Daily Devotional Podcasts

82_A God of justice Ex 22:1-4 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. 2 If a thief is found breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, 3 but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. 4 If the stolen beast is found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double. A young man once broke into a small bakery late at night. He found only a few dollars in the till, since the shop was struggling. As he turned to escape, he knocked over a set of shelves, tripped and fell. The noise was heard by the owner, who called the police. The thief was caught. In court, the bakery owner refused to press for a jail sentence, but asked that the young man work in the shop for six months as restitution. This is the heart of God’s principles in dealing with theft and swindling, in Exodus 22:1-4. The foundational commandment, "You shall not steal," is expanded upon in these verses. Firstly, the law acknowledges that human life is more valuable than property. A thief breaking in at night may be met with force, even lethal force, because the darkness obscures his intentions, and the homeowner has no other recourse. However, if the theft happens in daylight, the thief's life is to be spared. This principle stands in sharp contrast to a world where people are often treated as expendable in the pursuit of wealth. Corporates prioritize profit over safety, and financial gain over health or life itself. God's justice emphasizes the opposite priorities, reminding us that people cannot be sacrificed on the altar of greed. Secondly, theft is a crime against property but also a violation of trust and a burden on the community that has to provide justice. It threatens society and harms the victim. God commands that stolen goods be repaid multiple times over, depending on the nature of the theft. This principle of restitution goes beyond punishment—it is meant to restore justice and deter wrongdoing. This highlights God's concern for character rather than just outward actions. The punishment must set things right and not just acknowledge sin. This standard of justice reflects God's own righteousness, where sin carries consequences, but grace provides abundant restoration. Another key principle is the responsibility of stewardship. People are held accountable for anything that they borrow or are entrusted with. Carelessness and negligence are punishable. God is a faithful caretaker who neither neglects nor wastes what has been place in his care. Psalm 121:4 declares that the Lord neither slumbers nor sleeps; He is always watching over His people. In contrast, when King Ahab allowed his enemy, Ben-hadad, to go free, God rebuked him for his negligence, for it would harm his people in the future.

81_The value of human life Ex 21:12-14 “Whoever strikes a man so that he dies shall be put to death. 13 But if he did not lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint for you a place to which he may flee. 14 But if a man willfully attacks another to kill him by cunning, you shall take him from my altar, that he may die. Gen 9:5 And for your lifeblood I will require a reckoning: from every beast I will require it and from man. From his fellow man I will require a reckoning for the life of man. 6 “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image. After a storm, a young boy was walking along a beach littered with thousands of stranded starfish. One by one, he picked them up and tossed them back into the ocean. An older man approached him, pointing out the futility of the boy’s efforts. “You know, there are tens of thousands stranded like this on beaches all along this coast. You can’t save them all. You aren’t really making much difference.” Undeterred, the boy picks up another starfish and replies, “But it makes a difference for this one,” before throwing it back into the sea. This simple, heartwarming story reflects the value God places on each human life. This truth permeates Scripture, as in Exodus 21:12-14, where God’s laws emphasize the preciousness of human life and how seriously he regards murder. The regulations in Exodus 21 address personal injury of three kinds: injuries resulting in capital punishment, injuries not resulting in capital punishment, and injuries caused by or to an animal. These laws reveal God’s justice and mercy, His respect for human dignity, and His high regard for life as a reflection of His image. Unlike all other living creatures, man and woman are made in God’s image, a truth that survived the Fall and the Flood. In Genesis 9, God underscores this in his emphatic declaration that those who take human life will lose their own lives, because they have destroyed God’s image. This is the foundation of all human dignity. This is the reason why we were created, to bear his image. And this is the reason why we were redeemed by the blood of Christ our Lord, that we might reflect his image and glory. This foundational truth must inform how we view ourselves and others. It is a truth that gives worth and dignity to the lowest and vilest, the poorest and most ignorant. Exodus 21:12-14 begins with the gravest offense: premeditated murder. The deliberate destruction of life to please oneself forfeits the murderer’s own life. The value of a man’s life is so great that even the holy sanctuary offers him no shelter from justice. Nobody who has shed innocent blood may claim refuge at the altar of God. In a world increasingly numb to violence, where murder is often reduced to a statistic, this divine viewpoint is startlingly relevant. All premeditated

80_I love my master Exodus 21: 1-6 “Now these are the rules that you shall set before them. 2 When you buy a Hebrew slave, he shall serve six years, and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. 3 If he comes in single, he shall go out single; if he comes in married, then his wife shall go out with him. 4 If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall be her master's, and he shall go out alone. 5 But if the slave plainly says, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children; I will not go out free,’ 6 then his master shall bring him to God, and he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost. And his master shall bore his ear through with an awl, and he shall be his slave forever. Adoniram Judson, a missionary to Burma, endured unimaginable hardships: years of imprisonment, terrible diseases, the heartbreak of losing his children and his wife, and the unrelenting challenges of ministering in a tropical country. Yet, when asked why he didn’t abandon his mission for the comfort of a life back home, his response was simple yet profound: “I love my Savior, and I love these people He has called me to serve.” Judson’s life paints a powerful picture of what it means to serve out of love—a life mirroring the heart of a devoted servant who voluntarily lives out his life serving his master. In Exodus 21:1-6, we find a remarkable framework that illuminates this idea of voluntary, love-driven service. These verses are set within a larger passage where God provides Israel with instructions for living as His covenant people. These are not just societal rules. God is crafting a picture of a just and compassionate community, where even the institution of slavery—so often associated with oppression—is transformed into something humane and redemptive. The Israelites had survived decades of bitter slavery in Egypt, from which they were delivered only by the mighty hand of God. They knew what it meant to be powerless, to toil under harsh taskmasters. Unlike the harsh slavery of the ancient world, God’s order brought transformation. In God’s land, slavery was not an institution of exploitation. Instead, it was a provision whereby the poor could earn their living. If a Hebrew man had no other recourse, he could sign away his liberty to another Hebrew, becoming a servant until he paid off his debts or until six years were past. In the seventh year, he was to be set free—with a generous gift of flocks, grain, and wine. These instructions reminded the people of Israel that they were themselves redeemed by God’s mighty hand and outstretched arm. This law taught the Israelites to treat others with compassion and dignity. More than that, it underscored a fundamental truth: God’s redemption brings freedom. No debt, however large, could bind a Hebrew slave indefinitely because God had already claimed the Hebrew people as His own. They belonged to Him, and no human master could override