Sun.’s Devo - Choose Life!

Read: Deuteronomy 29:1-30:20; Luke 11:37-12:7; Psalm 78:1-31; Proverbs 12:19-20 While they were still in the land of Moab, Moses called all the people together and told them what the Lord was adding to the covenant he had made with them on Mt. Sinai. He began by saying that the Lord had not given them eyes to see and ears to hear, nor a mind to understand. He had led them for 40 years through the wilderness and yet their shoes nor their clothes had not worn out. Had they even noticed this? God had provided all their food and water. He had given them victory over their enemies and given them their land. *** If they wanted to prosper in the land he was giving them they must obey his commands. The covenant he was presenting to them was full of blessings but also curses for disobeying it. This covenant would also stand to their descendants after them. *** They were not to adopt any of the evil purposes of the nations they had passed through or that they would find in the land or its bitterness would produce a root in them. This root of evil would bring forth poisonous fruit. *** Those who refused to obey God’s laws and chose instead to follow their own hearts would receive the curses written in the book. Their names would be erased from under heaven. They would be separated from the other tribes and destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah with nothing but salt and sulfur remaining. They would become a mockery of other nations. *** They were not being made accountable for what they did not understand about God, but of what he had made very clear to them. After experiencing both the blessings and the curses, if they choose to return to the Lord, the Lord will hear their prayer and restore their fortunes. He will gather them from where they had been scattered and bring them back to their land again and they will live in their land and be fruitful and multiply. It would be the same thing God told Adam and Eve - “Be fruitful and multiply.” *** God made it clear to them that what he was requiring of them was attainable. It was as close as to what they proclaimed with their mouth and what they put in their hearts. It was their choice and it is our choice. If they chose to turn away from God and worship other gods, they would be destroyed. If they chose to follow the Lord, it would be life and blessing for them. *** In Luke, the Pharisees were offended that Jesus didn’t do their hand-washing ritual. Knowing this, Jesus told them that they were so careful to make themselves look good on the outside with all their rituals, but their hearts were full of greed and wickedness. If they would do something self-less like to care for the poor, it would help them to get rid of their greed. *** Jesus explained that giving justice was even more important than giving God gifts. They were going to get a rude awakening when died. They loved the honor of respect on earth, but they would get none of it after they died. *** One of the religious experts told Jesus he was offended by what he said, probably hoping Jesus would tell the he wasn’t talking to them. But, Jesus told them that they were just as wicked. They imposed their laws that were so burdensome, they were just as guilty as the hypocrites. They even killed the prophets and then built monuments to honor them. Talk about hypocrisy! They would be held responsible for the murders of all God’s prophets from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah because all of them spoke of him. Now he was here, and they were going to do the same to him. *** They would not enter into God’s Kingdom and they were doing all they could to keep others from entering also. Jesus warned them that all they did in secret would one day be revealed for all to see. *** Jesus turned to his followers and called them friends. He told them not to be afraid of the religious order. They could only kill their body, but not their soul. He told them to fear God, He would not forget a single one of them from the least to the greatest. He alone has the power to throw them into hell or promote them to heaven. *** Lord, thank you that you are the only wise God and you are our Father. We choose life. We choose Jesus Christ as our Saviour and we choose to follow your Word.