20/09/2023 - HARD PUNISHMENT

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Therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. Deuteronomy 28.48

The best translation of what it means to serve the Lord is to use Him for sanctification, healing, and other benefits purchased for us by Jesus. By doing the Father’s will, you will give Him the conditions to fulfill the promises described in the Word. Many miss out on blessings not because it’s hard to receive them, but because it’s too easy, because all you have to do is know about them and claim them by faith (Mark 11.23; John 15.7). Now, if we are not serving the Lord, we will be in the hands of demons.

The Israelites were warned that if they failed to serve the Almighty, they would make the mistake of doing the enemy’s will. We are also warned by the Lord not to be rebellious. The fact that God lets you serve Him can be understood in the following way: He will fulfill all that He has said. The Most High does not want imitators of religions, but true sons!

To work for the evil one is to live in penury, suffering the consequences of sin, such as hunger, thirst, nakedness and lack of everything. Was it not like this in the days of the judges in Israel? (Judges 2:16-20). They were delivered by the Lord’s chosen ones, but then they went astray and soon some people came to oppress them. There was an event with the Amalekites, which made Israel a land of misery, until Gideon stood up as a judge!

For seven consecutive years, when it was harvest time, the Amalekites came like locusts and took all the harvest of God’s people, and what was left in the field was destroyed. According to the Bible, they were relentless in their wickedness. Seeing that there was no way to get rid of them, the people of Israel began to pray, and the Almighty sent a prophet with a message. This man of God went through the territory of the Lord’s people, showing them why the enemy was acting this way.

As the prophet said, the Lord had delivered them from Egypt and given them that land (read Judges 6.1-10). He summarized the message: Also I said to you, ‘I am the LORD your God; do not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But you have not obeyed My voice (Judges 6.10). Besides not fearing the Lord, they began to worship the gods (demons) of the Amorites and serve them. So they suffered a lot!

Besides the ruin of those who exchange the Lord for the “angels” of Hell, the Most High warned these people that an iron yoke would be put around their necks, which would remain until they were all destroyed. Now, why offend the Creator if there is no way to live well away from Him? God will never impose this yoke, but will allow the devil to treat those who have strayed from the Way of salvation that way, for Satan is evil at all times. The Almighty warned them of the impending danger!

The Scriptures warn about the one who wavers as to whether he believes in God or in false gods: Listen, my beloved brethren: Has not God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? (James 2.5) Believe, pray and live! 

In Christ, with love,

R. R. Soares