Deuteronomy 8-10

Deuteronomy

8:1-9:21 -  The ‘wilderness’ was a place of ‘testing’.  God was ‘disciplining’ His people.  He was teaching them to ‘walk in His ways’ (2,5-6).  In the ‘wilderness’, we must remember this: ‘man does not live by bread alone… man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord’ (3).  Everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord – His warnings as well as His promises!  He speaks to us in warnings: ‘Take heed lest you forget the Lord your God…’ (11).  He speaks to us in promises:  ‘the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land’ (7).  ‘God forbid that I should glory…’ (8:17-18; 9:4-6; Galatians 6:14).  God gave Israel the land.  He gives us ‘the Kingdom’ (Luke 12:32).  As earthly kingdoms rise and fall, ‘the God of heaven will set up a Kingdom which shall never be destroyed’ (Daniel 2:44).

9:22-10:22 -  ‘We will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the Word’ (Acts 6:4).  Moses was an intercessor (25-29).  The ministry of the Word needs to be grounded in prayer.  Prayerfully seeking the Lord’s help, we are to place His Word at the centre of the life of His people (5).  God shows His mercy by providing His servants to carry His Word in a ministry of blessing to the people, a ministry which helps the people to ‘go in and possess the land’ (8,10-11).  In gratitude to God, our Creator-Redeemer, we are to give ourselves to Him in obedience (12-15).  Let your heart and life be changed by the Lord, never forgetting this: ‘He is your praise; He is your God, who has done for you… great… things’ (16-21).  ‘God… gives the growth’ (22; Corinthians 3:7).  Read Psalm 126:6 and pray!

Deuteronomy 6-7

Deuteronomy

6:1-25 -  ‘Hear’ and ‘do’ (1-3; James 1:22-25).  In our obedience to God, there is to be the fear of the Lord and love for the Lord (2,5).  Fear and love: the two belong together.  God is holy – fear Him.  God is love – love Him.  This is for every generation: ‘you and your son and your son’s son’(2).  ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart’ (5).  Teach the children well so that the blessing of God may be ‘prolonged’ among us (7,2).  Our promised land – heaven (John 14:1-3) – is far better than Israel’s promised land.  Through faith in Christ, we have received ‘eternal life’ (John 5:24; 6:40).  Never take the Lord’s blessing for granted.  Always remember to thank Him for all that He has done for you (10-12).  Teach the children what the Lord has done for them (20-23).  Then, and only then, tell them what they must ‘do’ for Him (24-25).

7:1-26 -  Enter, Destroy, Possess (1-2).  Don’t try to jump straight from entering to possessing.  Don’t forget to destroy.  We enter the Christian life through faith in Christ.  We will not ‘take possession of’ a fuller enjoyment of His salvation if we refuse to ‘destroy’ the obstacles to His blessing in our  lives.  Sin is like a ‘cancer’.  It will ‘kill’ us if we let it (Romans 6:23).  This is why we must fight it – with ‘the whole armour of God’ (Ephesians 6:10-17).  From beginning to end, our salvation is the work of God:  ‘…it is because the Lord loves you… that He has… redeemed you…’ (6-8).  The Lord’s love speaks of His keeping power.  He will complete the work He has begun (17-19; Philippians 1:6).  Saved and kept by the power of God, we travel from Christ’s Cross to our Crown (Romans 1:16; 1 Peter 1:3-5; 2:24-25; 5:4).

Deuteronomy 3-5

Deuteronomy

3:1-29 -  The promised land was near.  For Moses, it was ‘so near and yet so far.’  He was excluded.     Together with the sadness of Moses’ exclusion, there was the joy of the people’s entrance (27-28).  When we consider Moses’ sadness and the people’s joy, we must remember this: Nobody deserved to go into the land!  The land was God’s gift.  Without His strength, the people of Israel would fail.  With Him, they would be victorious:  ‘You shall not fear them; for it is the Lord your God who fights for you’ (22).  There is here a basic principle of Christian living: ‘not by might , nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts’ (Zechariah 4:6).  ‘In heavenly armour we’ll enter the land.  The battle belongs to the Lord.  No weapon that’s fashioned against us will stand. The battle belongs to the Lord’ (Mission Praise, 639).

