TLIC FAMILY. DAY 40. FEBRUARY 9: LOOK AND LIVE.

THINK TOGETHER

Have you ever sinned?

READ TOGETHER

Do you ever sin? The Hebrew people sinned all the time. God led them out of slavery and all the way back to the Promised Land, but they just couldn’t trust God and follow him into that land. That’s sin. And so God made the people wander in the desert for 40 more years. Wandering from place to place, learning to trust him.

Now in the desert there’s not always a lot of food to eat is there? So God would make food called manna fall down from the sky for the people. It was like little pieces of sweet bread. Each day the people would collect and eat their manna. Soon the people began to complain about God again. They hated manna and stopped trusting God. Failing to trust God is called sin, and sin deserves death. So God sent snakes to bite the people. Yikes! The people were sorry and cried out to Moses. Moses cried out to God, and here’s what God said:

Numbers 21:8.And the Lord said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.” 

This story is a big picture of how sin affects us all, and how we can all be saved. The people didn’t trust God. They deserved death. But by simply looking at the bronze snake on the pole they would be forgiven and live. Then hundreds of years later, Jesus would connect this story to himself. Listen to what Jesus said:

John 3:14-15. ¹⁴ as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man [Jesus] be lifted up, ¹⁵ that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Jesus, like the bronze snake, was “lifted up” for us all on the cross. Just like the people had to believe that if they looked at that snake they would live, we too have to believe that if we trust in what Jesus has done for us on the cross we too will be forgiven and live. Are you looking to Jesus to save you from sin?

Because of Jesus we can be forgiven of all our sins.

With Jesus we forgiveness and eternal life.

DO SOMETHING TOGETHER

Get some clay and role it into snakes. Wrap the snakes around sticks or straws. Let your simple “sculptures” be a reminder of simple faith.

PRAY TOGETHER

Jesus, I know that I have sinned, and I believe that you died on the cross for my sins. I want to receive your eternal life. Amen.