong

yeah and the lord will get the truth out

of you if it has to send a snake bite

oh yeah be sure and type that the lord

will get the truth out of you if you

have to sit a snake bite

the lord will bring you to a place of

humility if he has to send a snake bite

the lord knows exactly what it takes to

bring you to your knees to make you

submit to make you humble to make you

cough up the truth to get you past your

pride and your arrogance and bring you

to a place of submission and yes the

bible said the lord sent serpents he

sent snakes

and and

and and it bit them and some died and

they came to moses under duress

they didn’t come to moses out of

conviction

they came to moses read the text they

came to moses out of duress

if there if there were no snakes here

they wouldn’t have done it

the people came to moses and said we

have sinned when we spoke against the

lord and against you

duh

we have did you know it’s a sin

to speak against god and who he sent

that’s why i have peace when you know

that god sent you you don’t have to

fight for yourself

because when you speak against somebody

that god sent you’re speaking against

god also it’s not that moses was so much

but god was using him and if god saw fit

to use him don’t speak against who god

chooses to use

so they said we have sin

against god and we have sinned against

you pray

that the lord will take the snakes away

from us pray

pray you have a relationship with god

that we don’t have we can talk to you

but we can’t talk to him we can talk

about him but we can’t talk to him and

so we have to come to you and ask you as

a mediator to pray for us

to pray that the lord will take the

snakes away from us

so moses prayed for the people wait a

minute to every leader you have to be

big enough to pray for people who hurt

you

you don’t have to graduate from yale you

don’t have to graduate from prison god

bless you if you did

but you do have to be big enough

to pray for people

who hurt you

job prayed for his friends that’s how he

got healed

moses is here praying for people who a

breath ago were talking about him like

he had a tail

but moses had the composite of

personality that made it possible for

him to be adaptable enough that he was

not

that he

no longer had a tendency to hold grudges

i want to ask tonight are you a person

who holds grudges

because that might be what’s holding you

up in the wilderness

you might be stuck in the wilderness

because you lack the dexterity and the

flexibility to end the adaptability to

be able to transition quick enough to

get over what you heard they said and be

able to function in the position you

have been given in spite of the feelings

you have been having

oh if you would eat that if you would

eat that i’m preaching it but you that

doesn’t mean you’re going to eat it but

if you would eat that that would save

marriages if you would eat that that

would save homes if you would eat that

that would save churches if you would

eat that that would save relationships

if you would eat that you could sleep

good tonight if you would eat that you

would have peace but we have a tendency

to hold a grudge so that we thought i’m

praying for you

you brought this on yourself you’re sure

to shut your

mouth you got this coming i bet you

won’t say nothing else

but moses does not use this as an

opportunity to seek revenge

he goes to god and he prays

and he prays for them

and he prays for people who heard him

and the lord said

and the lord said to moses

make a

snake that’s that’s create a godly

puzzle

because it is almost like god is deaf

because we are talking to you lord to

get rid of snakes

and at a time that we want the snakes to

go away

you have asked moses

to make one

whenever god asks you to do something

that doesn’t seem to make sense

that contradicts

the crisis that you’re in

there is something that he wants you to

learn

along the way

how can moses

make a snake

he is not a creator

and yet the one who could make a snake

has has moses

to make a snake

now god can make a steak

but moses is now being asked to make a

snake and the only way moses could make

a snake

was to make it out of brass

and the only way to make a snake out of

brass

was to melt it down

and beat it into shape

and as moses began to beat the brass

into the form of a snake

he does not know it yet he may even die

without knowing knowing it but every

time he beat the brass it was a picture

of what the father did the son

he was wounded for our transgressions

he was bruised for our iniquities the

chastisement of our peace was upon him

and with his stripes we’re here pipe it

on the line make a snake make a snake

make a snake make a snake mix neck moses

had to make a snake

and he couldn’t make a real one so he

made a brass one and brass is symbolic

of judgment

and when he started beating the brass it

is the execution of judgment on the

brass that turned into the form of a

snake

and put it up on a pole

he told him

he put it up on a pole

and when he put it on a pole

he said then when anyone

was bitten by a snake

they can look at the bronze snake

[Music]

