THE SNAKE IS DEAD God Deals With the Devil
By Pastor Max Solbrekken, D.D.
It was not God's will that the human race would be afflicted with sickness,
disease and death, ever since the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden!
Regretfully, that is the sad scenario of where we are today!
God, however, made a
healing covenant with the nation of Israel which He had chosen for His
own people. It was simple: Turn from paganism, reject Satan the god of
this world, and if you will worship and serve Me I will take sickness away from
the midst of you. Not only will I bless you, but I will protect you so that the
plagues that are afflicting the pagan will not touch you!
GOD'S HEALING COVENANT!
Here is the list of the
ten major gods worshipped by the Egyptians during the time of Moses:
1. AMUN-Ra “The Hidden
One”
2. MUT “The Mother
Goddess”
3. OSIRIS “The King of
Living”
4. ANUBIS “The Divine
Embalmer”
5. RA “The God of Sun
& Radiance”
6. HORUS “God of
Vengeance”
7. THOTH “God of
Knowledge and Wisdom”
8. HATHOR “Goddess of
Motherhood”
9. SEKHMET “Goddess of
War and Healing”
10. GEB “God of Earth”
As
Zeus in Greek, Amun-Ra or Amon in Egypt is considered as Kings of Gods and
Goddesses. Believed as the Father of the Pharaohs, Amun’s female version is
Amunet and is considered as the “The Female Hidden One”. Forming the “Theban Triad”, Amun and Mut along with their
offspring Khonsu “Moon God” were worshipped throughout the ancient Egypt. Amun6 was not only worshipped in Egypt, but
also outside Egypt as Amun-Ra after the amalgamation with the Sun God Ra of
Ancient Egypt. - anon
Sickness and diseases came upon the Egyptians because of their idolatry. The Lord lifted His
protection from them and the devil took advantage and put his baggage on them.
God did not judge the people, but His wrath was against the gods of Egypt. They
worshipped ten gods so He unleashed upon them ten plagues! (Exodus 12: 12)
The Lord spoke to
Moses, saying: "If thou
wilt diligently hearken to His commandments, and keep all His
statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon
thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: FOR I AM THE LORD THAT HEALTH
THEE." (Exodus 15; 26, 27)
When they sinned and
broke His commandments bad things happened, like when they were bitten by
snakes. They confessed their sins and begged Moses to pray for them. God
instructed Moses:
"Make thee a fiery serpent, and
set it upon a pole: And it shall come to pass, that everyone that is bitten,
when he looks 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 (dead) serpent of
brass, he lived." (Numbers
21: 4-9)
Why did God instruct
Moses to use such an object lesson in order to be healed? We go back to the
Garden of Eden and hear His stern Word to the serpent that Satan used to tempt
Eve: "And
I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her
seed; It shall bruise (crush) thy head and thou shall bruise his heel."
(Gen.3: 15)
A dead serpent could not kill them! God was showing His people that He
was more powerful than their greatest enemy, which is death. By obeying Him,
they would live. And, of course, it was a type of His Son Who would be lifted
up on the CROSS and be made a curse for us so that we could live!
The Bible says: “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of
the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is
everyone who hangeth on a tree. That the blessing of Abraham might come on the
Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit
by faith.” (Gal.3: 13)
LOOK TO
JESUS CHRIST & LIVE!
God’s message to Satan was that he would be
utterly defeated. He declared that from the SEED of the woman would come the
DELIVERER, who would crush his head. In that battle, however, he would bruise
the Deliverer's heel.
This was a direct prophecy of
the virgin birth of Jesus Christ (the
Deliverer) and the victory He would have over Satan by rising from the
dead! The bruising of His heel was His death on the cross which resulted only
in a temporary bruising, because of His glorious resurrection!
In theology we call both of these great
truths 'the law of the first
mention'. The Seed of the woman (not the
seed of a man) and the Coming of the Deliverer, Who would crush Satan's head!
