The Deaf Devo from The Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States "Old Testament (6)" Bible Reading: Exodus 20:1-17 for Friday, 30 September 2016

The Deaf Devo from The Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States "Old Testament (6)" Bible Reading: Exodus 20:1-17 for Friday, 30 September 2016
Exodus 20:1 Then God said all these words:
א 2 “I am Adonai your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery.
ב 3 “You are to have no other gods before me. 4 You are not to make for yourselves a carved image or any kind of representation of anything in heaven above, on the earth beneath or in the water below the shoreline. 5 You are not to bow down to them or serve them; for I, Adonai your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sins of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but displaying grace to the thousandth generation of those who love me and obey my mitzvot.
ג 7 “You are not to use lightly the name of Adonai your God, because Adonai will not leave unpunished someone who uses his name lightly.
ד 8 “Remember the day, Shabbat, to set it apart for God. 9 You have six days to labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a Shabbat for Adonai your God. On it, you are not to do any kind of work — not you, your son or your daughter, not your male or female slave, not your livestock, and not the foreigner staying with you inside the gates to your property. 11 For in six days, Adonai made heaven and earth, the sea and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. This is why Adonai blessed the day, Shabbat, and separated it for himself.
ה 12 “Honor your father and mother, so that you may live long in the land which Adonai your God is giving you.
ו 13 “Do not murder.
ז (14) “Do not commit adultery.
ח (15) “Do not steal.
ט (16) “Do not give false evidence against your neighbor.
י 14 (17) “Do not covet your neighbor’s house; do not covet your neighbor’s wife, his male or female slave, his ox, his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
(A: vii) 15 (18) All the people experienced the thunder, the lightning, the sound of the shofar, and the mountain smoking. When the people saw it, they trembled. Standing at a distance, 16 (19) they said to Moshe, “You, speak with us; and we will listen. But don’t let God speak with us, or we will die.” 17 (20) Moshe answered the people, “Don’t be afraid, because God has come only to test you and make you fear him, so that you won’t commit sins.”
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God gave His people, the Israelites, many rules to help them live good lives. Some of these rules are listed in our Bible Reading today. Often we call these rules "The Ten Commandments."
Some people think that Christians should not pay attention to the Ten Commandments because they are in the Old Testament. But Jesus talked about these commandments a lot. In Matthew, chapter 5, Jesus said that wanting to break these commands in our heart is the same as doing the wrong thing.
In Matthew 22:37-39, Jesus tells us the two most important commands we must obey. "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and most important command. And the second command is like the first: 'Love your neighbor the same as you love yourself.'"
If we obey these two commands, we will have a good relationship with God and get along with other people.[RF*]
"But I will be very kind to those who love me and obey my commands. I will be kind to their families for thousands of generations."[Exodus 20:6]

PRAYER: Father, thank You for showing me how I can please You. In Jesus' name. Amen.
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The Deaf Devo from The Deaf Missions in Council Bluffs, Iowa, United States "Old Testament (5)" Bible Reading: Genesis 50:15-21 for Thursday, 29 September 2016
Genesis 50:15 Realizing that their father was dead, Yosef’s brothers said, “Yosef may hate us now and pay us back in full for all the suffering we caused him.” 16 So they sent a message to Yosef which said, “Your father gave this order before he died: 17 ‘Say to Yosef, “I beg you now, please forgive your brothers’ crime and wickedness in doing you harm.”’ So now, we beg of you, forgive the crime of the servants of the God of your father.” Yosef wept when they spoke to him; 18 and his brothers too came, prostrated themselves before him and said, “Here, we are your slaves.” 19 But Yosef said to them, “Don’t be afraid! Am I in the place of God? 20 You meant to do me harm, but God meant it for good — so that it would come about as it is today, with many people’s lives being saved. (vii) 21 So don’t be afraid — I will provide for you and your little ones.” In this way he comforted them, speaking kindly to them.
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Our Bible verses tell us that Joseph's brothers were worried and afraid because they had done something wrong to Joseph. Do you remember what Joseph's brothers had done?
Genesis, chapter 37, tells us that Joseph's brothers were jealous of him. So they took him and sold him into slavery in Egypt. Now, years later, they saw Joseph again. They were afraid that Joseph was still angry with them and would punish them.
But Joseph said to his brothers, "Don't be afraid...I have no right to punish you. It is true that you planned to do something bad to me. But...God's plan was to use me to save the lives of many people" (verse 19b). Joseph forgave his brothers!
Throughout the New Testament, Jesus teaches us to forgive other people. It is not always easy to forgive someone who hurts us. But we should follow Jesus' example and be willing to forgive others.[BC*]
"Be kind and loving to each other. Forgive each other the same way as God forgave you through Christ."[Ephesians 4:32]

PRAYER: Thank You, Lord, for the example of Joseph. Help me to be forgiving and kind. In Jesus' name. Amen.

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Council Bluffs, Iowa 51503, United States
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