Go! And Don’t Miss the Message in the Weird Stuff
There is some weird stuff in the Bible... which ultimately points us back to our redemption in Jesus Christ.
Titus 2:14 (NLT): “He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds.”
Introduction
Let’s be honest—there is some weird stuff in the Bible. Talking donkeys. Floating axe heads. Men swallowed by fish. Commands not to wear mixed fabrics. Giants. Seraphim with six wings. The list goes on. Talking snakes. Bears mauling boys for mocking a prophet. Nephilim. Levitical skin disease laws. Ezekiel lying on his side for over a year. And let’s not forget Revelation — dragons, beasts, and bowls of wrath.
Now, if we’re not careful, we can stumble over these unusual stories or be tempted to skip past them. But listen—every word of Scripture is God-breathed and profitable (2 Timothy 3:16), and these strange moments often shine the brightest light on God’s plan for redemption through Jesus Christ.
Today, as we continue our "Go! And…" series, I want to invite you into the mystery and majesty of God's Word — to see how even the weird parts ultimately point us to the wonder of salvation.
The Bible has some weird stuff in it... and I'm sure that all of us have asked “Why is this stuff in the Bible?”
I want us to explore this truth:
The strange, shocking, and sometimes bizarre parts of Scripture aren’t distractions — they are divine signposts.
They point us toward the central message of redemption through Jesus Christ.
1. Strange Stories Reveal a Sovereign Saviour
Numbers 21:6–9 (NLT): “So the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and many were bitten and died. Then the people came to Moses and cried out... ‘Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!’”
God’s people were grumbling in the wilderness. So God sent serpents as judgment. Then, He provided a means of healing: a bronze serpent lifted high. Weird, yes — but purposeful.
The Hebrew word “nabha?” means not just to look, but to look with expectation and trust.
The Hebrew word for “serpent” is ?????? (nachash), and it’s the same word used in Genesis 3. This serpent story recalls the fall… but here, it becomes a symbol of salvation.
Jesus referenced this very passage in John 3:14-15: “As Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up…”
Weird? Yes. But redemptive? Absolutely. Even in judgment, God makes a way.
The snake lifted up points to Jesus lifted on the cross, bearing our curse so that we could be healed.
Charles Stanley once said: “God takes the most unlikely instruments to accomplish His perfect will.”
Friends, don’t dismiss the strange — embrace what it points to: Jesus, our Saviour.
2. Talking Animals and God’s Patience
Numbers 22:28-31 (NLT): “Then the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak. ‘What have I done to you that deserves your beating me three times?’ it asked Balaam…”
Yes, Balaam’s donkey talks — and even sees the angel before Balaam does!
This is not a fairy tale. Balaam was a pagan prophet who was hired to curse Israel. But God sent an angel to stop him. Balaam couldn’t see the angel, but the donkey did! God used an animal—yes, a donkey—to confront the blindness of a man who claimed to speak for God.
The Hebrew for “opened the donkey’s mouth” (pa?a?? et pî ha?a?ôn) implies not just speech, but divine revelation, a miracle of divine interruption.
Balaam was on a path of rebellion, and God used something absurd to get his attention. A talking donkey sounds like a joke — but it was deadly serious.
This strange episode reminds us that God sees what we cannot. He goes to great lengths—even miraculous ones—to protect His people. And He speaks, sometimes through the most unexpected sources, to call us back to Himself.
Sometimes God uses strange methods to stop us in our tracks. A job loss. A strange dream. A difficult conversation. A sermon that seems “too weird to be coincidence.”
Are you listening?
John Piper wrote: “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of three of them.”
Are we listening when God is trying to get our attention? Are we humble enough to learn from unexpected places?
Max Lucado wrote, “God loves the humble heart. He’ll use it anywhere. Even in a donkey.”
Yes, even in our failures, God can speak. Even when we’re spiritually blind, God opens our eyes.
Don't miss God's voice because it comes from an unexpected place.
3. Prophets Behaving Strangely to Show Sin
Ezekiel 4:4–6 (NLT): “Now lie on your left side and place the sins of Israel on yourself… then turn over and lie on your right side for forty days...”
God instructed Ezekiel to act out the sin and judgment of Israel — laying on his side for 390 days, eating rationed food cooked over cow dung, and shaving his head.
These bizarre acts were prophetic signs: public visual parables. They were meant to shock people into listening.
The Hebrew word used here for “sign” is ???? (ot) — which often indicates a divine message meant to get attention.
God will go to great lengths to warn and call His people back.
Sometimes He uses discomfort, confrontation, or yes — strange circumstances — to point out our sin and call us to repentance.
Tim Keller wrote: “Unless you see your sin and see how it distorts everything, the message of grace will not move you.”
Sometimes God shocks us… to save us.
