LIVING WATER CAC DAILY DEVOTIONAL GUIDE Saturday, August 21, 2021

 

A RUN-AWAY CRIMINAL

Read: Leviticus 26:17,36-37

[17]And I will set my face against you, and ye shall be slain before your enemies: they that hate you shall reign over you; and ye shall flee when none pursueth you.

[36]And upon them that are left alive of you I will send a faintness into their hearts in the lands of their enemies; and the sound of a shaken leaf shall chase them; and they shall flee, as fleeing from a sword; and they shall fall when none pursueth.

[37]And they shall fall one upon another, as it were before a sword, when none pursueth: and ye shall have no power to stand before your enemies.

MEMORISE: The wicked flee when no one pursues, but the righteous are bold as a lion (Proverbs 28:1)

EXPOSITION

A criminal is a person who has committed a crime or who has been proven to be guilty of a crime by a law court of competent jurisdiction. A criminal has no freedom of movement in the town. He deserves to be in custody in order to face the rod of judgement. When a criminal is not legally freed from custody, he becomes a run-away, a fugitive. Such a criminal walks suspiciously. When he meets a law enforcement agent suddenly, he panics and even tries to run away. A run-away criminal is not a free person, at all, because he can no longer move freely.

According to our memory scripture, all wicked people are criminals in the sight of God. What does it mean to be wicked? From the original language of the Bible, to be wicked simply means, to be morally wrong and actively bad. When people mention the word, wicked, they normally think about witches or wizards, or any demon-possessed person. But in the light of the Word of God, anyone who is morally wrong and/or actively bad is a wicked person before God.

To understand this better, what can we say about a husband who maltreats his wife at home and appears in the church like an angel? This is a perfect example of wickedness. What about a wife who refuses to submit to her husband but at the same time 'humbly' serves as a Sunday school teacher in church? Wickedness! Whatever position you hold in church, or any area you are serving in the vineyard, you are wicked, if you are morally wrong and actively bad. You must be imbued with Christ's righteous and that happens by justification. Only then will God see you as living above wickedness.

According to the Bible, to be righteous means to always do what is right before God and men. It also means to have a good standing with God in all areas (1 Jn. 3:7). If you want to have a clear conscience before God and rest of mind, eschew wickedness and begin to practice righteousness with the help of the Holy Spirit.

PRAYER POINTS

1. Lord, I come to You with the load of my sins, save me from the guilt of sin.

2. Lord, give me inner courage and capacity to do what You expect of me to be free from the spirit of fear I imposed upon myself through sin.

3. Pray for all the backsliders to come back to God with remorseful and repentant heart.

EXTRA READING FOR TODAY: Psalms 56:11 - 62:1; Romans 12:4 - 13:4