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By Mike Caton

Exodus 34:31-32, “But Moses called to them; so Aaron and all the leaders of the community came back to him, and he spoke to them. Afterward all the Israelites came near him, and he gave them all the commands the LORD had given him on Mount Sinai.”

I wonder what Moses said to the leaders when he called them back. To be sure they were words of assurance, words of comfort, words of encouragement. And whatever Moses said and did, it worked, because they came back and then they brought all the Israelites back to hear what Moses had to say. But it was not just what Moses had to say, it was what the Lord had commanded him while he was up the mountain.

And let’s remember, this was not just what Moses was telling them, it was what God had revealed to Moses for him to tell these people. Moses was different after he had been with the Lord, and God’s intention is for all of the people to be different as well. The things God told Moses were to transform the people’s lives. They had been slaves for many years, now they were to be free. But they needed to learn how to live free, how to really live. That is what God’s word to them, and to us today, is really all about. It is not that God is trying to restrict our lives, take away our freedoms and our joys. It is that God is telling us how to live free and to really live life to the fullest!

We tend to look at God’s commands as restrictive, something to resist, to fear, and to even rebel against. But what we need to understand is that God loves us, and he always wants the very best for us. It sounds almost cliché and simple-minded to say, but when we live the way God intends, things are always going to work out for the best. God designed us, he made us, and he knows what is best for us.

Father, help me listen closely to your words. And then put them into practice. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Mike Caton is the preacher at Mount Olive Church of Christ in Belhaven. He volunteers at the Ponzer Fire Department and works as a full time AEMT with Hyde County EMS. Follow Mount Olive Church of Christ on Facebook for daily devotions.

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