Moses warns us of practices that can entrap us.

Deuteronomy Chapter 12: The Laws of the Central Sanctuary and Idolatry

Deuteronomy 12:1-32 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

In this chapter, Moses is reiterating the need for the sons of Israel to destroy all evidence of idol worship by those that occupied the land they will conquer. And in verse 4, he tells them that they are not to act like that toward the Lord their God.

Sometimes I wonder if God expects us even today to be more like that.  That is, to take a stronger position against God’s enemies and do more not to be like them. Somehow, I feel we’ve let Him down in that regard.  Thankfully, His Grace abounds.

There’s yet a little gem hidden in verse 7 where Moses says, “There you shall eat before the Lord.” I wonder how much eating (and drinking) we do that we forget the Lord is there with us. We order too much or we order the most expensive thing just because we can. I’m not suggesting that we always eat poorly but I am suggesting that we be mindful that whenever we eat, we are eating before the Lord Who makes that possible for us.

Verse 8 is most interesting. Moses says, “You shall not do at all what we are doing here today, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes.” Seems like the world hasn’t changed much and the Bible warns us about that both in the Old and the New Testaments. When you have a minute take a look at just two of such verses:

Judges 17:6 ESV, In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
Romans 8:7 ESV, For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot.

In verse 9, Moses tells us why the children of Israel may have been behaving in this way and thus offers us a glimpse as to why we might be as well. He says it’s because “you have not as yet come to the resting place and the inheritance which the Lord Your God is giving you.” That certainly may well explain how or why our human nature still fights God’s spirit that He has given us as we live our lives and we have to carefully guard against it gaining ground.

In verse 13, Moses warns them to be careful not to worship (i.e. offer their sacrifices) anywhere they feel like (especially a ‘cultic’ place) but rather (vs. 14) only in the place where the Lord chooses for you. That’s big for me. Have you ever had to decide you should go to church? I know that is a difficult decision for many. And to be honest, we take a lot of things into consideration when we make that decision. We consider the preacher, the music, the children’s program, the location, the building, who goes there already, and so much more. Oh yes, theology and doctrine are important too. But I wonder if we’re doing it all wrong. Maybe we just need to let God choose it for us. Let Him lead us through circumstances and through the gentle nudging of our hearts to the right church. And by the way, it won’t be perfect, especially once you (or I) start attending.

In verse 19, there’s a strong reminder that we are not to neglect the needs of our pastors, our modern-day Levites. I know that today many well-known pastors are well taken care of financially and as far as perks are concerned – they get free use of some neat assets that some folks in their congregations have – be it cottages at the lake, or condos in the South, etc. But what about their own spiritual, social, or emotional needs? Is someone taking care of those things, noticing when help is needed even though not asked for? Also, while some pastors are very well taken care of financially, we must remember that others, often are not – the more junior ones that have debt, no house of their own, and as many children as God has given them. Is someone watching out for them, or do we just leave it up to the senior pastors to take care of them?

Lastly, I would point out verse 30 in which Moses advises the children of Israel to not even enquire about the gods of those people that were driven out of the land that they were to possess. They were not to even enquire about how these heathens served or worshipped their gods. The fear was that somehow, they would do likewise. And God hates that. And that same fear is operable today for us, or for our children, or grandchildren who may dabble with the study of other faiths or religions or cults. God says don’t do it.

David Guzik says reminds us of an old proverb that says “curiosity killed the cat” but he goes on to add, “ungodly curiosity has also killed many spiritual lives. No, it’s not okay for a Christian to start investigating Freemasonry.

Wrap-up

When I first looked at this chapter and the headings that were assigned to it, I thought I wouldn’t find too much here that God wanted to see to me, and to you, today. But again, I was surprised by the gems hidden in it.  Let me summarize the 7 things I learned today, and hopefully, you found them helpful as well:

1.     Don’t act like idolaters of other religions.

2.     Recognize you are still living in ways that are right in your own eyes, to a certain extent, and work on it.

3.     Recognizing your resting place is ultimately with Christ in heaven, and your perfection won’t be achieved until then.

4.     Do all your eating ‘before’ the Lord and recognize Him as your guest at the table.

5.     Let God choose where you go to church.

6.     Make sure your pastoral staff’s needs – not just financial – are taken care of.

7.     Don’t concern yourselves too much if at all with the study of other religions.

Would love to hear from you in one form or another. Send me a response on the media by which you Walked Thru this scripture with me.  See you again soon.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

In this decision, not deciding results in the bad choice default.

