Daily Devotion for Day 22 of Lent 2016

Scripture Reading: Exodus 20 (NRSV)

When moving from a settled area like Egypt into a nomadic existence as the Israelites had done, we can see that they still needed law and order.

The Ten Commandments were clear expectations for a people who needed guidance.  Of course, we all need guidance.  The commandments are difficult for us today just as they must have been then.  We will see the people struggling with idol worship shortly.  It is a problem that persists all through the Bible.

Just in case we think we are beyond it, we may not name things as "gods" but there are many things that afford our devotion or time above God.

According to today's reading, an  altar
such as this one would have been acceptable.

As the people look at how they will sacrifice to God, it is clear that simple is better.  There doesn't need to be any gold or silver involved.  God seems to prefer earthier stuff.  Even the rocks should come as they are from the ground rather than shaped with chisel and hammer.

Since we are mostly settled people today, it becomes more difficult to remember God in the environment around us.  We have interjected our own structures upon the landscapes created by God.  Would this be why we have more difficulty in sensing God's presence?  When I am surrounded by my own (or other human) creations, is my own reliability on God somehow muted?



Photo by Wanna Be Creative from Flickr.com, used by permission under the Creative Commons license.