ODJ: rolled away . . .

January 21, 2015 

READ: Joshua 5:2-12 

Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the shame of your slavery in Egypt” (v.9).

I’m ashamed to admit it, but sometimes I pray for God to grant me a good parking spot when I pick up my children from school. I wonder if I do this because, deep down, I believe that God is able to take care of only the small things of life, and little more.

In Joshua 5, God told the people of Israel that He had rolled away the shame of Egypt from them (v.9). It’s important to understand that this was no small thing. For the “shame of Egypt” included the Israelites’ constant complaining in the wilderness, their creation of the golden calf at the foot of Mt. Sinai and losing their faith in God when they were finally approaching the Promised Land. It represented the accumulated failures of generations of Israelites. But God rolled it all away after the people obediently practiced the act of circumcision—an outward sign of the reestablishment of their covenant with God (vv.2-8).

Today, God offers to roll away our shame through the work of Jesus, giving us a fresh start from even the worst and lowest moments of our lives. Consider how God reinstated Peter after his denial of Jesus and how he called the murderous Pharisee Saul to become the apostle Paul (John 21:15-19; Acts 9:3-18). Consider the sorrow of Good Friday being transformed into the joy of Easter morning (John 19:31-33, 20:11-17).

God does care about the small things, but His power isn’t limited to those things. He’s able to take the shame of our sin, no matter how heavy and burdensome, and roll it away. And so, we can sing with full hearts the words of the famous hymn: “My sin, not in part but the whole, is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!” —Peter Chin

365-day plan› Genesis 37:1-36

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Read Psalm 103:8-12 and 2 Corinthians 5:17 to be reminded of God’s power to transform lives! 
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Have you ever felt that your life was so dark that God would be unable to redeem it? How has God removed your shame from you? Is any shame too much for Him?