Humans like patterns. We look for a way that works and prefer to repeat for the same results. It often makes life easier. However, with God, this is a recipe for disaster.
In Numbers 21, Moses and the Israelites are in the wilderness. The people grew impatient and spoke against God and Moses.
“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!” – Numbers 21:5
So the Lord sent venomous snakes… and people died. They cried out for help and the Lord told Moses to:
“Make a snake and put it up on a a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” – vs.8
So Moses built this snake on a pole and saved them.
Fast forward… God’s people have made it to the promised land, the kingdom is split, the north is in exile in Assyria, and the south is hanging on with one of the few good kings. There have been many bad kings, idolatry and sin are rampant. This good king Hezekiah, is doing what so many failed to do, he is removing the other gods and places of idolatry from the land.
3Hezekiah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as King David had done. 4Hezekiah removed the high places. He smashed the sacred stones. He cut down the poles used to worship the female god named Asherah. He broke into pieces the bronze snake Moses had made. Up to that time the Israelites had been burning incense to it. They called it Nehushtan. – 2 Kings 18:3-4
Hezekiah not only removed the other nation’s idols but he also destroyed the bronze snake Moses made. This is the same snake that saved the Israelites from the poisonous serpents in the wilderness. However, it had become an idol.
How many times do we experience the incredible life giving deliverance of God and then twist it into an idol that brings death?
Maybe God spoke to you through piece of music and now you have made the music sacred. Maybe you experienced a miraculous provision in your business after you spent time fasting and you look to fasting as the key to your financial future. Maybe you heard God speak in a retreat or camp and now you look to that place as holy.
Certainly the experiences of God through worship, spiritual disciplines, and special places can lead us into wonderful encounters with God. However, they are not to become our idols. We are not to let the tools become the Creator. In fact, we know that God likes to do new things.
‘The wind blows where it wants to. You hear the sound it makes. But you can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going. It is the same with everyone who is born with the Spirit.” ‘ – John 3:8
Celebrate what God has done. Appreciate how He has moved in the past. But expect Him to do a new thing.