And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The Lord hath not appeared unto thee. And the Lord said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. And the Lord said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand: That they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee…. And thou shalt take this rod in thine hand, wherewith thou shalt do signs. Exodus 4:1-5, 17 (KJV)

God spoke with Moses and asked him, “What’s in your hand?” Moses replied that it was a rod, or a shepherd’s staff. God told him to cast it to the ground and it became a serpent, and Moses fled from it. God told Moses to pick it up, and it became a rod again. This was to be a sign to others so they would believe God had sent Moses.

 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen. Mark 16:15-20 (KJV)

As God gave Moses authority over serpents and the enemies of God, so gives Jesus authority to every believer. As we believe, signs will accompany us, just like they did Moses. in the name of Jesus, we have authority over devils to cast them out of people and out of our lives. We can speak in tongues, a prayer language, when we talk to God spirit-to-Spirit.

This passage mentions taking up serpents, meaning we can use our authority against the enemy just like Moses did. We can “handle” the enemy and not be harmed, defeating him every time. God has promised divine protection. When others try to poison us- we are kept from harm. We can place our hands on the sick and see them recover.

God showed Moses signs and used him to demonstrate signs in Exodus Chapter 4 and Chapters 7 through 11. God will also show signs to and through those of us who believe for them. God worked with Moses to confront the enemy to eventually bring deliverance. God brought Israel out of Egypt with signs. As we go forth, Jesus works with us to confirm the Word we preach with signs following- and deliverance is a result of that.

And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, the Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations. Exodus 3:14-15 (KJV)

Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. John 8:58 (KJV) emphasis mine

In Jesus’ name we have authority, just as God told His name, I AM, to Moses. I AM is Yahweh, the God Who will be whatever we need Him to be. Jesus, I AM, is with us. As we use our authority by speaking the name of Jesus, speaking God’s Word, and acting on it, we’ll experience signs like Moses did. Jesus did this with His disciples, and He does the same today with His followers who believe God’s Word. We are to see signs following us. As we follow Jesus, signs will follow us. God-given authority; it belongs to you like it did to Moses’- so use it!