Exodus: Following The Law

KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Sunday, January 23, 2016
Chapters: Exodus 19-21
Message: Exodus: Following The Law

Hello My Friend,

Law, The principles and regulations established in a community by some authority and applicable to its people, whether in the form of legislation or policies recognized and enforced by judicial decision. Laws are everywhere, and just like any law, when it is broken there are consequences. Some broken laws come with huge penalties, even death. While there are many man made laws, our true lawmaker is God, our judge is Jesus Christ, and we will all stand before Him and give an account for the lives we lived. “For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son: That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.” - John 5:21-25.

“when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God:” The dead, all souls are dead until they hear the voice of Christ and receive Him as their Saviour. Once saved you are given life, eternal life and will one day join Him in His Kingdom. Until then we have laws we must obey while we are here on earth, laws that separate us from common man. Now, three months into their journey to the promised land, the people camped out below Mt. Sinai, which is where God spoke to Moses and all the congregation concerning His laws.

“And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and laid before their faces all these words which the LORD commanded him. And all the people answered together, and said, All that the LORD hath spoken we will do. And Moses returned the words of the people unto the LORD. And the LORD said unto Moses, Lo, I come unto thee in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with thee, and believe thee for ever. And Moses told the words of the people unto the LORD.” - Exodus 19:3-9.

“then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people:” While everyone and everything belongs to God, He only associates with those who listen to and follow His law, which is the Bible. Following God's law does not mean we are better than anyone else, it means we belong to God and He expects better things from us than what the world is doing. Today, God still has only one family of people, but they are not limited to the children of Israel, they are those who receive Christ as their Saviour. “If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.” - 1 Peter 2:3-5,9,10.

God gave the laws that we are to live by, not in order to get to heaven, but to separate us from the world. Those who have Christ in them are God's peculiar treasure, and should stick out like sore thumbs. If they obey Him, not grudgingly, but willingly, others will see the need for Christ and be saved also. God Himself speaks from the mountain, with a voice like trumpets playing, He speaks the first ten laws we should still be following today.

“And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.” - Exodus 20:1-6,18-20.

“for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God,” Ever wonder why you get jealous when someone flirts with another? We are made in the image of God, He gets jealous when we flirt with other gods. Have no other gods before me, make no images or statues to worship as a god. False religion, even some Christian based, corner the market on images and statues featuring a god like figure or person of great influence in reaching God. While it is good that we have images as remembrances of Mary, the apostles, and other great men and women of the Bible, we are not to worship any of these. Religion is not the only thing that makes God jealous, He gets jealous if we worship any person or thing more than Him, to Him it is as a god. “Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” - John 4:22-24.

By the way, to fear God means to honor, respect, and worship only Him, those who love God will want to follow His commands naturally as they walk in His Spirit. Since the Israelites just came out of slavery, God thought it necessary to address the issue of servants. The Israelites had been servants themselves and now that they had become their own masters, God made laws or judgments concerning the mild and gentle usage of servants or what we see them as, slaves. There were different laws concerning men and women who were sold either by themselves, to their parents through poverty, or by judges for crimes they committed.

“Now these are the judgments which thou shalt set before them. If thou buy an Hebrew servant, six years he shall serve: and in the seventh he shall go out free for nothing. If he came in by himself, he shall go out by himself: if he were married, then his wife shall go out with him. If his master have given him a wife, and she have born him sons or daughters; the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out by himself. And if the servant shall plainly say, I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free: Then his master shall bring him unto the judges; he shall also bring him to the door, or unto the door post; and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul; and he shall serve him for ever. And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do. If she please not her master, who hath betrothed her to himself, then shall he let her be redeemed: to sell her unto a strange nation he shall have no power, seeing he hath dealt deceitfully with her.” - Exodus 21:1-8.

“and his master shall bore his ear through with an aul;” Awl, An iron instrument for piercing small holes in leather. This tool was used to brand a person who loved their master and wanted to spend a lifetime ins service to them. We too get branded when we believe in and trust Christ as our Saviour. When we choose Him, and obey God's law, we are not giving up our freedom, we are actually set free, free from sin, free from the guilt of sin, free from the control sin once had over us, and above all free from eternal death and hell. When we choose Christ we are telling Him that we love Him and want to spend our lifetime with Him, serving Him, and in return we are blessed for our efforts. “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.” - John 15:14-16.

Today's Prayer: God, You love Your people too much to leave us as we were before we received Your Son as our Saviour. You have given us Your law to not only separate us from the rest of the world, but to show them that we belong to You, and can know You too. Lord, Lead me and guide me, show me what Your will is for my life and give me Your power to serve You faithfully and under Your law, after all, You know what is best for me, and Your commands are not grievous. In Jesus' name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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