Why Do You Serve?

"One Year Bible" Old Testament History Passage
Deuteronomy 13:1-15:23

"And if it happens that he says to you, 'I will not go away from you,' because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you, then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever."  Dt. 15:16-17 (NKJV)

Why do you serve God?  Do you do it because of fear?  You may be afraid of what would happen to you if you went away from Him.  You may be afraid of hell.  Do you serve because of the watchful eyes of others?  You simply do not want to give a bad example, so you keep up the front.  But inside, your heart simply isn't in it.

Why do you serve God?  Do you have some sort of bargain with God?  You give Him "so much" in exchange for "so much" from Him.  It's a agreement of expedience.

Sometimes, people serve God because they feel indebted to "pay Him back" for all the good things He has done for them.  That's ok, but what happens if you feel like you've paid back enough?

Servants/slaves in the Old Testament were not like the slaves of the pre-Civil War South who were owned for life.  In the Bible, slaves were indentured for a specific season -- usually to pay back a debt or to "right" some "wrong."  At the end of the season of slavery, the slave was free.  BUT HE/SHE HAD AN OPTION.  And we do today, too.

He could declare permanent allegience to his master.  Interestingly, the sign of such allegience was that his ear was drilled with an awl.  The place of his hearing was marked, so that he from that point forward would hear only one voice. 

Why do you serve God?  Do you do it because of true allegience to Him or because you're paying off some sort of agreement or fighting off some superstitious fear?

Happy is the man or woman who settles early who they will serve for all their days.