Read

Hebrews 8:8-12

⁸But God himself found fault with the old one when he said:

“The day will come, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. ⁹This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and led them out of the land of Egypt.
They did not remain faithful to my covenant, so I turned my back on them, says the Lord. ¹⁰But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their minds so they will understand them, and I will write them on their hearts so they will obey them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. ¹¹And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their family, saying, `You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will already know me. ¹²And I will forgive their wrongdoings, and I will never again remember their sins.”

Reflect

I admit. I’m lazy. I don’t like to exercise. Everyone knows that to live a healthy life, you should get some exercise on a regular basis. It’s written down everywhere. I have loads of instructions, workout routines, diets, calorie counters etc. But, I just can’t stick with it. I’m flawed. Lazy.

I’m no different than the Israelites. They were given a simple set of instructions and they couldn’t follow it. Ten simple steps to get to the promise land and they couldn’t hack it. God knew this. It was evident from Adam - who couldn’t even follow one simple rule - on down. That is why he sent Jesus. Jesus did all of the work. All we have to do is put our faith in Him!

Respond

What was the one instruction that Adam couldn’t keep?

What did the Israelites do or not do that made God turn his back on them?

Who did God send to remind us everyday that He is God and that we should understand and obey how He wants us to live?

===================================================
If you would like a printable copy of this devotional, we have provided one here.