Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 13:12-18.
“If you hear in one of your cities, which the LORD your God is giving you to live in, anyone saying that some worthless men have gone out from among you and have seduced the inhabitants of their city, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods’ (whom you have not known), then you shall investigate and search out and inquire thoroughly. If it is true and the matter established that this abomination has been done among you, you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying it and all that is in it and its cattle with the edge of the sword. Then you shall gather all its booty into the middle of its open square and burn the city and all its booty with fire as a whole burnt offering to the LORD your God; and it shall be a ruin forever. It shall never be rebuilt. Nothing from that which is put under the ban shall cling to your hand, in order that the LORD may turn from His burning anger and show mercy to you, and have compassion on you and make you increase, just as He has sworn to your fathers, if you will listen to the voice of the LORD your God, keeping all His commandments which I am commanding you today, and doing what is right in the sight of the LORD your God.” Deuteronomy 13:12-18.
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It is shocking what extreme measure God required if one of the cities in Israel went rogue and served other gods “in order that the LORD may turn from His burning anger and show mercy to you”.
It leads us to meditate what the LORD requires for us because of our sin in order that the LORD may turn from His burning anger and show mercy to us.
Nothing less than the death of God’s own beloved Son can atone for our guilt!
“For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.” Romans 5:6-9.
What exactly was accomplished by Christ’s death?
Other doctrine have a low view of Christ’s death, that just a little was accomplished, but even that little was dependent on man’s work or at least man’s will in order to make that little amount effective to save.
But, Reformed Doctrine has a high view of Christ’s death, that everything that we need for salvation was accomplished by Christ’s death, and that nothing was dependent on man’s works or man’s will in order to make Christ’s death effective to save.
Consider the following from the Canons of Dordt.
Article 8. For this was the sovereign counsel, and most gracious will and purpose of God the Father, that the quickening and saving efficacy of the most precious death of his Son should extend to all the elect, for bestowing upon them alone the gift of justifying faith, thereby to bring them infallibly to salvation: that is, it was the will of God, that Christ by the blood of the cross, whereby he confirmed the new covenant, should effectually redeem out of every people, tribe, nation, and language, all those, and those only, who were from eternity chosen to salvation, and given to him by the Father; that he should confer upon them faith, which together with all the other saving gifts of the Holy Spirit, he purchased for them by his death; should purge them from all sin, both original and actual, whether committed before or after believing; and having faithfully preserved them even to the end, should at last bring them free from every spot and blemish to the enjoyment of glory in his own presence forever. SECOND HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of the Death of Christ, and the Redemption of Men Thereby.
“For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,” 1 Thessalonians 5:9.
Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions 