Wed.’s Devo - Eyes and Teeth

Read Ex. 21:26-27 Today we read that if a man strikes one of his servants and destroys an eye or a tooth, then he must set that servant free. Symbolically , your eye is how you see and understand spiritually and you use your teeth to grind the truth down so you can “swallow it” or understand it and apply it. So if the one over you hinders that process, he needs to set you free to find someone else to follow. If an ox gores a person to death, then the ox must be stoned and its flesh not eaten for the owner to be acquitted. Isaiah 66:3 compares an ox to a man (“He who kills an ox is as if he slew a man.”) I think symbolically an ox stands for a spiritual leader. I think that this passage means that if a spiritual leader teaches doctrine that causes the spirit of one to die then he must be severely reprimanded (stoned) so that no one else will eat his doctrine and die by it. Then the owner, whoever is his spiritual leader or association, will not be held responsible for his teachings. But, if the man was known for teaching false doctrine and the association he is a member of doesn’t reprimand him then, they are responsible before God. If this “ox” has received money for his teachings, he should pay them back. If this same leader “pushes” a servant or deceives them, then he must pay a price. Lord, help us to take our responsibilities serious especially when it comes to leading other Christians.