Seize the Moment – Day 738
Curb your Curiosity!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, March 25.
My daughter loves monkeys, so Curious George makes regular appearances in my life. He is such an adorable and funny character. His curiosity is constantly getting him into situations that could be avoided. That makes for great comedy relief, but in real life it can lead to serious situations. You have heard it said that curiosity killed the cat, but in 1 Samuel 6:19-21 curiosity killed a lot more than a cat:
He struck down some of the men of Beth-shemesh because they had looked into the ark of the Lord. He struck down of all the people, 50,070 men, and the people mourned because the Lord had struck the people with a great slaughter. The men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God? And to whom shall He go up from us?” So they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying, “The Philistines have brought back the ark of the Lord; come down and take it up to you.”
While there is some scholarly debate over the number of deaths, 70 or 50,070, due to some original language issues, the point of the story is unaffected – God can’t let sin go unpunished! It is neither loving nor holy to do so – God is just in all that He does!
The ark of God had been returned after seven months of captivity. Upon it returning, the people of Beth-shemesh, most likely with the best of intent to ensure the contents were still in it, looked inside of it. Their curiosity had led them to violate the Law of God, then He brought swift judgment upon them (Numbers 4:5, 15, 20; Romans 6:23).
Seize the moment and trust that God’s ways are right and true for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:2-3). Don’t let curiosity lead you astray from the way of God in your life.