Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | November 2, 2023

“For I hate divorce,” says the LORD”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 24:1-5.

“When a man takes a wife and marries her, and it happens that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out from his house, and she leaves his house and goes and becomes another man’s wife, and if the latter husband turns against her and writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, or if the latter husband dies who took her to be his wife, then her former husband who sent her away is not allowed to take her again to be his wife, since she has been defiled;  for that is an abomination before the LORD, and you shall not bring sin on the land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance.

“When a man takes a new wife, he shall not go out with the army nor be charged with any duty;  he shall be free at home one year and shall give happiness to his wife whom he has taken.”  Deuteronomy 24:1-5.

—————–

Divorce (including more generally marriage) is a difficult subject to cover, particularly in the limited confines of a short devotion.  These verses are only a small sampling of verses in Scripture to consider.  There are other verses that should also be considered, and there are Christian ministers and Christian professional counselors who can provide spiritual counseling.

“For I hate divorce,” says the LORD, the God of Israel, “and him who covers his garment with wrong,” says the LORD of hosts.  “So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.”  Malachi 2:16.

“But not one has done so who has a remnant of the Spirit.  And what did that one do while he was seeking a godly offspring?  Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal treacherously against the wife of your youth.”  Malachi 2:15.  

“It was said, ‘WHOEVER SENDS HIS WIFE AWAY, LET HIM GIVE HER A CERTIFICATE OF DIVORCE’;  but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except for the reason of unchastity, makes her commit adultery;  and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.”  Matthew 5:31-32.

“So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.”  Matthew 19:6.

“And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery.

The disciples *said to Him, “If the relationship of the man with his wife is like this, it is better not to marry.”  But He said to them, “Not all men can accept this statement, but only those to whom it has been given.”  Matthew 19:9-10.

“But I say to the unmarried and to widows that it is good for them if they remain even as I.  But if they do not have self-control, let them marry;  for it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

But to the married I give instructions, not I, but the Lord, that the wife should not leave her husband (but if she does leave, she must remain unmarried, or else be reconciled to her husband), and that the husband should not divorce his wife.”  1 Corinthians 7:7-11.

“18 Let your fountain be blessed,
And rejoice in the wife of your youth.
19 As a loving hind and a graceful doe,
Let her breasts satisfy you at all times;
Be exhilarated always with her love.
20 For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress
And embrace the bosom of a foreigner?” Proverbs 5:18-20.

“Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.  For the husband is the head of the wife, as Christ also is the head of the church, He Himself being the Savior of the body.  But as the church is subject to Christ, so also the wives ought to be to their husbands in everything.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing;  but that she would be holy and blameless.”  Ephesians 5:22-27.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | November 1, 2023

“He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.” – “He will teach you all things”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 23:17-25.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2023&version=NASB1995

I quote only the following verses.

“You shall not charge interest to your countrymen:  interest on money, food, or anything that may be loaned at interest.  You may charge interest to a foreigner, but to your countrymen you shall not charge interest, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all that you undertake in the land which you are about to enter to possess.

“When you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay to pay it, for it would be sin in you, and the LORD your God will surely require it of you.  However, if you refrain from vowing, it would not be sin in you.  You shall be careful to perform what goes out from your lips, just as you have voluntarily vowed to the LORD your God, what you have promised.”  Deuteronomy 23:19-23.

———————–

“If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you, you are not to act as a creditor to him;  you shall not charge him interest.”  Exodus 22:25.

“O LORD, who may abide in Your tent?
Who may dwell on Your holy hill?
…
5 He does not put out his money at interest,
Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things will never be shaken.” Psalm 15:1 and 5.

“He who increases his wealth by interest and usury
Gathers it for him who is gracious to the poor.” Proverbs 28:8.

“Again, you have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT MAKE FALSE VOWS, BUT YOU SHALL FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE LORD.’  But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is THE CITY OF THE GREAT KING.  Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.  But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’;  anything beyond these is of evil.”  Matthew 5:33-37.

But, there is hope!

“The LORD is my shepherd,
I shall not want.
…
3 He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.” Psalm 23:1 and 3.

“It is the Spirit who gives life;  the flesh profits nothing;  the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.”  John 6:63. 

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”  John 14:26. 

“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth;  for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak;  and He will disclose to you what is to come.”  John 16:13.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 31, 2023

“Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 23:15-16.

“You shall not hand over to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you.  He shall live with you in your midst, in the place which he shall choose in one of your towns where it pleases him;  you shall not mistreat him.”  Deuteronomy 23:15-16.  