Jesus said: "And
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the
Son of man be lifted up." (John 3:14). Our Lord was referring back to
Numbers 21 and further back to Genesis 3:15, declaring that His death on the
Cross would bring healing and eternal life to ALL who looked to Him.
CHRIST’S VICTORY IS OUR LIBERTY!
His vicarious death on the cross would satisfy the righteous demands of Divine
Justice in paying for all the sins of humanity back to Adam's fall, for those
who would appropriate His promise by FAITH! Hallelujah
to the Lamb of God that has taken away the sins of the world! (John 1: 29; 1
John 1: 22)
The Bible
says: "For as much then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also
Himself likewise took part in the same; that through Death
He might Destroy him that had the power of death, that
is, the Devil; And Deliver them who through
fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage." (Heb.2: 14, 15)
What
does this mean to us? It means that we are safe from the powers of evil when we
are covered with the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ our Lord and Saviour! Not
only are we protected by Christ’s blood and the Blessed Holy Spirit, but we
have been weaponized. Jesus has given us the right and authority to go on the
offensive against the Evil One!
He said: “And these signs shall follow
them that believe: In My name, shall they cast out devils, they shall speak with
new tongues; if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall
lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.” (Mark 16:16-20)
"He that commits sin is of the
devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son
of God was manifested that He might DESTROY the works of the devil."
(1 John 3: 8)
The Bible says: "How God anointed
Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power Who went about doing Good and
HEALING all who were oppressed of the Devil, for God was with
Him." (Acts 10: 38)
“How shall we escape, if we neglect so
great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was
confirmed unto us by them that heard Him:
“God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with diverse
miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to His own will.” Heb.2:
3, 4)
IT'S
OVER DEVIL: YOU HAVE LOST!
The Bible states: "Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which
thing is true in Him and in you: because the Darkness is past, and the True
Light now shines." (1 John 2: 8).
St. John's message to the Church is that we are mature in Christ. Things like
envy, pride and jealousy are gone. We are finished with low living and hatred.
The message of Christ is that we are to love one another!
The message to the Devil is: "Back
off and go away. Your day is over. You are finished, because the darkness is
past and the True Light now shines." He knows very well who that is: Jesus
Christ is the true Light and He has dispelled the darkness!
St. Paul wrote:
"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who being in the
form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of
no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant (slave), and was made in
the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself
and became obedient unto death, even the Death of the Cross.
"Wherefore God hath Highly
exalted Him and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the Name of
Jesus every knee should bow of things in Heaven, and things in earth, and
things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus
Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Phil.2:
5-11)
THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
ATONES!
Jesus said: "Ye shall know
the Truth and the Truth shall make you Free." (John 10: 10); "Believe
Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me: or else believe Me for the
very works' sake.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that
believeth on Me the works that I do shall ye do also and greater works shall he
do, because I go unto My Father (and will
send the Holy Spirit).
“And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name
that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ASK anything in My name, I will do it.” (John 14: 11-14)
1). THE SNAKE IS DEAD:
God spoke to Moses to make a serpent of brass and
lift it up on a high pole for all who were bitten to see. We learn several
truths here. First, brass is a symbol of judgment in the Scriptures.
This was God’s judgment against Satan, the wicked serpent who lied to Eve. Second,
it was a type of Jesus Christ who became a curse by dying as God’s paschal Lamb
for us. Third, God is greater than death and gives life to all who
simply look to Jesus Christ by faith.
2). THE SERPENT'S
HEAD IS CRUSHED:
A dead
serpent cannot hurt you. Jesus removed the stinger from death, which is fear.
The Bible says: “For He must reign, till He hath put all enemies under His feet.
The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” (1 Cor. 15: 25, 26); “O death
where is thy sting, O grave, where is thy victory?” (1 Cor. 15:55-36).
The Bible says: “But we see Jesus Who was
made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with
glory and honour, that He by the grace
of God should taste death for every man.” (Heb. 2: 9).
