Today's Devotional

October 2, 2002

Subject:  The Promises of God - Part II

Joshua 23:15-16 - "Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised you; so shall the LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you.  When ye have transgressed the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and have gone and served other gods, and bowed yourselves to them; then shall the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly fro off the good land which he hath given unto you."

Because Abraham believed the promises of God, it was not only counted to him as righteousness, but he was also blessed.  That's the good news.  The "bad news" (which is really good too) is that God is just as true to His promises concerning our disobedience to His commands as He is to our obedience.

We know the stories of the Israelite wanderings as they were being led by Moses and how time after time they would follow God,  then turn away, then follow God and then turn away.  I've come to believe that this is how most believers tend to live.  Sundays feel great, but Mondays feel terrible and then Wednesday night is great, but Thursdays are a downer.  Could it be that we find occasional periods that we call worship, to place God on the throne, but the rest of the time, we have other gods on the throne? 

For some people, work becomes their God during the week by not only spending all of their time there, but by leaving God out of the principles and practices of the workplace.  For some, their spouse, their children or their family becomes their god because they forsake quiet time with Him in order to meet the needs of their family.  Luke 14:26 speaks to the proper priority on this matter.  There can be any number of things that become gods to us, but one thing is for sure, if we allow them to take the place of our Lord God, then He will not be pleased and He will do whatever is necessary to "voice" His displeasure.  Just as the Israelites turned back to God when He displayed his anger with them, so should we.  However, our lives would find much more peace if we would heed the promises of God in the first place. 

Carlen