Walk Thru Deuteronomy 11

[photo by adents.com -- check them out]

Deuteronomy Chapter 11: Victory Depends on Studying and Obeying the Commands

Deuteronomy 11:1-32 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

I like verse 2 where Moses says, “And know this day that I am not speaking with your sons...” and then verses 7 and 8, “...but your own eyes have seen…You shall, therefore, keep every commandment…”. This spoke to me. Moses was speaking to those sons of Israel that had witnessed firsthand what God had done for them. And he was saying, “Look, regardless of what your sons and daughters believe in now, you are to keep the commandments.”

We need to hear that today as parents and grandparents. It doesn’t matter what our children and grandchildren proclaim or know or believe, we who know what God has done for us, are to keep the commandments. This morning a friend reminded me of another verse in Scripture, 2 Thessalonians 2:15, which says, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” That’s our job no matter how others react. Obey the commandments; follow the traditions.

In verse 10, Moses is describing how the Israelites’ new land is different than the land of Egypt. It drinks water from heaven. God cares for it. His eyes are on it. And He’s always watching it all through the year, not just in the autumn and spring when rains normally fall.

In verse 18, he reminds them to teach these commands to their children, for all the reasons he had repeated earlier.

Then comes verse 26. “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse.” Listen to God’s commands and be blessed. Don’t listen and be cursed. Chuck Smith reminds us that “That’s always the way it is. God sets before you the blessing and the curse; it’s your choice.” And he adds, “Now if you go to destruction it isn’t that God sent you there. It’s that you deliberately went there against all of God’s endeavors to keep you from there.”

In verse 29, he tells them that once they enter the land, they are to “place the blessing on Mount Gerizim and the curse on Mount Ebal.” Now, what’s that all about? This is what Smith says about it:

And when they came into the land some of the men were to go up to the top of Mount Gerizim and they were to shout to the people who were in this valley between these two mountains, shout down to them the blessings of the land and the conditions of blessings.

And as these men would shout down, "Blessed be ye in the fields" the people say, "Amen". "And in your cities" "Amen" and they would shout down these blessings. But on Mount Ebal there's another bunch of guys that were shouting the curses that would come to them if they disobeyed. So on Gerizim the blessing was placed and they would shout down to the people in the valley, the people would consent "Amen, Amen". And from Ebal the curses were pronounced and again the consenting "Yes, that's right. That's right, amen, amen. So be it". So that must have been quite an experience.

David Guzik says that this is Moses telling the people (and us) that God wants this “choice” that we have to be shared with all the people. We need to tell then that it’s a choice they have to make. That’s part of sharing the gospel today. That’s what a missionary is all about. The name Gerizim is supposed to be associated with fruitful harvests, and the name Ebal is supposed to be associated with barrenness.

This might well be the earliest reference to sharing the good news.

Wrap-up

Study the commands of God. Obey the commands of God. Share the commands of God and the choice that people have. And be victorious.

If our study in Deuteronomy does nothing else, it has certainly helped me understand how simple and easy God really made it for us all. It is us who have complicated things as we try to replace Him in all matters. My hope is that you too can see the solidness of God’s plan for us.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Our Rebellion Leads to God's Grace.

 (credit to usatoday.com)

Deuteronomy Chapter 10: Moses Rehearses God’s Mercy

Deuteronomy 10:1-22 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

When the people rebelled against God, He replied with mercy. He usually does. And Moses doesn’t want the sons of Israel to forget that. This chapter covers God’s mercy shown to Israel. Let’s cover the highlights.

In verses 1-3 we read that God told Moses who had smashed the first two tablets that the Ten Commandments were written on, to prepare another set as well as an ark or case of wood in which to put the tablets in after God wrote on them again. God knows how important these commandments are to life, and this time He didn’t want them broken.

In verse 10, Moses reminds the Israelites how he pleaded that God would not destroy them by staying on the mountain forty days and forty nights during which God listened to his pleas for the Israelites. And He relented and allowed them to go in and possess the land which He had “swore to their fathers to give them.” (vs. 11)

And in the next two verses Moses tells them what God requires of them. They (and we) are to:
-- fear Him (vs. 12)
-- to walk in all His ways
-- to love Him
-- to serve Him (with all their – our – heart and with all their – our – soul
-- to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes (vs. 13) for their – our – good.
Sounds pretty simple to me, but is it?