—————

“Were you called while a slave?  Do not worry about it;  but if you are able also to become free, rather do that.  For he who was called in the Lord while a slave, is the Lord’s freedman;  likewise he who was called while free, is Christ’s slave.  You were bought with a price;  do not become slaves of men.  Brethren, each one is to remain with God in that condition in which he was called.”  1 Corinthians 7:20-24.

“Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance.  It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.  For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.”  Colossians 3:23-25.

“Slaves, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in the sincerity of your heart, as to Christ;  not by way of eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart.  With good will render service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good thing each one does, this he will receive back from the Lord, whether slave or free.

And masters, do the same things to them, and give up threatening, knowing that both their Master and yours is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.”  Ephesians 6:5-9.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 30, 2023

“O LORD, You have searched me and known me. … lead me in the everlasting way.”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 23:10-14.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2023&version=NASB1995

I quote only the following verses.

“Since the LORD your God walks in the midst of your camp to deliver you and to defeat your enemies before you, therefore your camp must be holy;  and He must not see anything indecent among you or He will turn away from you.”  Deuteronomy 23:14.  

—————

“O LORD, You have searched me and known me.
2 You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
You understand my thought from afar.
3 You scrutinize my path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
4 Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O LORD, You know it all.
5 You have enclosed me behind and before,
And laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.

7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the dawn,
If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
10 Even there Your hand will lead me,
And Your right hand will lay hold of me.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,”
12 Even the darkness is not dark to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
Darkness and light are alike to You.

13 For You formed my inward parts;
You wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
15 My frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth;
16 Your eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in Your book were all written
The days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.

17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand.
When I awake, I am still with You.

19 O that You would slay the wicked, O God;
Depart from me, therefore, men of bloodshed.
20 For they speak against You wickedly,
And Your enemies take Your name in vain.
21 Do I not hate those who hate You, O LORD?
And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with the utmost hatred;
They have become my enemies.

23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
24 And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way.” Psalm chapter 139.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 29, 2023

“How blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near to You To dwell in Your courts.”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 23:1-9.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2023&version=NASB1995

I quote only the following verses.

“No Ammonite or Moabite shall enter the assembly of the LORD;  none of their descendants, even to the tenth generation, shall ever enter the assembly of the LORD, because they did not meet you with food and water on the way when you came out of Egypt, and because they hired against you Balaam the son of Beor from Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse you.  Nevertheless, the LORD your God was not willing to listen to Balaam, but the LORD your God turned the curse into a blessing for you because the LORD your God loves you.  You shall never seek their peace or their prosperity all your days.

“You shall not detest an Edomite, for he is your brother;  you shall not detest an Egyptian, because you were an alien in his land.  The sons of the third generation who are born to them may enter the assembly of the LORD.”  Deuteronomy 23:3-8.  

———————-

“O LORD, who may abide in Your tent?
Who may dwell on Your holy hill?
2 He who walks with integrity, and works righteousness,
And speaks truth in his heart.
3 He does not slander with his tongue,
Nor does evil to his neighbor,
Nor takes up a reproach against his friend;
4 In whose eyes a reprobate is despised,
But who honors those who fear the LORD;
He swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 He does not put out his money at interest,
Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things will never be shaken.” Psalm chapter 5.

“3 Who may ascend into the hill of the LORD?
And who may stand in His holy place?
4 He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
Who has not lifted up his soul to falsehood
And has not sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive a blessing from the LORD
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.” Psalm 24:3-5.

“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him;  and I will raise him up on the last day.”  John 6:44. 

“And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”  John 6:65.

Consider the following from the Canons of Dordt that “election is the fountain of every saving good;  from which proceed faith, holiness, and the other gifts of salvation, and finally eternal life itself“.

Article 9. This election was not founded upon foreseen faith, and the obedience of faith, holiness, or any other good quality of disposition in man, as the pre-requisite, cause or condition on which it depended;  but men are chosen to faith and to the obedience of faith, holiness, etc., therefore election is the fountain of every saving good; from which proceed faith, holiness, and the other gifts of salvation, and finally eternal life itself, …”  FIRST HEAD OF DOCTRINE Of Divine Predestination.

“How blessed is the one whom You choose and bring near to You
To dwell in Your courts.
We will be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,
Your holy temple.” Psalm 65:4.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 27, 2023

“REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.” – “Thus you shall purge the evil from among you.”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 22:13-30.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2022&version=NASB1995

I quote only the following verses.

