For a full description of the (Y3) reading plan, see the “About” page.
- What attributes of God’s character does this passage reveal?
- How does the passage point to Jesus?
- How should the truth of this passage change me?
- How do the events of today’s reading help you better understand the grand narrative of Scripture?
Deut. 19
Many of the Old Testament laws have harsh consequences for breaking them. The cited reason is to purge the evil. Not only do you get rid of the evil doer, but you put fear into the hearts of the rest of the community so they will be motivated to avoid the same evil ways. I hear people advocate this idea from time to time. They believe that harsh consequences steer people away from wrong actions. Well I’m here to tell you it doesn’t work. The Bible has all the evidence needed to support my claim.
True, harsh consequences will serve as a deterrent for a few, at least for a while. But in a group of two once perfect people, the harshest consequence of all – death – was not enough to keep them on the right path. If Adam and Eve, who had absolutely everything stacked in their favor, couldn’t get it right, what makes us think anybody else can? And it is clear that, harsh consequences or not, the Israelites went and did everything God told them not to do. No, folks, not even fear of death is enough to keep us clean. Another reason we need Jesus.
Deut. 20-21
God does things differently. I’ve said before that we know Christianity is true because no human would ever set things up the way God did and does. His ways are contrary to human nature. Every human-made religion and the associated human-made gods have human characteristics. Not so with the One True God. He is sovereign, He is God, and He does things differently. Consequently, He asks His people to do things differently so the world will know that we belong to Him.