Now, let’s stop and think for a moment. Can you imagine a God like our God who created us and chose us to His children, NOT requiring anything of us? Honestly, what would be the point, of creating us? And how would we ever feel like His children? God has every right to demand things of us and not doing so, would have made life so much more futile in many ways. At least now, we have an opportunity to please God and serve Him. I’m not saying that doing so buys us salvation for it does not. But it gives us a purpose for living. So, we can say, as Moses does at the end of verse 13, “this is for your [our] good.” Can you believe that? You need to in order to get the full blessing of living for God.

In verses 14 and 15, Moses reminds them God owns everything in the universe, and He could have chosen to set His affection on whoever He wanted, yet He chose them (and you and I).

Our response is to “circumcise the foreskins of our hearts” and stop being a “stiff-necked people” (vs. 16) because God “does not show partiality, nor take a bribe.” (vs. 17) Circumcision of the body was a symbolic physical act representing what God really wanted from us – that of our cutting ourselves away from the desires of the flesh.  But the circumcising of our heart was what God wants of us spiritually.  In verse 18, Moses elaborates on that by declaring that God shows His justice by taking care of widows and orphans, and His love, by giving aliens food and clothing. And Moses advises that we do likewise, for we were once aliens – the Israelites in Egypt, and we in our sin. Both of us under slavery. (vs. 19)

And the last two verses of the chapter are most interesting. In verse 21, he says God is our praise. David Guzik says God is first and foremost the object of our praise. Secondly, “He is also the One who makes us praiseworthy. Any wisdom, beauty, or skill we show is not to our praise – but He is your praise.”

In verse 22, he reminds them that they started off with 70 people heading to Egypt and now they already were “as numerous as the stars of heaven.” What more do you want?

Wrap-up

This is a very complete chapter. 1) They (you and I) rebelled. 2) God showed great mercy. 3) Here’s what they (you and I) need to do. 4) And it’s good for them (us). It’s that simple, well, all except point 3.  So, let’s repeat it in detail.  Our job is to:

-- fear Him (vs. 12)
-- to walk in all His ways
-- to love Him
-- to serve Him (with all their – our – heart and with all their – our – soul
-- to keep the Lord’s commandments and His statutes (vs. 13) for their – our – good.

We could spend hours and pages on each one of these points.  We won’t because I know you get the point. The rewards of obedience in these five points are eternal starting right here and now.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Three things we learn about God as Moses reviews the rebellion of the children of Israel.

 

[photo courtesy of bibletruthandprophecy.com -- check them out]

Deuteronomy Chapter 9: Moses Rehearses Israel’s Rebellion

Deuteronomy 9:1-29 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

Moses uses this chapter to remind the sons of Israel about all their rebellions against God from the time they left Egypt to the point where “this day” they were going to cross over the Jordan into the Promised Land.  We will avoid repeating the charges against Israel in our study, but we touch verses that have something to teach us about God. Let’s dig in:

Verse 3: It is God that is “crossing over before you”. Whenever and wherever God is sending us, he will go before us, as He did for the Israelites. And not only that, He will go “as a consuming fire.” You have a big meeting tomorrow with your boss, or your accuser, or any difficult meeting that God wants you to be part of, know this – God will go before you as a consuming fire. And it gets better.  The text says, “He will subdue (your enemy) before you.” He has already prepared the outcome. All you need to do is move in, and “drive them out and destroy them quickly” or whatever the Lord has spoken to you to do. Friends that is very powerful. If you can believe that and if you can claim that, and walk in His ways, you got it made.

Verse 10: Moses talks about the Lord having given him “the two tablets of stone written by the finger of God”. The Ten Commandments were not figments of Moses’ imagination. They were written by the “finger of God” because God knew mankind needed those commandments.  And they need them in A.D. as much as they needed them in B.C. Again, we either believe it and claim it, or we don’t. If we don’t, we can ignore each of the commandments. If we do, we must do all to keep each of those commandments.

Here they are in case you don’t have your Bible handy. The text of the Ten Commandments appears twice in the Hebrew Bible: at Exodus 20:2-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-17.