“But if this charge is true, that the girl was not found a virgin, then they shall bring out the girl to the doorway of her father’s house, and the men of her city shall stone her to death because she has committed an act of folly in Israel by playing the harlot in her father’s house;  thus you shall purge the evil from among you.

“If a man is found lying with a married woman, then both of them shall die, the man who lay with the woman, and the woman; thus you shall purge the evil from Israel.

“If there is a girl who is a virgin engaged to a man, and another man finds her in the city and lies with her, then you shall bring them both out to the gate of that city and you shall stone them to death;  the girl, because she did not cry out in the city, and the man, because he has violated his neighbor’s wife.  Thus you shall purge the evil from among you.” Deuteronomy 22:20-24. 

————–

The laws on morality in the Old Testament may seen unusual, even harsh, to us, but we see and can mediate upon the goal of these laws which is stated in similar words three times:  “thus you shall purge the evil from among you.”  

Today’s Scripture leads us to meditate on how toleration of immorality negatively affects the whole church.  “Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough?” 

Consider the following from the Belgic Confession.

Article 29:  Of the marks of the true Church, and wherein she differs from the false Church.

…  The marks, by which the true Church is known, are these: if the pure doctrine of the gospel is preached therein;  if she maintains the pure administration of the sacraments as instituted by Christ;  if church discipline is exercised in punishing of sin:  in short, if all things are managed according to the pure Word of God, all things contrary thereto rejected, and Jesus Christ acknowledged as the only Head of the Church.  …

Consider the following New Testament Scripture.  

“It is actually reported that there is immorality among you, and immorality of such a kind as does not exist even among the Gentiles, that someone has his father’s wife.  You have become arrogant and have not mourned instead, so that the one who had done this deed would be removed from your midst.

For I, on my part, though absent in body but present in spirit, have already judged him who has so committed this, as though I were present.  In the name of our Lord Jesus, when you are assembled, and I with you in spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus, I have decided to deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of his flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.

Your boasting is not good.  Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough?  Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened.  For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed.  Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people;  I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world.  But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one.  For what have I to do with judging outsiders?  Do you not judge those who are within the church?  But those who are outside, God judges.  REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.”  1 Corinthians chapter 5.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 26, 2023

“Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding.” – “I will put My Spirit within you”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 22:5-12.

“5 “A woman shall not wear man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing;  for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD your God.

6 “If you happen to come upon a bird’s nest along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs, and the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young;  7 you shall certainly let the mother go, but the young you may take for yourself, in order that it may be well with you and that you may prolong your days.

8 “When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, so that you will not bring bloodguilt on your house if anyone falls from it.

9 “You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed, or all the produce of the seed which you have sown and the increase of the vineyard will become defiled.

10 “You shall not plow with an ox and a donkey together.

11 “You shall not wear a material mixed of wool and linen together.

12 “You shall make yourself tassels on the four corners of your garment with which you cover yourself.”  Deuteronomy 22:5-12.

—————–

“So you shall keep His statutes and His commandments which I am giving you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may live long on the land which the LORD your God is giving you for all time.”  Deuteronomy 4:40.

We can try to understand, explain, and apply to us today these various laws.  For example, in verse 8, when we read about a “parapet for your roof”, we can look up online the meaning of “parapet”.  Oxford Languages define parapet in part as “a low protective wall along the edge of a roof”.  We can meditate on it to apply to dangerous structures that we build, such as roofs but also other dangerous structures, to include safety features to protect particularly those workers who get on them to do maintenance or other work on them.  

But, our obedience of God’s law should not be based solely on our understanding and agreement to the wisdom of God’s law.  Our obedience of God’s laws should be based on our trust of God including His work for us and in us.  

“5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the LORD and turn away from evil.
8 It will be healing to your body
And refreshment to your bones.” Proverbs 3:5-8.

But, there is hope!

Jesus said:  “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart;  and YOU SHALL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.  For My yoke is easy, and My load is light”.  Matthew 11:28-29.

The Pharisees lay law upon law on the people:  “And they tie up heavy loads, and lay them on men’s shoulders;  but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.”  Matthew 23:4.

In sharp contrast, Christ tied up the heavy loads of the law and laid them on His own shoulders and gave us His Spirit as a His yoke for us:  “in order that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit”.  Romans 8:4.

“I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.”  Ezekiel 36:27.

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.” Galatians 5:22-23.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 25, 2023

“do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 22:1-4.

