Seize the Moment – Day 689

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04
Feb '22

Seize the Moment – Day 689

Posted on Feb 4, 2022 by Jerry Ingalls in Devotions, General |

04
Feb '22

God is Our Refuge!

Joshua 20

 

Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, February 4.

 

Is your home a safe place? Are you a sanctuary for people to find peace and rest?

 

By God’s grace, the nation of Israel had conquered and apportioned the Promised Land. It was time to ensure the protection of due process in God’s special place through the establishment of the six refuge cities, three on either side of the Jordan River! Joshua 20:9 summarizes,
 
“These were the appointed cities for all the sons of Israel and for the stranger who sojourns among them, that whoever kills any person unintentionally may flee there, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood until he stands before the congregation.”

 

Interestingly, and to the confusion of modern-day scholars, there are no biblical accounts of this system of refuge cities being utilized, either in those initial days, which quickly devolved into the chaos of the time of the Judges, or in the years of order under the monarchy, or even during the dark days of the divided kingdom. The closest allusion we have is from King David’s words about God, not any specific city, in Psalm 46:1, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

 

It is speculated that the system either worked so well, or so completely fell apart, that there was no reason to highlight it in the biblical account. Either way, it is widely agreed upon that the system foreshadowed God’s grace granted to God’s people in Jesus Christ. Hebrews 6:18b states of a believer’s relationship with God through Jesus Christ, “we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.” In Romans 8:1, Paul declares for all who have found their refuge in Jesus Christ, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

 

Seize the moment and flee from sin and death, into the everlasting arms of Jesus Christ!

God bless you!

 
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
 

YOUTUBE:

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Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.

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