4:1-43 -  The people of Israel were involved in the work of the Lord.  The work was based on God – not Moses.  Moses would not be in the promised land.  God would be there.  Moses would ‘not go over the Jordan’.  As God’s man. he was to prepare the people for their task:  ‘you shall go over and take possession of that good land’ (22).  Privilege involves responsibility.  Israel was a privileged people, redeemed by the Lord, delivered from bondage ‘by a mighty hand and outstretched arm’ (34).  Israel was a responsible people, called to obey the Lord: ‘Obey His laws and commands’ (40).  The Lord our God is ‘a merciful God’ (31).  He has saved us.  We are to serve Him.  Let Him reign in your heart.  Let there be ‘no other besides Him’ (35).  Flee to Christ for refuge (42-43), and live each day with ‘the attitude of gratitude’.

4:44-5:33 -  Obedience is grounded in salvation.  The Ten Commandments (7-21) are preceded by the divine declaration: ‘I am the Lord your God’ who brought you… out of the house of bondage’ (6).  He has redeemed us.  We are to live for Him.  The Word of God was spoken to Moses before it was spoken by him (27).  We cannot begin to live for the Lord until we begin to listen to Him.  The way of obedience is the way of blessing.  Our obedience is to be offered in a spirit of gratitude to God for His gracious salvation.  Never imagine it is because of our obedience that God loves us.  His love for us is always prior to our love for Him.  Remember what the Lord has done for you, and your love for Him will grow stronger.  Forget, and you love will grow weaker.  Loved by God, let us love Him – more!

Deuteronomy 1-2

Deuteronomy

1:1-46 -  With the exception of Caleb and Joshua, the older generation – including Moses – was not to enter the land (34-38).  For the new generation, there was a challenge.  There must be no more failures.  One wasted generation was enough.  This was the time for real commitment to the Lord.  He loved them – He had ‘set the land before’ them.  They were to rise up in faith and ‘ take possession of the land’ (8).  We are called to go on with the Lord.  ‘You have stayed long enough’ at a low level of Christian living.  God is calling us on to maturity: ‘go in and take possession of the land; (6,8; Philippians 3:13-14).  Do not hesitate to move forward with God:  ‘do not fear… It is a good land which the Lord gives us’ (21,25).  Will we be the new generation, ‘a new creation in Christ’ (2 Corinthians 5:17) ?

2:1-37 -  During their wilderness years, God’s people had many problems.  God is greater than all the problems!  Israel’s journey began in the land of  ‘bondage’ (Exodus 2:23-25).  From there, He led them to the land of promise, ‘the land which the Lord our God gives to us’ (29).  This is ‘amazing grace’:  ‘Through many dangers, toils and snares, I have already come; ‘Tis grace that brought me safe thus far, and grace will lead me home’ (Mission Praise, 31).  In the giving and taking of the land, we see both grace and faith: ‘I have begun to give… this land over to you; begin to take possession…’ (31).  We are not saved by grace apart from faith.  We are ‘saved by grace through faith’.  We are not saved by faith without grace.  We are ‘saved by grace through faith’.  Saved by the Lord, let us press on to a life of ‘good works’ (Ephesians 2:8-10).

Numbers 35-36

Numbers

35:1-36:13  -  Cities of refuge were provided for those who had killed someone accidentally. This is a good illustration of fleeing to Christ for refuge. He is our ‘strong tower.’ We ‘run’ to Him and we are ‘safe’ (Hebrews 6:18; Proverbs 18:10). God gave Israel a ‘land’. They were not to ‘defile the land’ (34). God has given us a Saviour. We are not to dishonour Him. Christ is our ‘inheritance’. Our full enjoyment of Him is still to come (36:2-4, 7-9,12; Ephesians 1:18; Colossians 3:24; 1 Peter 1:4). How can we enjoy our Saviour more fully? - ‘These are the commandments...’ (36:13). The names change. The places change. The principle remains the same: Obedience to God. We have been redeemed by God. Let us live in obedience to Him. There is nothing more important than this - if we really want to enjoy His blessing.