·  Thou shalt have no other gods before me

·  Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image

·  Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain

·  Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy

·  Honour thy father and thy mother

·  Thou shalt not kill

·  Thou shalt not commit adultery

·  Thou shalt not steal

·  Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour

·  Thou shalt not covet

Yes, every one of them applies to you as a child of God and as a believer in Jesus Christ. There’s no getting around that. How and what you interpret some of them to mean is between you and God, but don’t be looking for any ‘bye’ as you might get in a tennis tournament because you’ve been good in the past. God, to my knowledge, isn’t into sports.

Verse 19: Moses says he “was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure with which the Lord was wrathful against (the Israelites) in order to destroy you”. Let’s not make any mistake about it – God could and did get angry, very angry in the Old Testament. And we know that God doesn’t change. That tells me that God can and does get very angry today. Yes, He is a loving Father and He has proven that over and over – even with you, if you are honest. But that doesn’t mean He doesn’t get fuming angry at things or even at you and me. He can and He may well have or do so again in the future. If Moses, who was intimately associated with the Creator (Exodus 33:11a tells us, ‘Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend’), says God gets angry, then that’s good enough for me. So, I have to live my life in a way that does not get God angry. Not because He can’t handle it (like my nonagenarian father couldn’t handle it), nor because He would not forgive me (as sometimes my dad wouldn’t forgive me), but because I love God and I want my relationship with Him to a pleasing aroma to Him (which is what we all want with our earthly fathers to the extent possible).

Wrap-up

A simple chapter reminding the children of Israel of their rebellion against God, but you’ll remember that recently we decided that God should be the Hero of every passage of Scripture. And we need to focus on Him, rather than the human characters in the text. So, we gleaned the passage for gems about God and His character.  This time we found three:

1.     He goes before us and lays all the groundwork for the challenges we face when walking in His ways.

2.     He actually “hand wrote” the ten commandments. Think about that and what it means.

3.     He gets angry. Think about that and what it means.

It is my prayer that by keeping these three things in our minds, our relationship with God will grow and deepen.  Love to hear from you as we continue our journey through Deuteronomy.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Handling Prosperity

Deuteronomy Chapter 8: The Command to Remember the Lord

Deuteronomy 8:1-20 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

In verse 2 we have an insight into how God often works with people that we often miss. Moses was reminding the people of Israel how God humbled them, “testing you, to know your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not.” Have you ever been humbled by God? I have. It’s not fun but it works. And as a result, by His grace, I’m still in a relationship with Him.

In verse 3, Moses says, “He humbled you and let you be hungry, and fed you with manna which you did not know.” What a statement. Sometimes life gets very hard – you go hungry; you go without a job; you get sick; you lose someone; you are greatly disappointed, and the list goes on. Stop and consider – is God testing me? If so, realize He is doing so because He loves you and cares about your heart and soul. And then notice the phrase, He “fed you with manna”.  God won’t let you die on earth if He wants you around to accomplish more for Him. And from this verse, we can assume that sometimes, how He saves us in a circumstance may be totally strange or unknown to us. That’s our God.

David Guzik reminds us that God’s education begins with us being humbled by Him. And then it moves to us being totally dependent on Him.

This verse also contains the famous “man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord” quote that Jesus Himself cited to Satan when the latter begged Him to “Command the stone to be made bread.”

In the meantime, between your pain or hunger and His provision for it, we are reminded (verse 4) that we will always have what we need. Moses tells the Israelites, “Your clothing did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years.”  Wow, imagine that. When God is taking care of you, He’ll see to it that you’ll make it through.

Verse 5 is a reminder to all of us how God created us with a conscious. As a result of your need, Moses says, you will “know in your heart that the Lord your God was disciplining you just as a man disciplines his son.” I don’t know about you, but I sure know when God is disciplining me. It’s not physical. It’s something that happens in my heart and in my mind.

In verses 6-9, Moses recounts the rewards of having been so dealt with by God. And in verse 10, he tells them (and us) that when we have availed ourselves of that blessing, we shall “bless the Lord (our) God” for what He has given us. Are you there yet? I am.

Verses 11-20 are cautions against forgetting God under different circumstances – including when one is well-fed, successful, etc. And this all happens when “your heart becomes proud” and “you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth.” I have often said that perhaps God did not allow me to become rich and powerful because He was not ready to trust me with that kind of wealth and power. One could say, “that is so sad” and it is. On the other hand, I would say, “God loves me so much, and knows me so well, that I am so glad He did not make me rich or powerful. For if I were it might not need or want Him.”

