His Curses Discipline His Children
Scripture Passage: Deuteronomy 28:15-24 (NASB)
15 “But it shall come about, if you do not obey the Lord your God, to be careful to follow all His commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you:
16 “Cursed will you be in the city, and cursed will you be in the country.
17 “Cursed will be your basket and your kneading bowl.
18 “Cursed will be the children of your womb, the produce of your ground, the newborn of your herd, and the offspring of your flock.
19 “Cursed will you be when you come in, and cursed will you be when you go out.
20 “The Lord will send against you curses, panic, and rebuke, in everything you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and until you perish quickly, on account of the evil of your deeds, because you have abandoned Me. 21 The Lord will make the plague cling to you until He has eliminated you from the land where you are entering to take possession of it. 22 The Lord will strike you with consumption, inflammation, fever, feverish heat, and with the sword, with blight, and with mildew, and they will pursue you until you perish. 23 The heaven which is over your head shall be bronze, and the earth which is under you, iron. 24 The Lord will make the rain of your land powder and dust; from heaven it shall come down on you until you are destroyed.
SUMMARY
Moses tells the Israelites that if they do not obey the Lord their God, and observe all His commandments, they shall be cursed everywhere, and everything they own, their offspring, and everything they do shall be cursed. They will be cursed and destroyed on account of their evil deeds and for forsaking God. God will bring the pestilence on them until they perish, and he will also bring them drought.
MEDITATION & REFLECTION
Reading this passage and meditating on it, I think about our helpless situation, how cursed we are because we cannot possibly obey all the commandments. In fact, I cannot even remember every single commandment. “For all who are of works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all the things written in the book of the Law, to do them.” (Galatians 3:10) However, I am grateful that we have been freed from the curse of sin and death through Christ’s death on the cross. “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”. (Galatians 3:13) I am humbled by the fact that no amount of effort on my part to keep the law could save me from the curse of death and sin. Knowing what kind of price had to be paid for my sins and that Christ has lifted the curse of the law, I must then live a righteous life worthy of his sacrifice. There are times I give up on righteous living because I feel like I am a helpless sinner, and I cannot fight the temptation because I am a sinner living in the sinful world. However, the words of Apostle Paul gently remind us why we must overcome sin, “For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.” (Romans 6:14)
Verse 21 says, “The Lord will make the pestilence cling to you”, and verse 24 says “The Lord will make the rain of your land powder and dust”. Coronavirus is still here taking lives every day, and there have been wildfires in California because it has been a very dry season. I ask the Lord, “Which of the commandments did I not obey?” Although on the surface I have been serving the Lord in every way I can, the Lord knows what has really been in my heart. The Lord knows all the ways I did not obey Him. I have been even repenting of the way I did business while I had the lease of the space. Did I really serve the students like I would serve the Lord? Did I honor my parents in the way I treated them? God has been shining a light on many things during the pandemic, there are many things I need to repent for. In that way, the pandemic has been a blessing in disguise. Then, “FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES." (Hebrews 12:6 NASB)
APPLICATION
In order to know God’s commandments and the heart of God’s laws, I must read the Bible.
“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being My priest.
Since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.” (Hosea 4:6)
I used to think that if I didn’t know the Bible, I wasn’t accountable to obey the Word of God, but it says we must remember the law of our God, or we will be destroyed. I must read the Bible over again until I have known it by heart. I must also inquire of the Lord by prayer and supplication. I confess that I have a hard time praying in secret when no one is looking. God is calling me to the secret place to pray and to receive His revelation.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, You have known the condition of my heart and You are disciplining me through this time of difficulties. I thank You even for bringing into light my lack of knowledge and my disobedience. Thank you for Christ’s death on the cross to lift the curse of the law. Help me to really know You. I want to know You more and to love You more. I want to be a woman after Your own heart. In Jesus name I pray, Amen!
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