Text: Micah 7:15-17

15 According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I show unto him marvellous things. 16 The nations shall see and be confounded at all their might:  they shall lay their hand upon their mouth, their ears shall be deaf.   17 They shall lick the dust like a serpent, they shall move out of their holes like worms of the earth:  they shall be afraid of the LORD our God, and shall fear because of thee.  

Sunday, 22^nd September 2024

BE LIKE THE SERPENT?

Text: Micah 7:15-17

Memory verse: Genesis 3:14 And the LORD God said unto the serpent, because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life.

Jesus Christ did not mean that in everything we should imitate the serpent. There are district qualities of the Serpent Jesus said we should imitate ant discard others.  

The serpent eats dust. Isaiah 65:25, "Dust shall be the serpent's food." This was a curse on the serpent, and we must not share in this curse. Feeding immoderately on earthly things. It is absurd for him who has a heaven-born soul, capable of communion with God to greedily eat the serpent's food. A Christian has better food to feed on, the heavenly manna, the precious promises, the body and blood of Christ. It is a miracle to find a diamond in a gold mine; but it is as great a miracle to find Christ, the pearl of great price, in an earthly heart. The lapwing (a bird in the lapwing family) wears a little crown on its head yet feeds on dung. To have a crown of profession on the head and feed extremely on these dunghills or dumped refuse comfortably is unworthy of a Christian.

What a poor shameful thing is the world, it cannot fill the heart. If Satan should take a Christian up to the top of the pinnacle and show him all the kingdoms and glory of the world, what could he show him but a pleasant misunderstanding? There is a lawful use which God allows of these earthly things, but the sin is in the excess. The bee may suck a little honey from the flower, but put it in a barrel of honey, and it is drowned. The wicked are so characterized. Philippians 3:19, "Who mind earthly things." They are like Saul, "hidden among the stuff." We should be like eagles, flying on the wing towards heaven; and not as serpents, creeping upon the earth and licking the dust.

The curse shall remain on the serpent. "To lick the dust" is figurative of the utter and perpetual humiliation of Satan and his agents. Satan fell when he was self-tempted; therefore, no atonement was planned for him, as it is for man, who fell by his temptation. In his unfallen state he may have been God's vicegerent (a person exercising delegated power on behalf of a sovereign or ruler) over the earth and the animal kingdom before man. Man succeeded to that office but forfeited it by sin, when Satan became "prince of this world"; Jesus Christ supplants the usurper, and as the "Son of man" regains the lost inheritance. The steps in Satan's overthrow are these: he is cast out, first, from heaven to the earth; next, he is bound a thousand years and finally, he is cast into the lake of fire for ever.

We must not link the earth like the Serpent but be as wise as the serpent.

CGDS HYMN 32: SS & S 533:

TENDERLY GUIDE US, O SHEPHERD OF LOVE

1. Tenderly guide us, O Shepherd of love,

To the green pastures and waters above,

Guarding us ever by night and by day,

Never from Thee would we stray.

Refrain

Never ! . . . never ! . . .

Never ! oh, never ! for Thou art the way

Never ! . . . never ! . . .

Never from Thee would we stray.

2. What though the heavens with clouds

be o'ercast !------

Fearful the tempest, and bitter the blast!

Still with the light of Thy Word on the way,

Never from Thee would we stray.

3. Over our weakness Thy strength has

been cast;  

Keep us in meekness, Thine own till the last;

Then, safely folded, with joy we shall say,

Never from Thee would we stray.

 Prayers 

1.  Lord Jesus, help me always to overcome sinful temptation.

2.  LORD God Almighty, help me to absolve the good qualities of the serpent and discards all the negative qualities in Jesus’ name. Amen.    

3.  Pray for others in this regard.