For a description of the (Y2) reading plan, see the “About” page.
Rom. 7
Describe the inner war and the solution Paul proposes. Have you experienced this battle? And the solution? God’s law is good. But the law does not give us power over sin because it does nothing to change our human nature. What the law does do is highlight the sinfulness of our human nature. “For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’ But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting.” (Rom. 7:7b-8a). It seems nothing gets a person’s mind stirring to do something quite like telling them not to!
That is why we need Jesus. Unlike the law, Jesus does have the power to change our human nature. This is why we say that we die to our old self and take up new life in Christ. Since our old self is dead, the law no longer has authority over us and we are free to serve God instead of our sinful human nature. “But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law so that we serve in the new way of the Spirit, and not in the old way of the written code.” (Rom. 7:6). So it is now God’s Spirit at work in us, giving us the power to live a life of obedience to Him.
Lev. 27
I am stumped as to the meaning of Leviticus 27:29. “No person devoted to destruction may be ransomed; they are to be put to death.” The only thing I am certain of is that we should not take this verse at face value. One easy explanation I saw was that a “person devoted to destruction” was one whom the governing authority had convicted of a death punishable crime. In this case, the verse simply means that one could not redeem such a person with money. Another explanation was that this verse was speaking about people devoted to destruction by God, such as in some of the cities the Israelites destroyed. Both explanations made reference to the meaning of the original Hebrew word being, “to remove from ordinary use”.
Whatever the meaning – and I am sure that all of these laws have meaning beyond my ability to see or understand – I could not help but think of Judas when I read it. In John 17, Jesus was praying for His disciples. He said, in the second half of verse 12, “None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.” Maybe one verse has nothing to do with the other, but it sure seems to me that Judas was devoted by God for something other than ordinary use.
Prov. 5
What are the consequences of adultery? Make a list. Is it worth it? Giving in to the adulterous woman results in loss of honor, dignity, and wealth. Her ways lead only to death. When I read about her in the Proverbs, I see her as a personification of temptation. She lures you into sin at your own peril. She causes you to abandon wise instruction, prudent correction, and loving discipline. And no, she is never worth it. Far better to rejoice in and be satisfied with what God has given you.