Devotionals

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Here I am again! Another pastor was scheduled to write this devotional, but he was called away to jury duty. “Oh, what a pain!” you might say. That seems to be the attitude toward jury duty with everyone I’ve encountered who has been called. And, everyone I’ve ever asked has been called, but few have served. So far, I haven’t gotten that official letter in the mail, and I don’t know why. When people hear that, they say, “You’re lucky!”

Well, you know from another devotional that there is no such thing as “luck.” I don’t know why I haven’t been called, but I don’t really care. I’ve been in court a few times over the years, but never as a juror. Yet, for some reason, I kind of want to be called. I guess I have this romantic vision of judges in long, flowing robes, and prosecutors with evangelistic zeal performing legal legerdemain that clinches their case and wins the hearts of awestruck jurors.

However, I understand that jury duty is not quite that exciting. In fact, I hear it can be quite boring. Certainly not the way one would normally want to spend a day or two or several. That must be why there are web sites devoted to finding excuses to avoid jury duty.

Duty. That’s part of the phrase, isn’t it? The word implies responsibility and obligation. Not as friendly a word as, say, freedom, is it? Or leisure. Or independence. “Duty” almost comes across like a synonym for “burden.”

Ecclesiastes 12:13 says, “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” Basically, all the arguments have been argued, and the bottom line is: our duty is to obey God. Just like jury duty, or military duty, or taxpaying duty, keeping God’s commandments is what is required of us.

Sadly, we often see this as a pain. The people of Malachi’s day were well familiar with God’s requirements for sacrifices, yet they regarded them as nuisances. God knew their attitude toward his commands and said, “. . . you profane it by saying of the Lord’s Table, ‘It is defiled,’ and of its food, ‘It is contemptible.’ And you say, ‘What a burden!’ and you sniff at it contemptuously . . . “ (Malachi 1:12, 13). Therefore, God promised to curse the Israelites.

There may be loopholes that can keep us out of government service; however, God has no loopholes. And, His duties are not burdens to those who love Him! John tells us, “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith” (1 John 5:3, 4).

If we approach God’s commands with loving faith, we will get more than a few dollars a day and parking space miles from the courthouse. Our obedience proves our love for God, just as answering the call to civic duty shows our love for our country. Maybe it’s inconvenient; maybe it seems a pain. But it’s right. Jesus obeyed the Father unto death; we can obey the Father and live!

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