Today’s Reading: Leviticus 26; Leviticus 27; Acts 23
Scripture: Leviticus 26:32, 35
32 I will lay waste the land, so that your enemies who live there will be appalled... 35 All the time that it lies desolate, the land will have the rest it did not have during the sabbaths you lived in it.
Observation: God lays out rewards for obedience and punishment for disobedience. If they obey, then a good life of plenty and blessing will follow. If they disobey (which God knew they would) then hardship and exile awaited. Here God foretells that the land would be laid waste and the Israelites removed from it for a time. And during that time, all the sabbaths that were neglected will be paid back to the land.
Application: In other words, God says, "You can pay Me now or you can pay Me later." If we obey, there are costs -- sacrifices, tithes, offerings, self-denials, are all a part of an obedient life toward God. But there are many blessings which far outweigh the costs. On the other hand, if we rebel, there are costs -- sufferings, losses, punishments. These costs far outweigh the immediate "benefits" of going our own way independent of God.
Bottom Line: There will be ultimate final justice. God will bring it to pass. It is so much wiser to simply trust and obey God, and stick to the narrow road of obedience.
Prayer: Lord, I want to follow the narrow path that leads to life. I want to avoid the broad path that leads to destruction. Help me to do both of these and to lead others to follow along.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
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