14 Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you." 15 The man went away and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
I am reminded of Jesus’ stern warning presented in both Matthew and Luke to those who continue to persist in their unbelief:
43 "When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. 44 Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. 45 Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that man is worse than the first. That is how it will be with this wicked generation." Matt 12:43-45 (NIV)
23 "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me, scatter s. 24 "When an evil spirit comes out of a man, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, 'I will return to the house I left.' 25 When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. 26 Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of tha t man is worse than the first." Luke 11:23-26 (NIV)
Knowing that it is impossible to remain neutral in the battle between Christ and Satan, Jesus calls our healed protagonist to a decision. These words would not have been unfamiliar to the Jewish listening ear. Moses, Elijah and Joshua – just to name a few – clearly all called the people to make a choice. We find in Deuteronomy, Moses’ clarion call:
15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. 17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. Deut 30:15-18 (NIV)
In like manner, the prophet Elijah presents this same question to the people of Israel in his grand show down with the prophets of Baal and Asherah on Mount Carmel found in 1 Kings:
21 Elijah went before the people and said, "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him." 1 Kings 18:21 (NIV)
Interestingly, the word translated “waver” found in the above verse in 1 Kings is from the Hebrew word “pasha” meaning a limping dance. How often that is true in our day and age as well. We find ourselves doing a one legged two step with God and a one legged two step with the world. Beth Moore’s grandmother used to say: “You better dance with the one who brought you!” In like manner, we would do well to remember to dance with the One who has brought us thus far!
Lastly, Joshua presents yet again the same choice in these well known verses found in the Book which bears his name:
14 "Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. 15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." Josh 24:14-15 (NIV)
God is His mercy calls us over and over again to come to Him – to turn from our ways and embrace the One who willingly gave His Son to restore us once again to a right relationship with Him. To entrust ourselves into His loving hands should not be hard as His plans for us are to prosper and not harm us. His plans for us are to give us hope and a future. I was reminded of a beautiful passage in Jeremiah today through a devotional I was reading reinforcing this great truth:
8 See, I will bring them from the land of the north and gather them from the ends of the earth. Among them will be the blind and the lame, expectant mothers and women in labor; a great throng will return. 9 They will come with weeping; they will pray as I bring them back. I will lead them beside streams of water on a level path where they will not stumble, because I am Israel's father, and Ephraim is my firstborn son. Jer 31:8-9 (NIV)
12 They will come and shout for joy on the heights of Zion; they will rejoice in the bounty of the LORD-- the grain, the new wine and the oil, the young of the flocks and herds. They will be like a well-watered garden, and they will sorrow no more. 13 Then maidens will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow. 14 I will satisfy the priests with abundance, and my people will be filled with my bounty," declares the LORD. Jer 31:12-14 (NIV)
“Now, O Lord, I am blind, and heartily desire also to be directed by thee alone in all my ways and steps, in great and little things. Suffer me never to follow my own spirit and natural inclinations, whatever good appearance they may have. Be pleased to cross them continually, whenever they are contrary to thy will. Often have I been deceived by false appearances already; my zeal has not always been according to knowledge; I have put natural passion in the place thereof, and thought I was contending for the faith once delivered to the saints, and have afterwards found it no better than the effects of a party spirit. Be then a Father to me, O Lord, and instruct thy waiting child in all necessary truths, and lead me in all thy righteous ways.” K. H. Von Bogatzky