Deuteronomy 21

Heaven is a place without murder. It is not a land of unloved spouses, rebellious sons, and captives of war. The world we live in today has many examples of all of these sad situations.

Israel was to be the one place on earth that would be a display of heaven, where the Law of the God of heaven was practiced. Yet the Law could not remove the curse for sin. Only the righteousness and blood of the Messiah could do that.

The Lord gave His people laws and rituals that testified to the seriousness of sin and the hope of a better day to come. But how would righteousness actually reign on the earth?

As the people of God waited for the kingdom of heaven, they could not consider murder a light matter. Murder required a penalty. But what if the murderer could not be found? Could the blood of a heifer really make things right? Even if the death of an animal might purge the guilt of innocent blood in a ceremonial way, at least for a time, would there ever be a better day without murder at all?

The law addressed the atrocities that were commonplace among other nations during a time of war. In Israel, the Word of God was to function as warning to men that they could not simply follow their lusts without consequences. But would there ever come a day without enslaving passions?

In Israel, it was unlawful for a man to disinherit his children just because he no longer loved their mother. That was a helpful statute, but surely the people of God longed for a place without broken families. Was it only an impossible dream that one day everyone would experience the love of a great husband and a devoted father?

In the promised land, a local village did not have to be terrorized forever by a rebellious and undisciplined young man who would not listen to his parents. An unruly drunkard would be stoned to death on the testimony of his parents. But who would comfort the mother and father in their loss? Could this be the Lord's best solution to their heart-breaking problem?

A new and better day arrived for the whole earth when the Son of God came in person to take away the curse for all who would believe in Him. According to the Law, a man who was hung publicly on a tree was cursed by God. But when God's perfect Son took the curse that we deserved on the cross, something new and very powerful came upon the earth.

The perfect Son of God has risen from the dead. He has promised us a much better day. Our day of hope is already reserved for us in the heavens and will surely come here soon with great power.

“Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”