ESOCS Devotional 24 November 2023 – Sin Has Consequence
MEMORY VERSE:“Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.” Isaiah 5: 29 KJV
TEXT: ISAIAH 5:24-30 (KJV)
Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the Lord of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
25 Therefore is the anger of the Lord kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
26 And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:
27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:
28 Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses’ hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:
29 Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.
30 And in that day they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea: and if one look unto the land, behold darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
Throughout the history of the Israelites from the Bible account, the lived a life of mixed grill of live right today and sin the next day. Whenever they lived in the right way, they enjoyed the presence of God and its associated manifold blessings, and if the opposite (sin), God punished them; He would either bring diseases upon them, or allow their enemies to fight and conquer them. When they repent, God repents and brings them back.
This was the case in our text. God’s judgment on them would send thousands to death. They were corrupt to the root, and thus brought blossoms of iniquity. Their selfish prosperity manifested the depth of their iniquity. The reason the sinful culture went so deep was that they rejected the law of God (Hosea 4:6) – so God rejected them too. He allowed Assyria to torment them during the reign of Ahaz (735-715 B.C.). This powerful aggressor destroyed the Northern kingdom (Israel) in 722 B.C. and scattered them throughout its own empire. Although this judgment was not immediate, eventually Israel was punished.
The learning points here are many. Disobeying God’s law is sin. When God prospers us and we fail to acknowledge this and start behaving ungodly, we offend God the giver. Lifestyle not in line with God’s standard is sin and can bring damnation.
Today, many are searching for meaning in life, while tossing aside the word of God. Be wise.
FURTHER READING: Isaiah 9: 11-13, 17; 62:10a; Mark 7:9
ESOCS Devotional 24 November 2023
