ESOCS Devotional 8 December 2022
TEXT: DEUTERONOMY 6:13-25
MEMORY VERSE: “And the LORD commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God, for our good always, that He might preserve us alive, as it is this day.” Deuteronomy 6:24
0 And the apostles, when they had returned, told Him all that they had done. Then He took them and went aside privately into a deserted place belonging to the city called Bethsaida. 11 But when the multitudes knew it, they followed Him; and He received them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who had need of healing. 12 When the day began to wear away, the twelve came and said to Him, “Send the multitude away, that they may go into the surrounding towns and country, and lodge and get provisions; for we are in a deserted lace ”
The statutes of God: He does not need them. We are the ones who need them. They are for our benefits. They will guide us diligently as we tread the path of life on earth. The statutes of God are simple regulations He has written for us to follow in order that we may not get into trouble; but that we may remain safe as we obey and do them. Students that go for excursion to a game-reserve area need a guide so that they would not stray into dangerous terrain where there are wild animals. That is exactly what the statutes or law or word of God does. The word of God guides us and helps us to walk in wisdom as we do the will of God and obey His word. It enables us to “Be sober, be vigilant; because [our] adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1Pet. 5:8).
In His omniscience, God knew from the beginning of things that the devil was going to pollute the world with sin and evil. He designed a means of escape for us through Christ and in His word. The Scripture says His word is “for our good always.” The essence is “that He might preserve us alive” so that we may become one with God (John 17:21, 23); and that we may not die spiritually and be separated from Him for ever (Rev. 3:1). Those who are not one with God are rejected and forgotten and their names are not written in the Book of Life; and “Anyone not found in the Book of Life [would be] cast into the lake of fire” (Rev. 20:15). Such people would not enter into heaven. The kingdom of God in heaven is such a holy place that “there shall by no means enter it anything that defiles, or causes an abomination or a lie, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life” (Rev. 21:27). The psalmist correctly tells us what the word of God is. He says the word of God is a lamp to his feet and a light to his path (Ps. 199:105). It illuminates the way as we walk through the paths of life in this dark world of sin and evil. In other words, it gives us direction and points the safe way to holy living, which would keep us safe from evil and make us acceptable to God. Psalm 119:1 says, “Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the Lord!”
God’s will and commandment is that we should fear Him; that is, we should obey His word and do only the things that are right. Let us develop in us a mind-set that strongly believes and upholds a lifestyle of integrity. We should have a high sense of honesty, uprightness, piety, purity, devotedness to God, and commitment to holy living. This is the summary of what God demands from us. He demands no other duty! Deuteronomy 10:12 says, “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.” Let us do this that we may live and not die. Ecclesiastes 12:13 & 14 says it all: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments; for this is man’s all. For God will bring every work into judgment, including every secret thing, whether good or evil.”
CHALLENGES
- What things distract you from the kingdom race? Identify and eliminate them.
PRAYERS
- Pray that you may be among the conquerors at the end of your life on earth.
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
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ESOCS Devotional 8 December 2022