4. Floating Axe Head and the God Who Cares About Small Things
2 Kings 6:5-7 (NLT): “But as one of them was cutting a tree, his axe head fell into the river. ‘Oh, sir!’ he cried. ‘It was a borrowed axe!’ ‘Where did it fall?’ the man of God asked…”
The prophet Elisha is involved in what seems like a mundane crisis—an axe head in a river. But God intervenes and makes it float.
The Hebrew root “tsaphah” means “to float, to rise”—a poetic image of restoration and redemption.
This miracle shows that God is not only the Creator of the cosmos—He’s the Redeemer of everyday problems. He restores what is lost.
And is that not the Gospel in miniature? Humanity lost to sin, but Christ comes and restores what seemed gone forever.
Charles Stanley said, “Obedience may lead you to strange places, but it never leaves you without God’s presence.”
God is present, even in the riverbank moments of your life.
5. Uzzah Touches the Ark and the God Who Is Holy
Text: 2 Samuel 6:6-7 (NLT): “But when they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, the oxen stumbled, and Uzzah reached out his hand and steadied the Ark of God. Then the Lord’s anger was aroused against Uzzah…”
This is one of the Bible’s most jarring moments. Uzzah dies instantly for trying to steady the Ark. Why? Because God is holy, and the Ark was never to be touched.
In Hebrew, “qadôsh” (???????) means holy, sacred, set apart. God’s holiness isn’t a suggestion—it’s a reality that demands reverence.
This passage reminds us of our sinfulness and God’s holiness. It highlights the chasm between us—and it’s only the blood of Jesus that bridges that gap.
John Piper writes, “The horror of sin is not that it damns us but that it defames God.”
The cross is God’s ultimate declaration that holiness and mercy meet. Jesus, our high priest, entered the Most Holy Place—not with the blood of animals, but His own.
6. Clean and Unclean Laws Pointing to Christ
Leviticus 11:7 (NLT): “The pig has evenly split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is unclean.”
These dietary laws might seem outdated — but they served a clear theological purpose.
The Hebrew word for “unclean” is ????? (tamei), meaning defiled, impure, unfit for sacred space.
These laws taught holiness, distinction, and the seriousness of sin. They kept God’s people set apart.
But in Christ — these laws are fulfilled! Mark 7:19 says Jesus declared all foods clean.
The laws were never about bacon — they were about being made right before a holy God.
Max Lucado said: “Grace is God as heart surgeon, cracking open your chest, removing your heart — poisoned with pride and pain — and replacing it with his own.”
V. Apocalyptic Visions Point Us to Hope
Revelation 5:6 (NLT): “Then I saw a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing…”
Amid dragons, scrolls, and angels — we find the centrepiece: a Lamb, slain yet standing.
The Greek word sfa?? (sphazo) means “violently slain.” And yet… the Lamb lives. That’s resurrection power!
This is weird — but it’s worship.
Because this Lamb is Jesus, the Redeemer, victorious over sin, death, and hell.
7. Jonah and the God Who Gives Second Chances
Text: Jonah 1:17 (NLT): “Now the Lord had arranged for a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was inside the fish for three days and three nights.”
Jonah fled from God’s call. God sent a storm—and a fish—to turn him around.
The Hebrew word for “appointed” here is “manah”, which means “to prepare ahead of time.” God had already prepared a rescue before Jonah even knew he was in danger.
Jesus says in Matthew 12:40, “Just as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish… so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth.”
Jonah’s experience foreshadowed the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.
R.T. Kendall said, “Jonah shows us that rebellion delays, but does not cancel, God’s call when we repent.”
God’s weird rescue plan for Jonah points to His perfect rescue plan for us all—Jesus!
Gospel Presentation:
Church, from Genesis to Revelation, even the strange parts of Scripture whisper one name: Jesus.
Jesus lived the life we couldn’t live, died the death we deserved, and rose again — victorious and eternal.
He bore our sin like the bronze serpent.
He speaks truth even through donkeys and prophets.
He cleanses us from what is unclean.
He is the Lamb who was slain — and yet lives forevermore.
Call to Action:
If God can use snakes, donkeys, prophets lying on their side, and apocalyptic beasts to communicate truth…
Surely He can use this message today to call you to repentance and faith.
Today, will you stop running? Will you place your trust in Jesus as Saviour and Lord?
Invitation to Salvation:
Friend, Jesus is not weird — but His love is wondrous.
The holy, infinite Son of God entered our broken, messy, sinful world and died on a cross in your place.
Romans 10:9 says: “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Come to Him now. Don’t wait. Trust Jesus. Be forgiven. Be made new.
Benediction:
Brothers and sisters,
As you go into this week, may you see God’s hand even in the strange, the unusual, the uncomfortable.
May you marvel at His wisdom, respond to His grace, and live boldly in the name of the Lamb who was slain and now reigns — Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord.
Go… and don’t miss the message in the weird stuff.
Go… and live to make the Gospel known.
Amen.