and lil y’all didn’t get it

god said i’m not going to remove the

snakes

[Music]

i’m not going to remove the snakes

i’m just going to give the antidote

in the midst of the snakes

so that if anyone gets bitten

there is an escape from the poison

all they have to do

is look at

what bit them

y’all don’t hear what i’m saying

it seems like to me that it had to make

it make a lamb or or or make something

make an eagle make something that eats

snakes or make a hulk something that

would eat a snake no no no no no no he

said it’s gonna take a snake

for a snake

and he said make a snake and put it on a

stick and lift it up high

[Applause]

lift it up so high they have to look up

at it

and every person who looks up at it

shall live

oh god

have mercy

i’m not going to take you out of the

environment of snakes

but i’m going to give you power over

their bite

[Applause]

i’m gonna leave you in the world i’m

gonna leave you in the presence of enemy

i’m gonna leave you in the presence of

darkness but behold i give you power

and you will tread on serpents

you will walk on the thing that was

trying to walk on you

i’m going to leave you right here in the

presence of it you asked me to take away

the snakes and i told you no

i’m gonna have you make a snake

for a snake

and this texas seldom explored it’s

seldom talked about

but in reality this is a very important

text and when i read it so now i’m just

talking when i read it

i was really

amazed because

it made me think of a of a cartous

kind of

is a

emblem that is used amongst doctors for

medicine

you know the one with with the pole and

the snake wrapped around it

and i thought to myself

wonder if that’s where it came from

and so i started doing some research in

reality i found out there there are two

versions of the symbol and i’ve i found

out that a codocious is really

really a staff that was carried

by an olympian god

called hermes

so then that got me curious to find out

was hermes was this theology amongst

pagans living at the time of moses and i

found

that it was prevalent 1500 years

before moses

can i go on

it it’s it’s greek mythology that’s what

the doctor’s

emblem is it’s it’s a part of hermes

greek theology he was a messenger

between gods and humans

which explains the wings

and a guide to the underworld which

explains the staff

are you following

hermes was huge yeah hermes was used

also the patron of travelers which makes

his connection to medicine appropriate

because

doctors had to travel great distances by

foot in order to visit their patients

coliseus

so this emblem represented the traveling

of medicine from house to house making

house calls has nothing to do with the

text at all

and when i began to study it in one

version herme hermes was a myth he is

given he’s given the staff by apollo the

god of healing

and so down through tradition it became

an emblem

in another version he receives the staff

from zeus the king of the gods greek

mythology and it is entwined

with two white ribbons

later the story goes that the ribbons

were replaced by serpents

and that as the serpents climbed up the

pole

instead of fighting at the top

they found balance

and that became the emblem

and i thought wow

so here we are

with something completely unrelated to

medicine let me show you why i wanted it

to be related to medicine because often

the cure is made from the cause

y’all don’t hear what i’m saying

often the cure in medicine is made from

the cause

the antidote is made from the venom

if you get snakebite there’s an antidote

for it but it is made

from the venom

and though that’s that that codocious

did not start with the scripture the

principle of coliseus is applicable in

the text because they’re trying to get

away from something and god said make

one

let me show you something let me show it

to you somewhere else maybe you’ll see

it better from here he told elijah

elijah said i’m in a drought and a

famine and i’m in a seabed where there

is no water and god says to him dig

ditches in your valley

i told you there ain’t no water

in the valley i got

and you’re telling me to dig a ditch in

a ditch

because when i do decide to make it rain

i’m gonna make it rain beyond the

parameters of what you have in place

y’all don’t hear what i’m saying to you

y’all don’t hear what i’m saying

see see see see this this this this

this text

jesus was born about 4 a.d

moses lived in about

1628 bc

moses died 40 years later

so moses did not get his influence from

coliseus he got his

influence

from god

god told him

make a snake

put it on a pole

and raise it up

and moses didn’t know

that when he lifted up the pole

he was lifting up jesus

how to reach the masses

men of every birth

for an answer

jesus gave the key

he said if i

if i be lifted up

from the earth i’ll draw

all men unto me

lift him up

lift him up

till he speaks from eternity

he said if i

if i be lifted up

from the earth

i’ll draw me

unto me

[Music]

