Friday, March 2, 2012

Exodus 30-32: Violence Against Sin, Not People


Exodus 32:27 “And he said to them, Thus says the Lord God of Israel, Every man put his sword on his side and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbor.”

Exodus 32:28 “And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses; and there fell of the people that day about 3000 men.”

Exodus 32:29 “And Moses said [to the Levites, By your obedience to God's command] you have consecrated yourselves today [as priests] to the Lord, each man [at the cost of being] against his own son and his own brother, that the Lord may restore and bestow His blessing upon you this day.”

Wow, this commandment is severe! Idolatry is serious! Although we don’t go around killing our companions and brothers today, these verses do paint a picture of how God wants us to deal with sin. He expects that we be violent in the Spirit against sin, which separates us from Him. Violent against the sin and not the people.

A particular form of idolatry is the fear of man, something that I had struggled with for most of my life.  The Lord told me many years ago that when the fear of man causes me to modify Who He wants me to be or what He wants me to do that I, in effect, put man on a pedestal lifting him higher than God.  That, my friends, is idolatry!!!  


I am thankful that much of the fear of man has been broken in my life.
 I still feel the emotion of what man thinks at times, but I can't remember the last time I modified myself because of it.  Yeah, Jesus!!!



Thank You, Lord, for Your deliverance from sin!  Thanks for loving me enough to walk beside me, telling me my faults and errors because of that love.  You are my Best Friend!

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