THE STORY OF JESUS: Exodus 22-24
“Do not let them live in your land or they will cause you to sin against me, because the worship of their gods will certainly be a snare to you.” (Exodus 23:33)
Why does God appear so stern and strict, a consuming fire?
To my sensitive ears, this God sounds angry, harsh and violent…
One thing to consider is the context, the times and practices of that day.
Imagine a foster child who had trauma in his birth family and has social and behavioral issues.
As the foster parent, you need to be both extremely loving and extremely strict.
To protect them, you will need to impose restrictions, curfews, and consequences for disobedience.
If others happen to witness your discipline, they might accuse you of being overly harsh.
Israel was that traumatized, abused foster child, with behavioral and social issues.
For centuries in Egypt they were treated as worthless, subjected to cruel, immoral behavior.
The land of Canaan had horrible cultural and religious practices (sexual depravity, child sacrifice).
To train and protect this new nation, God needed to establish discipline into their ways.
This infant nation was at serious risk from its surroundings, they needed a firm hand.
God imposed the Law as a “guardian” (Galatians 3:23f) to manage sin until He could heal their heart.
The Old Covenant was a temporary stage of discipline, part of the overall healing process.
It was enough to manage behavior, but not enough to heal or change their hearts.
This is why Jesus came: “For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering.” (Romans 8:3)
The “blood of the new covenant” (Exodus 24:8, Luke 22:20) brings healing, heart transformation.
We are no longer under these old regulations, which served their purpose in their time.
“So the Law (of Moses) was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian.” (Galatians 3:24-25)
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, I need more than a strong discipline, I need a strong deliverer. Help me by Your Spirit in my heart to navigate the pitfalls and dangers of my own present context.