watch this

john 3 14 15

just as moses lifted up the snake in the

wilderness

so shall the son of man

[Applause]

be lifted up

so moses is in the old testament

casting a shadow

of the cross

[Applause]

[Laughter]

and the cure is made from the bite

we talk a lot about jesus being the lamb

and he is

but when we call him the lamb we’re

talking about the payment

when it said even as moses lifted up the

serpent in the wilderness it’s talking

about the penalty

we talk so much about the payment we

don’t talk about the penalty

you must understand the difference

between the payment which is the lamb of

god and the penalty which was he became

sin who knew no sin

that we might be the righteousness of

god

if he became sin who knew no sin

how did sin get here in the first place

oh

it came from the snake

sin came from the snake

so if he was lifted up as a lamb

y’all ain’t ready for me

if he was lifted up as a lamb it

wouldn’t cure what i was bitten by

even as moses lifted up the serpent in

the wilderness so shall the son of man

be lifted up he became sin who knew no

sin

it wasn’t that he committed sin he

became sin it wasn’t that he was an

adulterer he became adultery it wasn’t

that he was a murderer he became murder

he became sin

who knew no sin at this bible class come

on let’s go so so when he’s on the cross

he says eli eli

lama sabotage my god

my god why has i forsaken me

it’s because he’s become sin

so when the father looks down at the

stick

he doesn’t see the sun he sees the

serpent

[Applause]

he was wounded

for our transgressions

[Music]

y’all don’t hear what i’m saying

he he was bruised for our iniquities

why have you forsaken me because he is

not lifted up just as the lamb he is

lifted up as the serpent watch this you

need to understand this if you don’t

understand this you’re going to miss

something that god wants you to have

that jesus epitomized everything that

was contrary to god on the cross and god

executed judgment that should have went

to you

on him

so that you might be able to look on him

and live

talk to me somebody

[Applause]

talk to me somebody

talk to me somebody

type on the line he did it for me

he did it for me

he did it for me

cause i’ve been bitten he did it for me

cause i was swelling he did it for me

cause i had a fever he did it for me

because i was a mess he did it for me

because i was born in sin and shaping

and iniquity he did it for me because i

couldn’t cure myself he did it for me

because i couldn’t help myself he did it

for me because i grew up in the middle

of a generational curse he did it for me

and i can’t help it that my brother

didn’t look up or my sister didn’t look

or my auntie didn’t look up i looked up

and when i looked up and saw him i got

the healing the snakes are still there

but i got the healing people are dying

all around me but i got the healing

people are getting worse instead of

better but i got the healing come on

talk to me somebody i got the healing

not because of how strong i was but

because of where i looked to for help

talk to me

if you’re glad about it give him 30

seconds of praise

can i go deeper with this thing

let me go a little bit deeper with this

thing something’s about to happen i feel

glory coming in the room i feel glory

and i feel the spirit of revelation and

knowledge in him coming in the room i

feel healing coming in the room i feel

hell being frustrated in the room

because moses made a snake

somebody write down make a snake he made

a snake he made a snake the snakes are

slithering across the ground and god

says make a snake he made a snake but

the snake was beaten

the snake was beaten out of brass it was

beaten it was wrapped around and twisted

it borne our griefs and carried our

sorrows and wrapped around a stick jesus

was carrying the cross up golgotha’s

hill and it was as long as he was

carrying it nobody was redeemed but if

if he was lifted up he said i’ll draw

men unto me y’all don’t hear what i’m

saying come on come on come on let’s

let’s get in this word let’s get in this

word let’s get in this word let’s let

this word get into us you need this word

because the devil has the audacity to

tell you you’re not going to make it the

devil has the audacity to tell you i bet

you and you gonna die i bet your

grandmama i your mama and now i

bet you the devil is alive you might

have got them but you didn’t get me

because i looked up

and when i looked up i got delivered and

i got set free if there’s one person in

the room that’s been delivered i want

you to give god a praise right now just

to pray

[Applause]

