Following Jesus Completely Is Always A Choice
(S) Scripture
Numbers 33:55 (NIV)
55 "'But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land, those you allow to remain will become barbs in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will give you trouble in the land where you will live.
(O) Observation
As Moses prepares the people to take the promised land he gives them God's instructions. They are to drive out all the inhabitants because if they do not those that remain will always cause them trouble.
(A) Application
In the scripture we see that God does for his people what they cannot do for themselves but He expects them to do what they can. In this passage He gives them the land but they must drive out the inhabitants. When Peter was in jail the angel removed his shackles (what he could not do) but told him to put on his sandals (what he could do). This by no means is a works based salvation but it is obedience to the command that God gives us. When we become a follower of Jesus, God forgives our sin (what we cannot do) and we are expected to obey and follow (what we can do). Most of us come to Jesus with some bad habits in our lives. Jesus cleanses and forgives us but with His help we must them drive out of our lives. Those habits are like the inhabitants of the promised land in the passage for today. If we allow them to remain they will be the things that hinder our spiritual growth. This kind of obedience is tough and is always a choice we make. Today I will look for those things that need to be driven out of my life so that I might grow and enjoy my life in Christ.
(P) Prayer
Lord help me to identify those things that need to be driven out of my life and give me the strength to drive them out. My desire is to live for you today.
1 comment:
What do barbs and thorns do? They don't kill us, but they keep us from maximizing the joy and satisfaction that we could otherwise have. They become spiritual nusances that distract and deter us from achieving God's best. They can be negative attitudes, self-destructive habits, a spirit of unforgiveness, pride, greed, guilt and more. They're not enough to destroy us, anymore than allowing the enemies to remain would have destroyed the Hebrews' inheritance. But they certainly get in the way of "abundant life" to use the words of Martin Lloyd Jones. "Bud"
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