He said: “…For the prince of this world
cometh and hath nothing in Me.” (John14:30); “We know that whosoever is
born of God sinneth not, but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that Wicked One toucheth
him not.” (1 John 5: 18)
Jesus said: “I am the resurrection, and the
life: he that believeth in Me, though He were dead, yet shall he live. And
whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die…” (John 11: 25, 26)
The Bible says: “Who His own self bare
our sins in His own Body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live
unto righteousness, by Whose stripes we were healed. For we were as sheep going
astray; but now are returned to the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.” (1
Peter 2: 24, 25)
3). CHRIST HAS
CONQUORED:
“And the seventy returned again,
with joy saying, Lord, even the devils are subject to us though Thy Name. And
He said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from Heaven. Behold, I give
unto you Power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of
the Enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you.” (Luke 10:17, 18)
“Let this mind be in you which was also in
Christ Jesus: Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal
with God:
“But made Himself of no reputation, and
took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: and
being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto
death, even the death of the cross,
‘Wherefore God hath highly exalted Him and given Him a name which is above
every Name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in
Heaven, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that
Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2: 5-11)
“And I beheld, and lo, in the midst of
the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a lamb as it had been slain,
having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent
forth into all the earth. And He came and took the book out of the right hand
of Him that sat upon the Throne.
“And
when He had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell
down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps and golden vials
full of incense, which are the prayers of saints.
“And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the Book, and to
open the seals thereof: for Thou wast slain and hast redeemed us to God by Thy
Blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and nation, and people. And
hast made us unto our God, kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.”
(Rev. 5: 1-10)
4). SATAN IS AN
ETERNALLY DOOMED DESPOT:
“And I heard a loud voice saying in
Heaven, Now is come salvation and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the
power of His Christ: for the accuser
our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
“And they overcame him (Satan) by the
blood of the Lamb, and by the Word of their testimony: and they loved not their
lives unto the death.” (Rev.12: 10, 11)
“Giving thanks unto the Father which hath
made us meet (qualified) to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in
light. Who hath delivered us from the
powers of Darkness, and hath translated us into the Kingdom of His dear
Son: in Whom we have redemption through His BLOOD even the forgiveness of
sins.” (Col. 1: 12-14)
The Holy Bible reports Satan’s defeat: “Blotting out
the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to His
CROSS: And having spoiled
principalities and powers He
(Jesus) made a show of them openly, triumphing over them in it.” (Col.
2: 13, 14).
“And what is the exceeding greatness of His
power to usward who believe, according to the working of His mighty power,
which He wrought in Christ, when He
raised Him from the dead, and set Him at His own right hand in the heavenly
places,
“Far above all principality, and
power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this
world, but also in that which is to come; and put all things under His feet,
and gave Him to be the Head over all things to the church, which is His body,
the fullness of Him that filleth all things.” (Ep.
1:19-23)
After
the Holy Spirit fell upon JESUS at His Baptism, He returned in the power of the
Spirit and great miracles of healing followed His ministry. He cast out many
unclean spirits from those who were possessed:
The Bible says: “And there was in their
synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, Saying, Let us alone;
What have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus of Nazareth? Art Thou come to destroy
us? I know Thee who Thou art, the Holy One of God.
“And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold Thy
peace and come out of Him. And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried
with a loud voice, he came out of him.” (Mark 1:
23-28)
“He that committeth sin is of the devil;
for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy
the works of the Devil.” (1 John 3: 8): “The Thief: (Satan) cometh not
but for to Steal, Kill and Destroy: I am come that they might have LIFE, and
that they might have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10)
“And the DEVIL that deceived them was
cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet
are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” (Rev.20: 10)
5). GOD'S WORD IS
CONFIRMED:
The Bible states: “The Word of God is quick
(living) and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piecing even to
the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow and a
discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Heb. 4: 12)
“Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the
ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. I have sworn by
Myself, the Word is gone out of My mouth in righteousness, and shall not
return, That unto Me every knee shall bow ever tongue shall swear (confess).”
