March 27- Be Careful and Obey

March 27, 2011

Scripture Readings:
Deuteronomy 7:1-8:20; Luke 7:36-8:3
Psalm 69:1-18; Proverbs 12:1

Deuteronomy 7:1-8:20

When my daughter was little she had a tendency to walk mindlessly through parking lots not noticing cars that were backing out of their parking spaces and practically getting hit by them. My rule was that she needed to hold my hand when we were in parking lots.  She had an independent streak and wanted to walk free of my hold. I can recall numerous times, even when she became a teenager, that I would call out, "Be careful, Sarah! There's a car that is about to back out!"

Today Moses spends a lot of time telling the nation of Israel to "be careful" as they enter the land of Canaan.  God has commanded them to destroy a number of nations within the land of Canaan.  These are powerful people. These are devil-worshipping people who followed the gods given to them by the rebellious, fallen angels. It will take courage and faith to destroy them.  Remember, Canaan was Ham's cursed son. It was through Canaan that the Nephilim giants and worship system would manifest itself after the Great Flood. Noah had predicted the downfall of these people.  It was ordained by God.

Moses warns the Israelites to not intermarry with any of the Canaanite people groups.  They are to be completely destroyed. They are Baal worshipers.  This means that they have sexual relations as part of their fertility cult.  They are overrun with sexually transmitted diseases.  Intermarriage would put the Israelites at risk. They were not to worship the false gods of the Nephilim, many who are sourced back to ancient Sumer, which eventually became Babylon. The Israelites were to be the people group that would bring the Messiah into the world. Therefore, the Israelites needed to live a holy and separate life from these nations. God called Abraham out of Ur in Sumer to possess the Promised Land of Canaan. The righteous in the story are to overcome evil. God is warning the Israelites to steer clear of immorality and sexual licentiousness. In addition to this, He is reminding them through the words of Moses to avoid intermingling and adopting the false religions of the Canaanites. Obedience to God's commands was key to the Israelites safety and protection. Only through trusting God can we defeat evil and resist temptation in this life.

Do you realize that obedience to God's Word provides protection for you in your life?  Are you vigilant against sexual immorality in your own life? God says to us, "Be careful and obey."

Luke 7:36-8:3

Jesus is eating at the home of one of the Pharisees.  An immoral woman hears that Jesus is there and interrupts the meal to weep at his feet and put perfume on his feet.  This scandalizes everyone at the dinner.  Jesus uses it as a teaching moment.  He tells the story of two people who borrowed money.  One borrowed  fifty pieces of silver, the other borrowed five hundred.  Neither could repay.  Who loved the lender more?  Jesus helps his audience realize that the person with the greater debt loved the lender more. By the way, his audience were the outwardly religious sorts, in addition to his new disciples.

What is Jesus' point?  The greater the sins for which you have been forgiven by God, the greater your love and appreciation for God will be.  This immoral woman had many sins that Christ forgave.  She had a passionate, grateful love for him.  Why? Because through his radical, redemptive love, Jesus does not condemn her.  He forgives her.

The Bible tells us that the men at the dinner, who are religious leaders, are questioning among themselves who Christ thinks he is...forgiving people's sins.  Jesus tells the woman that her faith has saved her.

Who do you think Jesus is?  Does he have the ability to save you from your sins?  He says that faith is the key to forgiveness.  Do you have faith in Jesus?

Psalm 69:1-18

Have you ever felt that the floodwaters were up to your neck?  Have you ever felt like you were drowning in problems?  If so, this psalm was written for you.  Read it and find rest. Think of the Israelites going into the land of Canaan as you read this. Think of Christ on the cross.

Proverbs 12:1

"To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction."  Wow.  This follows our theme today.  Be careful and obey.

What are you learning?

Blessings,

Jubilee Gal
Kathy Fullerton
© 2011