[Music]

so what we have

what we have

is the light of god’s glory

shining

on the cross

and when the light hits the cross

it casts a shadow

[Applause]

on moses

watch this

and so when they started prophesying

about the cross

they draw a parallel between the cross

and moses and the serpents

because moses lifting up the serpent in

the wilderness is a type

of christ being lifted up and becoming

sin for us on the cross and look at how

similar the images are

y’all don’t hear what i’m saying

the images are similar and both of them

had to be lifted up

and both of them had to be looked to in

order to be redeemed do you hear what

i’m saying to you and and god set up the

situation

that put moses in a predicament that he

would have to present the cure

which was a cross

and when he lifted it up

it is god

teaching in the old testament what he

what he reveals in the new testament it

was concealed in the old testament it

was revealed in the new testament so

what you see in a shadow which is just a

tight in the old testament now becomes a

reality in the new testament somebody

take three minutes and just give god

glory

come on

come on

come on you’re gonna get there come on

you’re gonna get there

come on you’re gonna get there come on

you’re gonna get there

come on you’re gonna get there

come on you’re gonna get there

[Music]

[Applause]

as much stuff as you did you cannot

afford to sit there with your lips glued

together

and act like you don’t oh god of praise

i’m talking about your sin your mess

your disgrace your embarrassment and you

can’t sit there and give him a cute

little

praise like you don’t know what i’m

talking about because he was lifted up

for your transgression he was bruised

for your iniquities he did it for you

because there was no cure for what was

wrong for you but jesus took your place

[Applause]

[Music]

let’s go a little deeper let’s go a

little deeper come on i got to hear it

yeah i got about 15 minutes come on

let’s go let’s go to galatians chapter 3

verse 11 verse 14.

clearly no one who relies on the law is

justified before god because the

righteousness will will live

because the righteous will live by faith

so the law couldn’t do it the law is not

based on faith on the contrary it says

the person who does these things will

live by them come on

watch this close christ redeemed us

from the curse of the law

by becoming

a

curse for us oh wait a minute

oh wait a minute

he redeemed us from the curse of the law

by becoming

a curse for us

wait a minute he

he he redeemed us by becoming

what was against us

[Music]

moses healed them from the snakebite by

lifting up a snake

christ redeemed us from the curse of the

law by becoming a curse for us for it is

written

cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole

that’s why the bible says that they beat

him on the whipping post and josephus a

historian says that they beat him so

badly he should have died on the

whipping post but if he died on the

whipping post it would not have redeemed

us so he fought death off on the

whipping post and said no man takes my

life i lay it down and if i lay it down

i’ll pick it back up again

and they nailed him to the tree

and lifted it up because he had to be

lifted up to complete the story

and take on the curse for us

he redeemed us in order that the

blessing given to abraham might come to

the gentiles through jesus christ i’m

still in the word so that by faith we

might receive the promise of the spirit

he redeemed us so that even though we

were not legitimately an heir he adopted

us by taking our place on the cross and

paid the price that i might be delivered

he became a curse to break the curse

right on the line the curse is broken

right on the line the curse is broken

right in your notes the curse is broken

tell all your children the curse is

broken tell your daughter the curse is

broken tell your son the curse is broken

run outside and haul out the window the

curse is broken

tell hell the curse is broken

tell the witch the curse is broken tell

the warlock the curse is broken lay

hands on yourself and say the curse is

broken lay hands on the cancer and say

the curse is broken i feel an anointing

coming in this place i feel a release of

the holy ghost because somebody is crazy

enough

to take god at his word

and believe that the curse is broken

at the top of your lungs shout the curse

is broken

the curse is broken

and your son just broke loose

the curse is broken and your daughter

just broke loose the curse is broken

and your family just broke loose

the curse is broken

shouted out the curse is broken

[Applause]

