Moses to Children of Isreal: "Open Up Your History Book"

Deuteronomy Chapter 4: Part 5: The Teaching of Moses Goes On

Deuteronomy 4:32-49 -- The Passage and Some Thoughts

This passage is very much a repetition of passages we have already studied so I will take you through it quickly highlighting some key thoughts of Moses.  You may wish to have your favorite version of Scripture there with you.

He has just finished telling them about what will happen in the latter days (see early study) and now wants them to focus again on the “former” days in order for them to get a real understanding of who God is. Chuck Smith says Moses was basically saying, “Hey guys, open up your history books and see what God has done already for you.”  We would do well to open up our own history books of our lives and see what God has done for us, including when we didn’t deserve it. The whole gift of salvation through the sacrifice of His Son falls into the category.

Just thinking about this reminds me of the old southern gospel song of the 1950s written by Stuart Hamblen, It Is No Secret What God Can Do. I guess many of us could also sing it as “It is no secret, what God has done”. But either way, the key message is in line that says, “What He’s for others, He can do for you.”  Or, wherever we are right now, even in the most difficult stage of our lives as some of us may feel we are in, we can sing, “What He’s done for me, He can do again.” Take a listen to the song here, Elvis sings It is No Secret.

He asks them if they know of any other god, since the beginning of creation who has allowed people to hear his voice from the midst of a fire, and still allowed those that heard it to live? And of course, the answer is no. (verse 33)

He asks if any other god has taken a nation for himself from within another nation and done so through trials, signs, wonders, war, a mighty hand, an outstretched arm, and great terrors, as their God did right before their eyes. (verse 34)

And in verse 35 he tells them God did all this so that they may know Him and know that He is God and there is no one beside Him.

In verse 27 Moses tells them that this was done because He loved their Fathers with whom He made the Covenant. He tells them God didn’t do this because of their own greatness or obedience – anything but. Sometimes we get the benefit of the blessings of God because of His love for others – and often it is those who have prayed for us. In my case, I would say much of the blessings I have received are due to God’s love for my mother whom I know spent hours in the Word and hours on her knees before God – pleading on my behalf. Many of you may have had parents like that. God loved them and you’re now be blessed because of that.

In verse 40, he repeats the requirement to keep God’s statutes and commandments that the sons of Israel may live long in the land God was giving them.  And note the last three words of that verse.  God was giving them land “for all time”.

Verses 41-43 describe the three refuge cities that Moses set up on the east side of the Jordan and what tribes were primarily to manage those and use them.

And then verses 44-49 describes again how it was that these lands east of the Jordan were taken by the Israelites and kept, prior to them going across the Jordan to take Canaan, the Promised Land.

Wrap-up

I have always been a big believer in the fact that one’s relationship with God, and as a result, one’s salvation, is really between God and the individual. I still believe that but as I read and studied this passage, I could not help but realize how God is not just involved with me, but with those in my family (and yours) that went before me (and you). Some of us were fortunate to have a believing parent. Some of us were blessed with two believing parents. And today we benefit from that experience.

Others may not have been so fortunate. Perhaps neither of your parents were believers. Or you lost your parents early in your life before they could influence your faith. Or worse still, your parents’ faith, maybe coupled with their actions (perhaps of hypocrisy) turned you right off faith for a long time. Any of those experiences would be hard.

But here’s the good news. No matter what your experience with your parents was (or is), God can use the good experience for your benefit, and, now wait for it – God can use the awful experience for your good. Yes, he can. In fact, if that’s the case you can be the start of a new cycle in your family – you could be that faithful parent for your children and grandchildren.

What is important for us to grasp is that it really is no secret, what God can do.  May you find that to be true in your life.

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

Author Gives A Great Account of History While Establishing His Own

Louis XVII Survived The Temple Prison: The DNA Proof

Author: Charles Louis de Bourbon

Publisher: Tellwell Talent, Victoria, B.C., 2016

                                                                     

Author Gives A Great Account of History While Establishing His Own

Having always had an interest in the history of royalty, when I got the chance to review this book, I jumped at it. I was not disappointed. It had all the intrigue one could ask for plus insights into life in France; the French Revolution; the interrelations of monarchs and governments across Europe; and a window into political cover-ups and corruption – thus helping readers realize that there is nothing new under the sun.

Charles Louis de Bourbon (CLB)’s book has another big thing going for it – it involves a real-life mystery: did Louis XVII die in prison after his father was executed or did he escape?  The author claims the latter and sets out to prove it.  If I were a betting man, I would certainly bet on his side after wading through his evidence.  Besides the book is also about Marie Antoinette, Louis XVI’s wife and after all, who wouldn’t want to learn more about her? There was much more to her than that infamous quote, “Let them eat cake!” we all remember from our high school history courses.

CLB tries hard to help us experience the life that Louis XVII lived (from Louis’ perspective) from the time he was a toddler to his death many years later. And CLB does that quite well. We learn about his early memories, life with his father, the temple jail, the escape, and life, near deaths, and death after that – all interspersed with Louis’ own attempts to reclaim his rightful position in France. We are also let in on the great hurts he received from various members of his family, not the least of which was his own sister.

From there, the story continues with accounts of the attempts to prove Louis did indeed escape alive and lived a long time afterward.  These were made by many in many lands. All of them to date still unsuccessful in getting that part of history properly corrected by the French government. The book also aids our understanding of inter-government diplomacy.

What I found somewhat unnecessary was the author’s insistence on seemingly interrupting the story he was writing by alternating chapters about his own life, especially his migration to Canada, his various business experiences including retail and real estate, and his hobby of sailing, including the details of his trips south along the Atlantic coast. I had agreed to read and review a book on a past French King or at least heir to the French Throne but discovered I could only do so if I reviewed the author’s personal life. But then I suppose, if you consider yourself royalty, you take every chance you get to leave your own legacy behind in writing when you have a captive audience. Having said that, CLB clearly deserves credit for his lifelong efforts of clearing the de Bourbon name and getting Louis XVII his rightful acknowledgment.