Guzik reminds us that God is not against material things – except when they come between us and Him. He says, “God wanted to materially bless a spiritually obedient Israel.” However, let me be clear – this is not the prosperity gospel teaching. The fact that you or I are not materially blessed to our satisfaction or desire does not mean that we are not being obedient to God.

In the last two verses (19-20), Moses reminds the children of Israel that if they move towards worshipping other gods, they will surely perish as the nations that God made to perish before them. So, just listen to and obey the voice of the Lord your God.

Wrap-up

The main gist of this passage for me is that rather than pursue prosperity (wealth and power) with all our efforts, time, resources, and heart, we need to guard ourselves against it. God will apportion it to us as He sees and knows best. Our job is to find real joy and satisfaction with His choice for us in this regard. Otherwise, we will live and die, ever disappointed, ever sorry.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

Dealing with our enemies and God's enemies. Is there a difference?

Deuteronomy Chapter 7: The Command to Conquer Canaan

Deuteronomy 7:1-26 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

In verses 1-2, Moses identifies all the seven nations that God will clear out of the way and have the Israelites destroy them as they take over the promised land to possess it. He points out that they are all “greater and stronger” than Israel. The sons of Israel were to make no peace deal or covenant with them, nor show them any favor.

These were the enemies of God. As Christians, we have to justify that approach with Jesus’ command to “love your enemies”. How do we do that? Is it possible to think of ‘enemies’ in two different ways?  First, nations that are ‘anti-God’ in every respect as in the case of the seven nations that Israel defeated. Second, our own personal ‘enemies’ – the mean neighbor next door, the terrible boss at work, the person who broke into our house and shot our loved one, etc. There may be other ways to do this, and if so, please share them with us.

More specifically, how do we do it now that we no longer have further written words from God after the writing of the book of Revelation in the first century A.D.?

In verse 3, the Israelites are told not to allow any intermarrying between themselves and God’s enemies, lest doing so would cause them to eventually serve other gods (verse 4). Instead, God wants the Israelites to destroy every aspect of the heathen religions that they find standing (verse 5).

Verses 6-11 relate some very key aspects of God. God had chosen Israel to be a holy people for His own possession out of all the nations on the earth. One often wonders why God would do that – not chose Israel so much but choose any nation as His own. Why not treat us all alike? I can think of two reasons: First, God knew, that in time, He would need to send the world a Savior and that Savior had to come from some lineage. He used Israel. Second, God wanted to show all mankind what a Father-child relationship should be like – and He chose Israel as His child (His children) for that purpose. With them, given their disobedience, He could show His ultimate love. Perhaps you can think of other reasons more valid. If so, please share them with us.

Chuck Smith has an interesting take on this:

Now some people get upset about the fact that God chooses but you really shouldn't. God has every right to choose who He wants to associate with even as you have the right to choose who you want to associate with. Why should I deny God the rights that I want for myself? There are some people I don't choose to associate with at all. Not that I'm snobbish or anything else but their lifestyles are so diverse from mine; there's nothing that we could share in common. I really choose not to have any fellowship, close fellowship, with people who smoke cigars. I can't stand the smell. Now I have that right to choose not to get in a car and be polluted. And God has a right to choose who he wants to associate with. That doesn't bother me at all. It thrills me to think that He chose me, that He chose to associate with me. That is what really excites me. You say, "But that isn't fair if God chooses not to associate with some people".

I don't know if it's fair or not but that's the right that God has and He has exercised that right. And who are you to challenge the fairness of God? You say but, "He may not have chosen me". "Oh, how do you know?" "Well, I'm not a Christian." "Well, why aren't you a Christian?" "I don't know. I've never seen a need to be one." "Well, do you want to be a Christian?" "No."

And I add, “Well, maybe that’s why He didn’t choose you.”

In verse 7, Moses reminds Israel that they weren’t chosen for their strength and numbers – in fact, they were the weakest and the smallest. But rather because He loved them and kept His promise to their forefathers (vs. 8). That’s why He brought them out of slavery and Egypt. And that should tell the Israelites that God is faithful, keeps His words and covenants, and shows His lovingkindness – now get this – to a 1,000^th generation – with “those that love Him and keep His commandments”. How great is that! Makes us want to count up all the generations since He made that covenant with Abraham to see if we’re all still okay. We are. But the condition is still there – to “those that love Him and obey His laws”.

