Deuteronomy 13-15

(May 9, 2014)
Sometimes my eyes almost gaze over the language referring to the bondage of the House of Israel in Egypt – how the people of Israel must remember they were in bondage and delivered, and what that meant for how they treated their servants.  But the lesson there is just as powerful today as it was then.  We, too, were held in bondage in Egypt (and, to a greater or lesser degree, we each still are).  Only through the miraculous deliverance of the Lord were we able to be freed (if, in fact, we are so blessed).

When we see someone encased in sin – when their sins hurt us so painfully – shouldn’t our response be the same as that of Israel?  Shouldn’t we think in our hearts to be merciful, as we too were in bondage in Egypt and in bondage to sin?  I think that is a lesson we each should take to heart before we hold ourselves out as judges to condemn others for the harm they cause us.