Deut 30: ¹⁹ I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.  This is how God ends all the laws that He gave the Israelites after they entered the promised land and started conquering their neighbours.

At the beginning though, God did not talk about life and death in Gen 2:¹⁷ But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.  God was clear regarding His instruction to Adam, do not eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil.  Adam in return, then told Eve.  And then enters the serpent, the deceiver, a liar.  He turns what God said around and told Eve in Gen 3: ⁵ For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.  Satan substituted God’s truth for a lie.  Eve was deceived when she ate the fruit because God had not spoken to her directly. Adam on the other hand sinned against God because God spoke to him face to face; Adam sinned with his eyes open.  Ultimately, they both sinned and God pronounced judgement upon mankind.

Back to Deut 30, God tells his people to choose life and not death.  After Adam and Eve sinned, God realised he needed to make His commands clear before His children.  It was no longer about good versus evil (even though, that is how the world judges); God went deeper than that.  He wants us to recognise that it is about life versus death.  It is no longer about what is lawful but what is helpful to us in our Christian walk with Christ.

Apostle Paul stated in 1 Corin 6:¹² All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.  

My question to you as a child of God is, do you weigh your actions? Do you ask God before you embark on something?  Do you seek His permission?  Or do you simply do what you want to do because it is a good thing to do?  God is not in the business of good versus evil but life versus death.

When Jesus was hanging around tax collectors, talking to a woman who had had several husbands; the religious elite of the day, thought it was not good.  But Christ is not in the business of good versus evil.  He did and still does what he does so that we as mankind can be saved.  He came to reconcile man to God and thereby show us that His mandate is about life eternal.

When God told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, and Abraham obeyed, again it was not about good or evil but a bigger purpose.  When Jesus healed a man who had been blind from birth with clay, (John chapter 9).  The religious leaders of the time thought what he did was evil – Jhn 9:¹⁶ Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This man is not of God, because he keepeth not the sabbath day. Others said, How can a man that is a sinner do such miracles? And there was a division among them.  These religious leaders saw things in terms of good or evil.  They did not want to acknowledge Jesus or seek the truth and thereby denied the work of miracle.  Sometimes God will tell us to do something bizarre before He illuminates us.  We should always obey Him and not fear Him.  

When Peter denied Jesus three times, it was not about Peter being bad but again God needed to show him how easy it is to fall under pressure as Jesus wanted Peter to feed His sheep, when he Jesus was gone.  John 21:¹⁷ He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.  Sometimes, its in our frailty that we are used by God the most.

God always has a purpose for anything that He does and He wants the same for us too.  He wants us to weigh our actions, He wants us to rely on Him and come to Him and ask.  We are told in John 8:³⁶ If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.  As His children, God wants us to make decisions that will bring about life and not death.  He wants us to be led by the Holy Spirit, our helper and not the voice of the enemy.  Roms 8:¹⁴ For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Remember the fact that something is good does not mean it is of God.  Let us start weighing our actions more as we ask of God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  Let us start to make decisions onto life and not death.  

Let us ask Him before we do things, lifting situations up to Him brings about liberation.  We need to trust God and follow Him.  His truth makes us free, study the Word, believe His Word and obey His commands.  Satan imposes slavery that seems like freedom.  But there is freedom in Christ; Gal 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.