But look at what happens to others. In verse 10, we are told “God repays those who hate Him to their faces” and He won’t delay it. We could well ask about the meaning of “to their faces” and we could well debate about His not delaying. Certainly, God will not be “slack” with His enemies. He will deal with them in His own good time. And verse 11, Moses sees that this knowledge should be enough to cause the children of Israel to keep God’s Laws.

Then all the blessings for doing so are listed in verse 13 – the Israelites will grow in number, they will bear children, but they will also be successful in their farming and ranching. But there’s more. In verse 14, we are told they will be blessed “above all peoples”. And here comes the closer I had never noticed before – “there shall be no male or female barren among you or among your cattle”.  Now, that’s big. I tried to look up some infertility rates by country – they are not to be found. If you do, please let me know. I do not think that we should be thinking here that not a single woman (or man) would be infertile in Israel ever.  That’s not what God was saying. He was assuring them that overall, they would grow in their numbers and find joy in reproducing offspring. And I believe that is still the case for many Jews today. And the same was to be true for illnesses among the Israelites as described in verse 15.

[Why do I believe that is what these verses mean and that they are not to be taken literally – meaning every single man and woman, and every cattle; or that no one would ever have an illness? Well, I look at the style of the writing elsewhere. For example, we read that these enemies being discussed here were to be “utterly and totally destroyed”. Well, if that is the case, then there would be no need for God to warn the Israelites about intermarrying with them as He does through Moses. But rather, some women, some men, would be saved and not utterly destroyed in the military takeover. Do see what I mean about how we are to consider Moses’ account of God’s message to us through him?]

In verse 17 onwards, Moses cautions them against doubting what God can do, and what they could do with God. There is to be no fear because of what God had done, was doing, and would still do for them. And in verse 21, we have these words, “You shall not dread them, for the Lord your God is in your midst, a great and awesome God.”

Verse 22 talks about God doing all this for the Israelites on His own schedule and in this case, not all at once, but little by little, so that the wild beasts left wouldn’t overtake the Israelites. Robert Jamieson has this to say on that:

“The omnipotence of their Almighty Ruler could have given them possession of the promised land at once. But, the unburied corpses of the enemy and the portions of the country that might have been left desolate for a while, would have drawn an influx of dangerous beasts. This evil would be prevented by a progressive conquest and by the use of ordinary means, which God would bless.”

And in the last few verses of the chapter, they are reminded to get rid of everything that smacks of their heathen idolatrous religions and to be sure nothing of the sort is brought into their own homes. Do you get the idea that God’s anger with these nations was their heathen worship? I do. And I think that’s what is happening today around the world – so much worship of anyone and anything other than the real and only God Almighty. That’s true of major religions, national religions, the non-religious, and even individuals.

Wrap-up

This passage again focuses on the need to obey God’s Laws, to believe in His power and might, and to work with His schedule, not ours. It also assures of His faithfulness forever (‘1,000 generations’ is the phrase used). But we have to do our part – obey His laws. Even as Christians, we know that there are consequences to breaking God’s laws just as there are consequences to breaking civil laws. You run a red light or speed excessively, there’s a penalty or a consequence, if you get caught. Similarly, sin against God – idolatry, adultery, and so on – guess what, there’s a consequence because you are automatically caught.  God doesn’t ride around in police cruisers or need surveillance cameras or lie detector machines to convict you of your sin. He knows and you know. And while you may not lose your salvation, there is often a social, emotional, or even physical penalty to pay. Many of us know it.

The other key part of this passage for me is an affirmation that we need to stand up and speak out against those among our nation, or in our world, who are true enemies of God. I don’t know exactly what that means for each of us, but I know that we can no longer be silent.  What’s your take?  Please respond to the post you clicked on to read this, or please leave a comment right here below in the comment section.

Till next time, fear not.

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.

The Great Shema that Jesus quoted to his lawyer friend.

