The Snake Bite
Paul gathered a pile of brushwood and, as he put it on the fire, a viper, driven out by the heat, fastened itself on his hand… But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects (Acts 28:3,5).
Have you ever been bitten by a poisonous snake? Before you answer too quickly…
I’m not talking about a western rattler or a desert sidewinder.
I’m talking about a viper of the spiritual kind.
As in,
“Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”
Ever since the Garden of Eden, the serpent has been on the loose, wreaking havoc at every and any opportunity. And, sadly, we’ve all felt that hideous sting.
Were you a child and your parents split up? Has someone you loved ever betrayed you? How about the person who returns evil for all the good you’ve done them?
“Sharper than a serpent’s tooth is a thankless child,” Shakespeare exclaimed. And some of you have experienced that pain.
Stings come in all shapes and sizes, and the serpent can strike out of nowhere.
Like here on the shores of Malta:
Paul’s just trying to be helpful.
There’s been a shipwreck. Two-hundred and seventy six survivors have washed up onto the beach. They’re all cold and wet and needing the warmth of a fire.
So Paul gets busy helping.
He gathers up some dead branches for kindling and big surprise!
The heat from the fire drives a viper out. And next thing you know that creature is dangling from Paul’s hand, fastened there by its fangs!
Ew.
But God’s got this. He’s got the anti-venom for every kind of venomous bite.
“They will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all” (Mark 16:18).
You and I are indestructible until our work on earth is through. We may feel the sting and reel from its effects, but the child of God overcomes.
Always.
Without exception.
Even when the snakebite was our own doing.
We played by the viper hole; we stuck our hand right into the nest, even though we heard that telltale rattle.
Dumb humans that we are.
Like David on the rooftop.
Like Peter by the fire.
Like Samson who loved the ladies.
We try to charm the cobra, but sometimes the cobra charms us–and then the bite!
Good news.
All those men recovered! They looked to Messiah and were healed!
Remember when the Israelites were wandering in the wilderness?
They were bitten by venomous snakes and were suffering greatly.
As they repented of their sins, God provided the cure. He told Moses to construct a pole in the image of a cross.
The Lord said: “Anyone who is bitten can look at it and live” (Numbers 21).
And our Lord Jesus told Nicodemus that the pole lifted up in the wilderness was a prophetic picture of Him on the cross.
Jesus procured a permanent cure to all viper bites by His death on our behalf.
We look to Him and the work He accomplished on the cross, and all sufferers are healed and set free!
Whether it was your own stupidity,
or whether it was a Judas or Jezebel.
Look to Jesus and be healed–get the antivenom on board and, then, get on with your life.
Overcome evil with good.
Like Paul did:
He got bit.
He shook it off.
He trusted Jesus.
And went on serving the Lord.
“You will tread upon the lion and the serpent, the young lion and the dragon you shall trample under feet” (Psalm 91:13).
We trample the snake, it doesn’t trample us.
Shake it off and look to Jesus and,
overcome evil with good!
“And the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet” (Romans 16:20).
