July 31st, 2026
Scripture – ““Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left. Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. But you are to hold fast to the Lord your God, as you have until now. But just as all the good things the Lord your God has promised you have come to you, so he will bring on you all the evil things he has threatened, until the Lord your God has destroyed you from this good land he has given you. If you violate the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.””
Joshua 23:6-8, 15-16 NIV
Observation – God calls the Israelites to be careful to obey ALL the commands He has given them, not some of them, not most of them, but ALL of them. He tells them not to turn to the right or to the left or associate with nations that serve other Gods. He reminds them that He has fulfilled all of his promises and warns them that his anger will burn against them if they violate his commands.
Application – Examine your life and see if there is any area in which you have compromised. Often times we compromise because we don’t want to hurt someone’s feelings or we want to enjoy the pleasure of sin for a moment and trick ourselves into thinking that “one time isn’t a big deal”. Many Christians don’t want to viewed as a zealot so they grab onto the world’s view of moderation in all things. They think it sounds like they are exercising self control but God says to love him wholeheartedly and obey his commands. Moderation is great for food, drink and television but not for your relationship with Jesus.
Prayer – Lord you command us to love you with all or heart, all of our soul, all of our mind and all of our strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. Please help all of us not to apply moderation when it comes to you. Amen.
What are you doing? Do it better 