"Going Well With Thy Children"

We get these wonderful "daily devotions" via email from Pastor Thomas Smith, and I'm thankful that he readily says to share with friends and family because they are so rich in truth! Enjoy!

GOING WELL WITH THY CHILDREN
Devotion for November 16, 2010
"Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, for ever."
Deuteronomy 4:40.
A wonderful benefit of obedience, and one that many of us were once unaware of, is clearly identified in our Scripture passage. This verse, like so many similar places in the Bible, speaks of the importance of keeping God's commandments.
Everyone knows that we are to obey the commands of God, but the thing that many do not realize is that obedience is good for us. Some of us grew up with the idea that our obedience was good for God because He required it, or it was good for our parents because they demanded it. But we somehow missed the fact that it is equally good for us. Our text admonishes us to obey God's commands that "it may go well with thee." Things go better for us when we obey. Many can testify to the fact that things have not gone well for us when we have been disobedient.
This is in such contrast to the way Satan wants us to believe. He wants us to think that God is somehow harming us, or limiting our opportunities by His commands or restrictions. This was part of the enemy's false reasoning used against Eve in the Garden. The serpent suggested that God was being unjust in withholding access to the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This is one of the great misunderstandings and deceptions of the world: that somehow it might go better for us if we disregard God's unchanging laws and commands. The opposite is true. It goes better for those who obey.
Not only will it "go well with thee" when we obey, but God's Word also says that it will go well "with thy children after thee." Here is another great and often overlooked promise. We may not fully understand how this will always work out, but we know it is true. Our obedience will bring blessings to our children. This does not mean that God will overlook their disobedience or save them because of our faith in Christ. Our children are individually accountable to respond to God and His truth. However, God teaches in the Scripture that certain benefits resulting from our obedience will be experienced by the generations who follow us.

Pastor Smith's daily devotions may also be read by visiting www.mzbc.com/devotions.


Please feel free to share these devotions with family and friends.


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