Fri.’s Devo - It is Time to Repent

Read: Nehemiah 9:22-10:39; 1 Corinthians 9:19-10:13; Psalm 34:1-10; Proverbs 21:13 God had promised he would give them the land of Israel and he did. They took possession of land full of good things from peoples that were more powerful than them, but because God was with them, they succeeded. They ended up with houses full of good things, cisterns already dug up and running, vineyard and olive groves in abundance. *** In spite of all God did for them, they rebelled and disobeyed his laws. In their time of need, they cried out to the Lord, and he came to their rescue over and over. Eventually, they returned to their gods and turned their backs on God. God sent his prophets to warn them to repent and they refused to listen. As a result, they found themselves slaves in the land God had given them, as they watched their masters enjoying the things they were meant to enjoy. *** They put in writing and sealed a document which declared their new government and their promise to obey God’s laws. They would not let their children marry pagans. They would honor the Sabbath and pay the Temple tax to keep the Temple running. They would bring their first fruits to the Lord and give their oldest sons and first born of their cattle to the Lord. Together they promised not to neglect the Temple of the Lord. *** We could write this about America. We are finding ourselves in the same place where we are now slaves of the land we came to, to be free. As we return to the Lord and get our houses in order, we can together say we will not neglect the temple of the Lord which is within us. *** In Corinthians, Paul explains that his life was spent doing anything he could to further the Gospel of Jesus Christ for the Jew and the Gentile. He looked for a common ground with whoever he was with to open a door to share Christ with them. *** Paul gave examples for us who would be living at the end of the age. He told of the children of Israel who came out of Egypt with Moses and saw all the wonderful signs and wonders that God did for them and yet they died in the wilderness because they rebelled over and over. They were a warning to us not to crave evil and perversion. *** We should walk humbly and with great care, aware of the temptations in life that can be a snare to us and cause us to stumble. *** Lord, may we walk in humility with our eyes open and our hearts hungry for you. May we be quick to repent and turn back to you. You alone have the words of life. Thank you that we have the Holy Spirit that comes along side us and helps us to walk in holiness and righteousness.