“Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God commanded you…” Deuteronomy 5:16
The King
“[The king] must not acquire many horses for himself…” (17:16).
If you were planning military aggression in those days, you would acquire great numbers of horses. Are any nations today building military power and threatening world stability? When God speaks about kings, this is for us.
The Priest
“For the Lord your God has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand and minister in the name of the Lord…” (18:5).
Do we have any abusive religious leaders today? Men who were given a position of trust, men called to minister in the Lord’s name who abused that trust and brought great pain to vulnerable people? When God speaks about priests, this is for us.
The Prophet
“The prophet who presumes to speak a word in my name that I have not commanded him to speak… that same prophet shall die” (18:18, 20).
Do we have any problems today with people who are given the trust of a pulpit, and who use it not to speak the Word of God, but to communicate their own message? When God speaks about prophets, this is for us.
We live in a sinful, fallen world of biased judges, abusive priests, false prophets, and tyrannical kings. The failings we see in our leaders are a reflection of what resides in ourselves. But God says to his people, “Among you it is to be different.”
Pray for world leaders that God brings to mind. Pray for healing where spiritual leaders have abused those under their care, and pray for God to raise up faithful spiritual leaders for the next generation.
