“But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13–14).
“A life without regrets is a life built on a mirage.” (Author unknown)
“For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death.” (2 Corinthians 7:10).
Boy, Oh Boy, have I had fun this week prayerfully calling upon the Holy Spirit to show Himself mightily and to help me understand two passages of scripture I ran across during my early mourning bible study time. One passage from the New Testament and another from the Old Testament.
”Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. (John 3:14-15)
“And the Lord said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
” And Moses made a serpent of brass, and put it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent of brass, he lived.” (Numbers 19:8-9)
The question that pondered me was this: Why did Jesus compare the example of His impending death on the cross to a manmade image of a bronze snake on a pole?
To refresh your memory of the incident in Numbers, you will recall that the Israelite people were sojourning from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea on their way to Canaan (the Promised Land). They were hungry and had no water and so they began to speak against God and against Moses. ’Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?” they said.
As punishment for their blaspheming, God sent fiery serpents among the Israelites, and the snakes bit the people and many of them died in the wilderness. Then all the people came to Moses and asked him to pray to God for they realized that they had sinned against him and against Moses. God instructed Moses to make an idol of the fiery serpent and place it on a pole. And everyone who is bitten, when they see the pole they shall live.
Now, after many days, the Holy Spirit said to me, my child, what does that story remind you of. After deep thought and soul searching, I proclaimed that the event reminded me of the Garden of Eden and the first couple; Adam and Eve. They performed a sinful act of disobedience after entertaining devilish thoughts from the serpent (Devil, the father of lies). The Israelites’ acts were similar and their punishment was also death by snakes.
On the other hand, Jesus Christ was saying that the offsprings of Adam and Eve (people of the world), should/must become engaged in conversations about Him…accept Him…have faith in Him…obey Him…trust Him. AND LIVE (ETERNALLY) AND GET TO THE PROMISE LAND! In other words, we as His ambassadors, must turn our eyes upon Jesus and lift Him up before all peoples and He will draw all men unto Himself.
Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus (Church Online) – Hillsong Worship
YouTube · Hillsong Worship930.2K+ views · 2 years ag
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Conversations With God Using Scripture 
Good morning, Sister Sonja! Thanks for sharing your wonderful insight led by the Holy Spirit. Your Blog is something I look forward to every week.
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To God be the glory, Cathy. I, too, look forward to my time with the King of Glory. He is so invigorating, patient, loving and inviting. And He has the answers to all my cares and woes. Who wouldn’t love a Savior like that. Amen!
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“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” Isa. 43:18-19 What great timing on your post! This is what I have been meditating on this week!
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Thank you, God Still Speaks. And what a timely scripture to accompany this blog message. And, yes, Our God is doing a new thing in the lives of those who trust and depend on him. You are walking in the light and the Light shines all around you. Be blessed, my child and to God be the glory. Amen!
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I like your blogs but the like button immediately unlike, I experience this on a few other blogs but will research.
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Hello Tangie. So sorry you are having mechanical problems with WP. Your blogs are voluminous and I read most of them. However, I am very familiar with most of the Black History ones. You have a tremendous “following” audience. Keep up the good work.
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I love this quote that you provided: “A life without regrets is a life built on a mirage.” The older we get the more our regrets try to chase us down. Thankfully, our failings and regrets don’t define who we are! God can even turn our regrets into good. Blessings to you, dear sister.
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Sister Dee, some of our regrets are stepping stones of where the Holy Spirit wants to take us. To grow progressively in our relationship with the Lord sometimes calls for life struggles. When in those throes, we don’t always depend on God to bring us through. Our dependence on our own initiatives can be devastating. Go figure!
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Those are very wise words, Sister Fowler. Thank you SO much for sharing this with me. It casts a entirely different light on regrets and makes them something to rejoice over, rather than living in despair. And yes, depending on our own initiatives and abilities, etc. can and usually is devastating. I would even say it’s where regrets are born. 🙂 Lots of love to you. Dee
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Dee, the word “guilt” is another emotion we need to examine. Often, people loose their minds over guilty feelings, too. When we find ourselves in this ‘funk’ feeling, it only means it is time to have a little talk with Jesus. After beginning your dialogue with the Lord, be sure to confess, then let Him know that you now realize just how much we should depend on Him. Proceed by imploring the Holly Spirit to come into your heart and to have its way. Amen.
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