God's Laws Show His Holiness and Righteousness - Deuteronomy 20-22 and Mark 13:21-37
God's laws reveal His nature to us. The other day I said that His laws revealed His love to us, and that is true. They, also, reveal His holiness and righteousness. They reveal all aspects of His nature to us. When we read the laws of God, we should ask the Holy Spirit to show us God's nature in each law. There are various laws in Deuteronomy 20-22, but all of them are revealing God to us. Take some time to meditate on these laws, and ask God to reveal Himself to you through these laws.
The laws of warfare show us that God was very fair with the soldiers. Fairness is a part of righteousness. Then, God told them to be fair with conquered people outside of Canaan, too. However, in the land of Canaan God told them to totally destroy the people. This shows us God's holiness and His desire for His people to be holy. God knew these people would not change, so it was not unloving, and it was not unrighteous. When God tells us to do something, it is based on His perfect knowledge. We see the same things in the other laws in this passage. God is strict on sin, because of His holiness, but He is very fair with people, because of His righteousness. God wants us to act in the same way. That is why He gave us these laws.
Mark 13 concludes Jesus' prophecy about the end of time on this earth and the tribulation. Some people argue about what will happen and when it will happen. They think up all types of interpretations of what Jesus said. One example is the fig tree. Some people say that it represents the nation of Israel, and the putting forth branches and leaves means the rebirth of Israel as a nation. Then, they say that Jesus will come during that generation. I do not know if that is the correct way to interpret this or not. However, I do know that God's Word will never pass away, and He says to watch for the coming of Christ. He stresses for us to be ready at any minute. How can we do that? Of course, we must know Christ as our Lord and Savior. Then, we need to be living in a close relationship with Him each day. We need to be living a life of holiness and righteousness. Even if we interpret the time of His coming correctly, it will not mean much at all, if we are not living for Him when He comes. I pray that we will be more concerned about our lives than setting a time for His coming.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Deuteronomy 23-25 and Mark 14:1-26.
The laws of warfare show us that God was very fair with the soldiers. Fairness is a part of righteousness. Then, God told them to be fair with conquered people outside of Canaan, too. However, in the land of Canaan God told them to totally destroy the people. This shows us God's holiness and His desire for His people to be holy. God knew these people would not change, so it was not unloving, and it was not unrighteous. When God tells us to do something, it is based on His perfect knowledge. We see the same things in the other laws in this passage. God is strict on sin, because of His holiness, but He is very fair with people, because of His righteousness. God wants us to act in the same way. That is why He gave us these laws.
Mark 13 concludes Jesus' prophecy about the end of time on this earth and the tribulation. Some people argue about what will happen and when it will happen. They think up all types of interpretations of what Jesus said. One example is the fig tree. Some people say that it represents the nation of Israel, and the putting forth branches and leaves means the rebirth of Israel as a nation. Then, they say that Jesus will come during that generation. I do not know if that is the correct way to interpret this or not. However, I do know that God's Word will never pass away, and He says to watch for the coming of Christ. He stresses for us to be ready at any minute. How can we do that? Of course, we must know Christ as our Lord and Savior. Then, we need to be living in a close relationship with Him each day. We need to be living a life of holiness and righteousness. Even if we interpret the time of His coming correctly, it will not mean much at all, if we are not living for Him when He comes. I pray that we will be more concerned about our lives than setting a time for His coming.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Deuteronomy 23-25 and Mark 14:1-26.