Deuteronomy Chapter 6: The Command to Teach the Law

Deuteronomy 6:1-25 – Highlights of The Passage and Some Thoughts

In verses 1-3, Moses tells the children of Israel that he will share with them the laws that God commanded him to teach them. And again, he gives them the reasons as to why God did this and why they should obey these laws. In particular, God intended these laws to be passed on by parents and grandparents (verse 2).

In this chapter, we have what many call the great Shema or the great commandment. I remember we learned this by heart on our trip to Israel. Verses 4 and 5:
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all they soul, and with all they might.”
Jesus quoted this very verse in Matthew chapter 22 when the lawyer asked Him “Which is the greatest commandment?”  Chuck Smith calls this almost the Magna Carta for the Jew. They would say this whenever they got together.

David Guzik points out that these verses clearly show that God wants a complete love from us. Which makes sense given His complete love for us as exhibited in a myriad of ways, not the least of which was through the cross.

Verses 4-9 also make it clear that the community (not just parents) have a responsibility in that regard.  Yes, these are to be taught by family members to their younger members, but verse 7 also says to sons of Israel to talk of these laws “when you walk by the way”. In verse 8, we are told that they are to show others that they follow these laws by signs on their hands and by the frontals on their foreheads. Furthermore, in verse 9, these laws were to be written on the doorposts of their houses and on their gates. All in all, a very public testimony of their adherence to the laws. These little pouches or receptacles were everywhere.

In verses 10-16 he warns the sons of Israel not to forget God and His laws once they take over the cities they did not build, the vineyards they did not plant, etc., because God just gave these to them out of His love for them, and because He is a Jealous God.

The caution was particularly aimed at not forgetting God in their prosperity and plenty as Matthew Henry says in his commentary. And isn’t that when we forget God? We are most likely to do it in our prosperity and plenty. And we return to Him in our time of deepest need. I like the phrase Moses uses at the beginning of verse 12. He says, “then watch yourself”. Wow. That’s what we need to do; we need to watch ourselves and make a special effort not to forget God, especially in our prosperity and times of worldly success.

Furthermore, if His anger were to be kindled, He could wipe the Israelites “off the face of the earth.” And here I thought this is a phrase only used by terrorists and the Iranian leaders, and the Palestinians today who want to eliminate Israel and “wipe her off the face of the earth.”  I guess they stole the idea from God.

Now one would think that if one loved the place he/she lived, all the blessings he/she enjoyed, and all the promises your God was bringing to pass on you, that you would want to make sure you obeyed His rules and laws. This is especially true if you knew He was a Jealous God, that He could easily get angry, and once angry, could wipe you “off the face of the earth”. I mean you would think. You would think you wouldn’t “test” God. You would think.

And in verse 16, Moses reminds them of just that – don’t test God.

Now I really think we need to pay attention to verse 19. Moses says in verse 18 that we “do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord,” . . . by (here comes verse 19) “driving out all your enemies from before you,” and adds, “as the Lord has spoken”.

Can we get serious for a moment here? How is it that we Christians are just sitting quietly around these days letting godless politicians, godless terrorists, and godless aliens in our lands just take over things and force us to do what they want, and we even end up apologizing to them for the atrocities they commit against us?  How is that possible? Can some pastor please explain that to me, because I don’t think that this is what God wants for us.

Now I know that we are still studying the Old Testament and Jesus’ teachings are all in the New Testament. I get that. But I don’t believe that God the Father (Who is the same in both Testaments) really changed that much between Malachi and Matthew. I think it is us that are having the trouble of lining up Christ’s teachings with God’s directions to the Israelites. I’d love to hear your perspective.

The rest of the chapter describes Moses’ instructions to the children of Israel with respect to what they should tell their children about the laws that they see all over the place and that they hear about all the time. The bottom line is that these laws are the laws of God Who delivered them from slavery in Egypt and by opening these laws, it will be counted as “righteousness” for them. If our children are not asking us about the laws we are to follow – the commandments of Christ – it is likely because we don’t teach them to them, we don’t display them, and we don’t demonstrate them in our lives.

Wrap-up

Here’s the summary:

1.     Know the laws of God.

2.     Learn the laws of God.

3.     Teach them to your youth.

4.     Display them inside the house and out.

5.     Practice them.

Why?

1.     That you may be blessed as a people.

2.     That you may live long as a family.

3.     That it may be counted unto you as righteousness.

Now how hard is that?

It would be great if you would share your thoughts or questions on this blog in the comments section below or on social media.