The book also contains some most interesting lessons. In one short paragraph, I realized how quickly one’s life could change. On the 8-year old royal’s confession, CLB writes, “Handwriting experts later testified that the signature was false or forced, and [Louis] wrote in his memoirs that they had forced his hand to sign it…. Many believed that this ‘confession’ was the cause for all the bad feelings that Marie Therese [his sister] held toward [Louis].” Although not their own doing, this changed their relationship forever.

As I read the book, I thought it would benefit from a good edit. It sometimes sounds like it was written in a foreign language and then translated into English, and not always very successfully. In addition, because there are many places, titles and actual names used throughout the book, often more than once as the story unfolds, the book would benefit from an index at the back, and/or a list of characters well-defined at the front.  Finally, because the story includes several inter-marriages of families, a good old-fashioned family tree or two would add volumes to the reader’s understanding of the complex situation.

For those that are interested in the role that DNA plays in major court cases, Louis XVII Survived The Temple Prison provides an excellent and informative case study. That alone is worth the price of the book.

CLB also does a great job of highlighting more truths based on his experiences. For example, he comes to the conclusion that “Often with the media, it is not what they show but what they leave out that is important.” Welcome to a historical version of ‘fake news’.

He ends the book, after describing very recent and unanswered appeals to the French government, with this plea, “Again, they persecute us for 220 years. I am now asking all who vie for a place in government to promise they will finally let the truth come out 220 years later.”  I wish him every success.

·      Ken B. Godevenos, President, Accord Resolutions Services Inc., Toronto, Ontario, November 15, 2017, www.accordconsulting.com

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

Blood In The Desert

You Left In Me The Faith – Book 1

Author: C. Douglas Gordon

Publisher: Self-published, San Bernadino, CA, 2017

                                                                     

A Very Good Novel: Read With a Discerning Mind

This is a historical novel and as close as I get to non-fiction. But the theme intrigued me. The plot is beautifully intertwined using several threads including allusions to biblical parallel passages, real historical events, theological controversy, parental love, slavery, power, the formation of belief systems, and the development of religions. Suffice it to say, although reading the book from a critical perspective, C Douglas Gordon managed to keep my interest at a high level, wanting to find out the fate of his main characters.

This is not a book for the faint-hearted. The depictions of the cruelty which took place both in the fictional part of this book and in the historical events the author intertwines are to say the least laden with blood and brutality and at times vividly portrayed from a sexual perspective. I’ll let each reader decide for themselves whether Gordon needed to go to this extreme to get his points across about how Christians were treated in their early history. I can’t seem to settle on one side of the argument versus the other.

One of the key threads in the novel is that of “martyrs” – especially the lesser known ones. The author is skillful in bringing their stories out without us losing track of his fictional plot. But then, and perhaps unintentionally, with separate chapters named after each of the three main characters’ ‘journeys’, there is a suggestion that each of our lives are “flights” from something or someone, ultimately ending in martyrdom. Yet throughout the book, the reader cannot help but feel he/she is being moved towards a climactic point where the woman, the man, and the child are reunited, and love and peace conquer fear and hatred.

The book may present some puzzlement to the Christian reader who is unfamiliar with the major theological disputes of the faith (e.g. the divinity of Jesus) and even some of much lesser importance such as the issue of the God’s gender. There are references to God as ‘the Birther’; a male and female Aeon countered later by two ‘savior’ Aeons – namely Christ and the Holy Spirit (the female one); and the Demiurge and much more.

There are also some interesting takes on other issues that often go unresolved. For example, when a young girl with a very high fever and in the process of dying is saved after the lead character prays to Jesus (referred to as Yesua throughout the book), the mother gives Jesus the credit. Miriam (the lead character) retorts, “No. Your Faith in Yesua has saved your child!” Clearly one can’t argue with that since the other has paralleled the thinking behind the words of Christ Himself when after healing numerous people during his earthly ministry, He said, “Your faith has made you well.” On the other hand, it would be misleading to omit the fact that it still was Jesus that did the healing. The issue is best described in a blog on the very topic, the role of faith in healing. Gordon makes no effort to teach or clarify in situations like this.

All this to say that readers need to discern between what they believe and determine to be the truth and what Gordon is simply relating as possible traditional stories about how one religion began, was communicated, and eventually became known as Christianity.

There is much to commend the author on, including an incredible comprehension into the affliction of blindness and its impact on the brain. Most insightful and interesting. Gordon also offers his readers some gems with respect to what ‘history’ is. For me, his memorable nuggets there were: “History belongs to the future.” A reference, for me at least, to the fact that we who employ it, own it. And that is followed up with his, “Those who look back often cloud the truth with their beliefs.” That is so true.  Yet, was the author making a statement concerning our view of what the New Testament Faith that has now metamorphosed into our modern-day belief system really was all about?  You be the judge.

I recommend the book for those that like a good historical novel. I believe it serves Christianity well in helping us all understand what those who had “the faith left in them” in the years, decades, and centuries after Christ’s life on earth, went through. But I would caution the reader to take under advisement Gordon’s theological references outside his excellent plot line. And yes, I may well be ready to enjoy (with similar caution), C. Douglas Gordon’s next novel, entitled The Twelve Coins, in his ‘You Left in Me the Faith’ series.

·      Ken B. Godevenos, President, Accord Resolutions Services Inc., Toronto, Ontario, October 1, 2017. www.accordconsulting.com

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