(Is. 45:22, 23)
“So shall My Word be that goeth forth out
of My mouth: it shall not return unto Me void, but it shall accomplish that
which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.” (Is. 55:
11); “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but My words shall not pass away.”
(Matt. 24: 35; Luke 21: 33)
The New Testament is filled with the
fulfillments of Old Testament Scriptures by advent of Jesus of Nazareth as the
Jewish Messiah, the Christ (anointed of God). Here are some powerful Scripture
texts that speak of the fulfillment of God’s prophetic Word:
“And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt
in Capernaum… that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of Esaias the
prophet…” (Matt. 4: 13-16);
“When the even was come, they brought unto
Him many that were possessed with devils: and He cast out the spirits with His
Word, and healed all that were sick: That it might be fulfilled which was
spoken by Eaias the prophet, saying, Himself took our infirmities, and bare our
sicknesses.” (Matt. 8: 16, 17)
“But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew
Himself from thence and great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all…
That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esais the prophet, saying,
Behold My servant, whom I have chosen….” (Matt. 12: 15-18)
6). WE HAVE FREEDOM
THROUGH JESUS CHRIST:
Jesus
said: “And ye shall know the Truth and the Truth shall make you free. If the
Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be FREE indeed.” (John 8: 32, 36)
“There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in
Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit. For the law of
the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus hath made me FREE from the law of sin and
death.” (Rom 8: 1, 2)
“For ye have not received the spirit of
bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption whereby we
cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit Himself
beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. And if
children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ; if so
be that we suffer with Him, that we may be also glorified together.
“And we KNOW that all things work out together
for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His
purpose. For whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to
the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn, among many brethren.
“Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He
also justified: and whom He
justified them He also glorified.
What shall we then say to these things?
If God be for us, who can be against us?
“He that spared not His own Son, but
delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all
things? Who shall separate us from the love of CHRIST? Shall tribulation, or
distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword. Nay in all these things we are more than
conquerors through Him that loved us.
“For I am persuaded, that neither death,
nor life, or angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, or
things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to
separate us from the love of God, which is in Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom. 8:
15-17, 28-39)
7). GOD IS GLORIFIED
THROUGH CHRIST
“But God, Who is rich in MERCY for His great
love, wherewith He loved us. Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us
together with Christ; by grace ye are saved. And hath raised us up together,
and made us sit together in Heavenly places in Christ Jesus.
“That in the ages to come He might show
the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.
For by grace are ye saved through faith and that not of yourselves in is the
gift of God. Not of works lest any man should. For we are His workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus unto good works.
“For we are His workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk
in them.” (Eph. 2: 4-10)
The Gospel is the Good News: The
Glad Tidings that Light has come into a world of Darkness; that Peace has come
into a world of Turmoil; that Forgiveness has come into a world of Sin, that
Healing has come into a world of Sickness; that Love has come into a world of
Hate; that Life has come into a world of Death; that Freedom has come into a
world of Bondage and that Slaves are made Free through Jesus Christ, the
Liberator of the Human Race! Amen.
NO SNAKES IN MALTA SINCE PAUL!
For 1,000
years, only Roman Catholic clergy were allowed to preach in Malta. In order to
keep out the marauding, murdering Mohammedans, the Knights of Malta made that
decree a law. By the hand of God, I was thrust into a situation that opened the
door for the Gospel Ministry to enter that nation!
On December 6,
1973, I met with Monsignor Michael
Gunzi, Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church in Malta. After a
very spirited talk with the Archbishop he said: "I wish you the
best success in your Mission of preaching Jesus Christ to the Maltese
people."
Immediately, Police Chief Enoch Tonna sent
for me and divulged that the Mafia had threatened him and his family. As we
prayed together, he received Jesus Christ as his personal Saviour and we
continued a strong spiritual friendship by mail for years!
History was made and the 1,000 year-old Law
forbidding anyone except a Roman Catholic priest from preaching in Malta was
cancelled and freedom of religion came to that country.