“You shall not see your countryman’s ox or his sheep straying away, and pay no attention to them;  you shall certainly bring them back to your countryman.  If your countryman is not near you, or if you do not know him, then you shall bring it home to your house, and it shall remain with you until your countryman looks for it;  then you shall restore it to him.  Thus you shall do with his donkey, and you shall do the same with his garment, and you shall do likewise with anything lost by your countryman, which he has lost and you have found.  You are not allowed to neglect them.  You shall not see your countryman’s donkey or his ox fallen down on the way, and pay no attention to them;  you shall certainly help him to raise them up.”  Deuteronomy 22:1-4.

———————

Today’s Scripture leads us to consider what mercy and lovingkindess we should show to others.  We are required to do more than only to do justice.  We are required to do more than only look out for our own interests.

“do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.”  Philippians 2:4. 

“He has told you, O man, what is good;
And what does the LORD require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?” Micah 6:8.

“The merciful man does himself good,
But the cruel man does himself harm.” Proverbs 11:17.

“Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.”  Matthew 5:7.

“So, as those who have been chosen of God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience;  bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone;  just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.”  Colossians 3:12-13. 

“So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith.”  Galatians 6:10.

But, there is hope!

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control;  against such things there is no law.”  Galatians 5:22-23. 

Christ “… gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.”  Titus 2:14.

“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”  Ephesians 2:10.

“for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”  Philippians 2:13.

“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.”  Philippians 1:6.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 24, 2023

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, … for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 21:10-23.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NASB1995

I quote only the following verses.

“If a man has committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is accursed of God), so that you do not defile your land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance.”  Deuteronomy 21:22-23. 

—————

The part of today’s Scripture in bold italic font above was quoted by the following Scripture, and it is the theme of today’s devotion.

“Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us—for it is written, “CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE”— in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we would receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.”  Galatians 3:13-14.

“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.  Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba!  Father!”  Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son;  and if a son, then an heir through God.”  Galatians 4:4-7.

“Therefore, my brethren, you also were made to die to the Law through the body of Christ, so that you might be joined to another, to Him who was raised from the dead, in order that we might bear fruit for God.  For while we were in the flesh, the sinful passions, which were aroused by the Law, were at work in the members of our body to bear fruit for death.  But now we have been released from the Law, having died to that by which we were bound, so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in oldness of the letter.”  Romans 7:4-6.

“When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions, having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us, which was hostile to us;  and He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.”  Colossians 3:13-14. 

“Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by faith.  But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.”  Galatians 3:24-25.

“For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified;  for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation.”  Romans 4:14-15.

“For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”  Romans 6:14.

“For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death.”  Romans 8:2. 

It was for freedom that Christ set us free;  therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.

…  You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law;  you have fallen from grace.  For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.”  Galatians 5:1 and 4-5.

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Posted by: Bill Hornbeck | October 23, 2023

“He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean”

Today’s devotion comes from Deuteronomy 21:1-9.  Here is a link to this Scripture – https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy%2021&version=NASB1995

I quote only the following verses.

“If a slain person is found lying in the open country in the land which the LORD your God gives you to possess, and it is not known who has struck him, …  All the elders of that city which is nearest to the slain man shall wash their hands over the heifer whose neck was broken in the valley;  and they shall answer and say, ‘Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it.  Forgive Your people Israel whom You have redeemed, O LORD, and do not place the guilt of innocent blood in the midst of Your people Israel.’  And the bloodguiltiness shall be forgiven them.  So you shall remove the guilt of innocent blood from your midst, when you do what is right in the eyes of the LORD.” Deuteronomy 21:1 and 6-9.

—————

There are sins that we intentionally commit and we know that they are sins when we commit them, and we can specifically confess those sins.  

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  1 John 1:9. 

But, today’s Scripture leads us to meditate on those sins that we innocently commit, so to speak, that we do not know that we committed a sin when we did an action that was a sin and thus cannot specifically confess those sins.

“23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;
Try me and know my anxious thoughts;
24 And see if there be any hurtful way in me,
And lead me in the everlasting way.” Psalm 139:23-24.

Today’s Scripture provides the hope that when we “do what is right in the eyes of the LORD”, then we will “remove the guilt of innocent blood” from our midst.  See verse 9.

In that sense, here is how the context of the above 1 John 1:9 verse puts it.   

“but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.”  1 John 1:7.

Also, in that sense, consider the following verses.

“Simon Peter *said to Him, “Lord, then wash not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.”  Jesus *said to him, “He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean;  and you are clean, …”  John 13:9-10. 

“For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.  …

…

Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”  Hebrews 10:14 and 18-22.

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