Social responsbility and a call to justice are the subjects of today's passage, Exodus 22-24. God explained in these chapters his expectations related to how the children of Israel should behave and what type of penalties they should impose when certain situations occurred. In giving these clear guidelines, God made it evident that he was serious about civil order. This is not an easy passage to read and in today's culture, I'm afraid there are probably many who would like to remove these pages from scripture rather than accept that God would levy such severe penalties for some of the crimes that are mentioned.
As I said yesterday though, a view of God that neglects to acknowledge his justice while focusing only on his love is unbalanced and inaccurate. It's disturbing and inspiring to read of God's dealing with his children. Old Testament passages such as these remind me of how grateful I am for the New Covenant in Jesus Christ. Without God's grace, I would be doomed--and so would you.
The other big take away from these chapters that I want to mention to you is this verse from chapter 23.
2 “You must not follow the crowd in doing wrong...
Almost without exception, following the crowd will take you down the wrong path. Matthew 7:14 says that the path that leads to life is narrow and few are those who find it. The preceding verse says that the way is broad that leads to destruction and most people are on that road.
Don't be a follower. That's just too easy and too predictable. God equips those he loves to choose the road less traveled, even if it requires sacrifice, heartache, and difficulty, because in the end the reward is worth it all. And if you are ever called to stand alone, you won't be. Following THE Leader on the narrow path guarantees it.
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