The Jehovah Witnesses who had been imprisoned for breaking the law were
released and unfortunately, I helped the Muslims get their Antichrist teachings
into Malta for the first time in 1,000 years.
In more than 50 years
of preaching the Glorious Gospel of Christ, I have visited many islands. The snakes
are plentiful almost everywhere. Many islands have imported the mongoose to
kill the snakes. In Malta, however, there are NO SNAKES. They all died
when the "man of God" shook off the beast" into the fire!
Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, let us do the same: Shake of the beast! The Bible says:
“And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are
subject unto us through Name. And He said unto them, I beheld Satan as
lightning fall from Heaven.
“Behold I give unto you
power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy.
And NOTHING shall by any means
hurt you.” (Luke 10: 17-19)
When St. Paul had come ashore at Malta hanging onto a piece of wreckage,
the Gospel message and a revival of great magnitude began. The weather was cold
and unsettling and St. Paul helped build a fire on the beach to keep them warm.
While the 'man of God' was laying
some wood on the fire, a viper jumped up and bit him on the arm. He shook the
beast off into the fire and felt no ill effect from the poison, causing the
natives to believe he was a god.
MIRACLES THE KEY TO EVANGELISM!
That Miracle opened the door for the Gospel, as many received
Christ as Healer, Lord and Saviour: "In the same quarters were possessions of the chief man of the
island, whose name was Publius, who received us and lodged us three days
courteously.
“And it came to pass that the father of
Publius' lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and
prayed and laid his hands on him and HEALED HIM. So
when this was done, others also which had diseases in the island came and were
healed." (Acts 28: 1-11)
Here, we learn several lessons:
God can use seemingly impossible and hurtful situations to bring glory to His
Great and Wonderful Name:
First: The
ship was wrecked; St. Paul unknowingly "taking up a
serpent" without succumbing to its poisonous bite (Mark 16:16,17), the healing of the Chief's father
and the ensuing revival with all the sick on the island coming to the man of God for healing through the
"laying on of hands" in the name of the "crucified and risen
Lord Jesus."
Second: The SNAKE could not kill the 'Man of God' who
shook him off into the fire! The Snake is Satan and the fire is Hell. "And the
Devil (Liar) which deceived them was cast into the Lake of Fire and Brimstone,
where the Beast and the False Prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night
for ever and ever." (Rev.20: 10)
Our Lord invites us to join together in prayer according to
Matthew 18:19. He promises to answer our prayers! He waits for our desperate cries for intervention in
our lives: Prayers for forgiveness, divine healing and deliverance
from the Evil One!
Jesus issues seven invitations to prayer in John chapters 14, 15 and 16. He encourages us to ask
Him for whatever we need. He would not do so, if He did not expect to answer
those prayers!
St.
John states emphatically: "And
this is the confidence that we have in Him, that, if we ask anything according
to His will, He hears us: And if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we
know that we have the Petitions,
that we desired of Him." (1
John 5:14, 15).
PEACE THROUGH CHRIST’S BLOOD!
Through the precious blood
of Jesus Christ, we have the amazing PEACE of God. Jesus said: “Peace I leave
with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let
not heart be troubled, neither let it not be afraid.” (John 14: 27)
“But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes
were far off are made nigh by the Blood of Christ. For He is our Peace, Who
hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between
us:
“Having abolished in His flesh the enmity,
even the law of commandments contained in ordinances, for to make in Himself of
twain one new man, so making Peace; And that He might reconcile both unto God
in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: And came and preached peace to
you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. For through Him we
both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.” (Eph.2:13-18)
“Therefore, if any man be in Christ, He is
a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
(2 Cor. 5:17); “And having made Peace through the Blood of His Cross, by Him
to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say whether they be things in
earth, or things in Heaven.” (Col. 1:20)
“Now the God of Peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that
great Shepherd of the sheep, through the BLOOD of the everlasting covenant.
Make you perfect in every good work to do His will working in you that which is
well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ forever and ever,” (Heb.13:
20,21). Amen.
