Purge Evil; Be Afraid   

  

  Was Old Testament punishment horrible or what?  

  Stoning was the penalty for capital crimes:  

false prophecy, idolatry, premeditated murder, malicious false testimony.

(Deuteronomy chapters 13, 17, 19, 21)

These evils destroy other people.

Onlookers were to "be afraid." 

If in fact there were more than a couple stonings, the Bible doesn't say.

God himself dealt with Eli, Samuel and David.

"We're not very good at purging evil from our midst," writes Janie B. Cheaney in WORLD magazine, probably "because we don't quite believe the charge."

Rebels..."undermine social order while destroying themselves."

As we see daily, our laws (like Israel's) work only for the law-abiding.

The "Law" still stands. Christ came to fulfill it, 

that is, taking the punishment He, God himself had proscribed. 

He endured something far worse than stoning.

The death penalty - eternal - remains, and God holds the "stone."

But He pleads with us over and over to accept the righteousness of his obedient Son.

Purge evil; be afraid

~ ~ ~

Tomorrow: Setting the right compass heading and sticking to it