can i go a little bit deeper

follow me back to genesis because i want

to show you how it all started

i showed you how it ended i showed you

what happened in the middle i want to

show you how it all started

in genesis chapter 3

verse 2 through 7.

play it for him don’t i don’t want to

read it play it for him

now the serpent was more subtle than any

beast of the field which the lord god

had made and he said unto the woman

yea

hath god said ye shall not eat of every

tree of the garden

and the woman said unto the serpent

we may eat of the fruit of the trees of

the garden but of the fruit of the tree

which is in the midst of the garden

god hath said ye shall not eat of it

neither shall ye touch it lest ye die

and the serpent said unto the woman

you shall not surely die

forgot that know that in the day you eat

thereof

then your eyes shall be open

and ye shall be as gods

knowing good

[Music]

and that’s how it all started

[Applause]

through the slithering pacing moving

of a snake

moving through a promise

sin entered into the world

crawling on its belly

walked up to the woman and started

talking

and when he started talking to her

he disputed what god said

wait a minute he disputed what god said

and they cursed what god had done

sin has a continuity

that followed all through the scriptures

it came in by snake

to stand up against god’s word it moved

through the desert as a snake

to bite god’s people

it slid it all the way up to calvary and

when it got to calvary god said

i’m gonna make a snake for a snake and

they hung him high

and they stretched him wide

and when they did so

god put an antidote in the world for

whatever you’re into

whatever you’re into i gotta cure

whatever you i gotta cure

whatever’s got you out of sorts i gotta

cure whatever’s got you sick i’ve gotta

cure

whatever is making you swell

i’ve got a cure whatever is getting on

your nerves i got a cure whatever’s got

you on the verge of suicide i’ve got a

cure whatever’s got you sticking a

needle in your heart i’ve got a cure

whatever’s got you snorting cocaine i

got a cure

they hung him behind

and they stretched him wide

because he is secure

to whatever is ailing you

and i dare you to look on him tonight if

you look only him he’ll deliver you

if you look only him he’ll set you free

if you look only him he’ll heal your

body

if you look on him he’ll save your soul

i feel the power of the holy ghost in

this room

the spirit of god is in this place

if you look you can live

love somebody and say look and live

look and live

that’s why the devil doesn’t want you to

look

there are two things that the scriptures

ask you to do

one it asks you to look

and the other it asks you to live

and the devil doesn’t want you to live

so he doesn’t want you to look

so he keeps it with your head down

because as long as your head is down

you can’t look up

but i dare you tonight

to look up

because if you look up you’ll see your

salvation is drawing now

somebody take a moment and give god a

praise

[Applause]

one look

one look

one look

will set the captive free

one look will open up the prison doors

one look will break the yoke of sin one

look will make the chains fall one look

will open up the prison doors one look

will be a shield and a buckler one look

will cause your heart to sing one look

will make your feet start dancing one

look will give you peace in your mind

one look will give you joy in your soul

the devil don’t want you to look

because if you look

his bite can’t kill you

if you look his curse can’t destroy you

if you look

the gossip cannot kill you if you look

the witch cannot hex you

if you look

he’ll give you beauty for ashes

to all of joy for mourning

if you look

he’ll give you the garment of praise

for the spirit of heaviness

look at your neighbor and say i dare you

to look

i dare you to look

i dare you to look

the mysterious ministry of snakes

is god just says

if you look

you can live

you’re so busy looking down

you’re so busy looking in

you so busy looking around

you’re not busy looking up

if you look up

you can live

look up

your salvation draws now

[Music]

you