Get Rid of Sin

"When the Lord your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it, and clears away many nations before you, the Hittites and the Girgashites and the Amorites and the Canaanites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and stronger than you, and when the Lord your God delivers them before you and you defeat them, then you shall utterly destroy them. You shall make no covenant with them and show no favor to them. Furthermore, you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your daughters to their sons, nor shall you take their daughters for your sons. For they will turn your sons away from following Me to serve other gods; then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you and He will quickly destroy you. But thus you shall do to them: you shall tear down their altars, and smash their sacred pillars, and hew down their Asherim, and burn their graven images with fire. For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for His own possession out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth." -Deuteronomy 7.1-6

Again Moses gives an instruction and warning, from God, to the people. In short the instruction is to destroy all the people in the land, and the warning is that is they don't they will be led astray and destroyed. The message, "Get rid of sin or it will consume you."

The nations in the land were greater and stronger than Israel. Their influence could be very persuasive. God will deliver them over to Israel, and Israel is to completely destroy them. They are not to show mercy, let alone make a covenant with them, or intermarry with them. If they allow the people of the land to have any say, the sinful ways and pagan practices will have a chance to lead Israel astray.

Men, if we give sin a chance it will consume us. When we make exceptions with potentially compromising situations or circumstances, it is only a matter of time before they get out of control. If we allow any hint of sin it will take over our lives.

Let us get rid of all in. Let us refuse to let it have any foothold in our lives. God commanded Israel to destroy all the people and every hint of pagan worship. Israel doesn't end up listening and it causes a lot of hardship for them. May we never fall into the same trap. Let us get rid of all sin so that we can live as holy men before God.

"Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."

To God alone be the Glory!

Strength and Honor