Daily Devotional Thought--From the Old Testament

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Deuteronomy 30:1-3:
And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God has driven you, and return to the LORD your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul, then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you, and he will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you.

To be gathered by the LORD, the people of God need to hear a word of Law, whether Moses is the one through whom it is delivered, or your pastor, or your parent, or your brother or sister in Christ. The Law of God is put forth for a purpose, a saving purpose--always.

To be sure, it must first put to death the Old Adam, that sinful flesh, that wages war with the new man in Christ. It must confront the conscience that has grown comfortable with its sin, reminding the child of God of the stark realities that await a life lived in unrepentant sin and outright opposition to God's Law and His holy will. And yet, this killing of the sinful flesh must happen for an even greater purpose, a saving purpose--always.

The Father doesn't take delight in disciplining His children, and yet, he does so to prepare them for the life ahead.

Yes, as it was for the children of Israel, so it is for those who are heirs of Abraham by faith in Christ Jesus. We must be made to see our sin, to flee from unrighteousness, and to turn from our ways--for this is repentance. The Law of God is a necessary Word that must be proclaimed, because it does a necessary work--it reveals your need for a savior--Jesus Christ.

Gospel reductionism seeks to do away with the Law of God, but in the end, it does away with Christ. For what need to the righteous have of a savior? But as God used Moses to speak a harsh word to the children of Israel, so too, He speaks a harsh word to His children today, so that repentance is produced, and the faith that clings to Christ alone is sustained.

Only with this faith can the psalmist say, "I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight" (Psalm 119: 174).

The Law of God is good indeed, for it points us to the cross of Christ. Amen.