Numbers 32-34

Numbers

32:1-42  -  Some look for an easy life. They know that there will be conflict on the other side of the Jordan. They opt out - ‘do not take us across the Jordan’ (5). They think they’ve travelled far enough. God says, ‘Let us go on to maturity’ (Hebrews 6:1). ‘My happiness’ - This is what concerns the self-centred person. Spiritual maturity is not about happiness. It’s about holiness. We find happiness when we aim at holiness. What is holiness? - ‘It’s the life apart from the world’s excess. It’s the Lord’s command, not the Lord’s request. It’s the only life that the Lord can bless’. Pretend to be more holy than you really are, and ‘be sure your sin will find you out’ (23). A small minority - Caleb and Joshua - ‘wholly followed the Lord’ (12): Better a minority with God than a majority without Him.

33:1-49  -  In the history of Israel - Set free by the power of God, failure to learn, wandering, the promised land - , there is a picture of the Christian life - conversion and growth to spiritual maturity by way of learning from our mistakes. We are not to remain in the past. That would be nostalgia. It is, however, a good thing for us to remember, with gratitude, all the way the Lord has led us. This will increase our appreciation of the goodness of God. It will deepen our sense of indebtedness to Him. Israel’s redemption was a mighty work of God. Our salvation is a mighty work of God. Think back over your life - ‘stage by stage’ (2) - and thank God for all that He has done. ‘These are the stages of’ what the Lord has done (1): You may see the Lord in places where you hadn’t noticed Him before!

33:50-34:29  -  ‘Drive out all the inhabitants of the land’ (52): We must drive out the enemy (Satan) if we are to enter more fully into our salvation in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 5:3-14). Idolatry is to be banished (52). It has no place among God’s people. God wants us to ‘possess the land’ (53) - a fuller enjoyment of Him. Idolatry is settling for ‘second best’ - letting something or someone else become more important to you than the Lord. Don’t let it happen! The setting of the boundaries of the land of Canaan (34:1-29) is a reminder that there are boundaries in the Christian life, boundaries set by God Himself, the boundaries of Holy Scripture. When we move beyond the boundaries of God’s holy Word, we move outside the sphere of God’s blessing. Live in the will of God - within the boundaries set by His Word.

Numbers 30-31

Numbers

30:1-31:20  -  Vows (30:1-16): Be careful what you say - you may live to regret it (Ecclesiastes 5:2, 4-6; Matthew 12:36-37; James 3:6-11). Learn from Balaam. Full of good intentions about speaking God’s Word (22:18; 23:12), he hoped to ‘die the death of the righteous’ (23:10). He did not live up to his good intentions. He sinned and he led others into sin (31:16). He ended up being slain among God’s enemies (31:8). Why were the Midianites destroyed (31:7-8)? They opposed the Lord, exerting an evil influence on His people. We must take care that we do not cause God’s people ‘to act treacherously against’ Him (31:16). Sin needs to be removed if we are to press on to a greater enjoyment of God’s blessing. ‘Put to death what is earthly in you... put off the old nature... put on the new nature’ (Colossians 3:5-11). This is what we must do.

31:21-54  -  If we are to be ‘soldiers of Christ’, we need to be ‘purified’, made ‘clean’. There is purification by ‘fire’ and ‘water’. Purification may be painful, but we have the promise of God’s protective presence. He says, ‘I will be with you’. He assures us, ‘the waters... shall not overwhelm you... and the flame shall not shall not consume you’ (22-24; Isaiah 43:2). From the Old Testament wars, we learn important spiritual principles: Enter the war, Destroy the sins, Possess the land. This is what we must do throughout life. Looking beyond Israel’s triumphs to Christ’s victory over Satan (Hebrews 2:14-15; 1 John 3:8), we thank God for His victory and we claim this victory by faith (1 Corinthians 15:57; 1 John 5:4-5). The battle may be ‘fierce’. The ‘victory is secure’ (Church Hymnary, 479). Praise God!