July 8, 2012
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

The Mystery of Wickedness

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Opening Prayer

Sovereign Lord, help me not only to see what is, but also what can be. Continue Your work in me.

Read Psalm 106:24-48

For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.

[24] Then they despised the pleasant land; they did not believe his promise. [25] They grumbled in their tents and did not obey the LORD. [26] So he swore to them with uplifted hand that he would make them fall in the wilderness, [27] make their descendants fall among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands. [28] They yoked themselves to the Baal of Peor and ate sacrifices offered to lifeless gods; [29] they aroused the LORD’s anger by their wicked deeds, and a plague broke out among them. [30] But Phinehas stood up and intervened, and the plague was checked. [31] This was credited to him as righteousness for endless generations to come. [32] By the waters of Meribah they angered the LORD, and trouble came to Moses because of them; [33] for they rebelled against the Spirit of God, and rash words came from Moses’ lips. [34] They did not destroy the peoples as the LORD had commanded them, [35] but they mingled with the nations and adopted their customs. [36] They worshiped their idols, which became a snare to them. [37] They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to false gods. [38] They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was desecrated by their blood. [39] They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves. [40] Therefore the LORD was angry with his people and abhorred his inheritance. [41] He gave them into the hands of the nations, and their foes ruled over them. [42] Their enemies oppressed them and subjected them to their power. [43] Many times he delivered them, but they were bent on rebellion and they wasted away in their sin. [44] Yet he took note of their distress when he heard their cry; [45] for their sake he remembered his covenant and out of his great love he relented. [46] He caused all who held them captive to show them mercy. [47] Save us, LORD our God, and gather us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. [48] Praise be to the LORD, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting. Let all the people say, “Amen!” Praise the LORD.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Reflect

“Jeshurun [Israel] grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior” (Deut. 32:15).

Few events were as strongly impressed on Israel’s memory as the Exodus. It recurs throughout the Bible: in law code, historical narrative, prophetic oracle, and the Psalms. But the extraordinary nature of God’s gracious and loving act only serves to highlight the shocking depth and pervasiveness of Israel’s infidelity, as it is starkly recorded here. At every point, his people questioned, doubted, complained, and disobeyed. This might seem incredible were it not for the fact that this is simply the other side of doubt. It is grounded in self-centeredness. Under different conditions, this same wellspring that gave rise to self-doubt subtly becomes complacency, then self-confidence and finally willful disobedience. Given that he is a covenant-keeping God, he who was faithful to bless must also be faithful to curse (40-43). Even so, in spite of Israel’s utterly dishonorable behavior, God still extended his loving mercy toward them (44-46).

Our response to God’s gracious and loving provision is one of the great mysteries of human existence. I happen to live in one of the most beautiful places on earth: the coast of British Columbia. One might think that surrounded by such beauty we would be provoked to wonder and gratitude. Instead, my hometown is one of the most godless and self-satisfied cities in North America. Israel, it seems, is not alone. We grow fat on God’s remarkable goodness—and we rebel, soon to become victims of our own idols. We desperately need that salvation for which the last verses cry. Of course, this is exactly what God has done in Christ. Such is our tendency toward self-assertion, however, that we either, like Israel, seek our own righteousness (Rom. 10:1-3) or, like the newly included Gentiles, begin to boast (Rom. 11:17-21).

Apply

Ask God to guard your heart from pride and to keep you always in humble dependence upon his gracious mercy, not your own efforts.

Closing prayer

Loving Father, I so easily drift into trusting myself instead of You. Teach me again the importance of dependence on You alone.

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