August 15, 2020
The message of Deuteronomy is one that the church desperately needs to hear today. These final words of Moses given to the children of Israel as they prepared to enter into the Promised Land serve as a warning, an encouragement, and a charge. Through them, God exposes the idolatry of our hearts and calls us to give all of our love, worship, and devotion to Him alone in every area of our lives! Moses warns the people that when they enter the land there will be things that compete with God for their attention, their affections and their worship. We, too, have hundreds of things that compete for our hearts each and every day. In this book, God teaches us how to properly respond to the amazing grace He has given us by giving Him our undivided allegiance, our whole hearts and our whole lives. Over the next 34 days, let’s seek this ancient way together as a church!
In this chapter Moses reminds the people of Israel of the purpose for which God has commanded obedience from them as well as delivering to them a strict warning against forgetting the Lord and turning to other gods. All of the statutes and laws that Moses delivered to the people of Israel served a very specific purpose; they revealed God’s character and will, and in so doing set the nation of Israel apart from every other nation on the planet, provided that they obey them.
Israel was intended to be holy unto the Lord, set apart, distinct from the nations that surrounded them, and the means that God would use to accomplish this is the law. Their obedience to the law would show their conformity to God’s character and would put His glory and wisdom on display to the whole world! We are called to the exact same purpose as the church: our obedience to God in imitating the way of Jesus puts the glory and the love of God on display through our lives!
Moses then gives a prolonged word of warning to the children of Israel; in spite of the fact that they had seen God Himself descend in fire and smoke at Mt. Sinai, in spite of the fact that they had seen His power on display in Egypt and had heard His voice, in spite of the fact that He had provided for them in the wilderness, delivered them from slavery, and was about to give them victory in conquering the land, they were prone to forget Him and turn to other gods.
How like the people of Israel we are! We too are so prone to forget God, to forget the great salvation that He has worked on our behalf, to be ungrateful for the blessings He has poured out on us and the faithfulness He has shown us, and to give the worship and devotion of our hearts to lesser things. We are all prone towards failing to esteem Him, His glory, and His grace as we should, and that is why we must watch ourselves with great care and diligence! We could be found giving our love and worship to other things before we even know it, because we each suffer from spiritual amnesia.
Moses is clear here: our God-forgetfulness and proclivity towards idolatry only ever leads to death. The Lord demands our all, all of our heart, all of our worship, all of our life. Are you giving it to Him?
Deuteronomy 4
Moses Commands Obedience
4 “And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. 2 You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. 3 Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. 4 But you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today. 5 See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 6 Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? 8 And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today?
9 “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children—10 how on the day that you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, the Lord said to me, ‘Gather the people to me, that I may let them hear my words, so that they may learn to fear me all the days that they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children so.’ 11 And you came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while the mountain burned with fire to the heart of heaven, wrapped in darkness, cloud, and gloom. 12 Then the Lordspoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of words, but saw no form; there was only a voice. 13 And he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments, and he wrote them on two tablets of stone. 14 And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and rules, that you might do them in the land that you are going over to possess.
Idolatry Forbidden
15 “Therefore watch yourselves very carefully. Since you saw no form on the day that the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire,16 beware lest you act corruptly by making a carved image for yourselves, in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, 17 the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged bird that flies in the air, 18 the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the water under the earth. 19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven. 20 But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be a people of his own inheritance, as you are this day. 21 Furthermore, the Lord was angry with me because of you, and he swore that I should not cross the Jordan, and that I should not enter the good land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance. 22 For I must die in this land; I must not go over the Jordan. But you shall go over and take possession of that good land. 23 Take care, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make a carved image, the form of anything that the Lord your God has forbidden you.24 For the Lord your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.
25 “When you father children and children’s children, and have grown old in the land, if you act corruptly by making a carved image in the form of anything, and by doing what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, so as to provoke him to anger, 26 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that you will soon utterly perish from the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess. You will not live long in it, but will be utterly destroyed. 27 And the Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be left few in number among the nations where the Lord will drive you.28 And there you will serve gods of wood and stone, the work of human hands, that neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell. 29 But from there you will seek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. 30 When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the Lordyour God and obey his voice. 31 For the Lord your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.
The Lord Alone Is God
32 “For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. 33 Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? 34 Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him. 36 Out of heaven he let you hear his voice, that he might discipline you. And on earth he let you see his great fire, and you heard his words out of the midst of the fire. 37 And because he loved your fathers and chose their offspring after them and brought you out of Egypt with his own presence, by his great power, 38 driving out before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land for an inheritance, as it is this day,39 know therefore today, and lay it to your heart, that the Lord is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. 40 Therefore you shall keep his statutes and his commandments, which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land that the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”
Cities of Refuge
41 Then Moses set apart three cities in the east beyond the Jordan, 42 that the manslayer might flee there, anyone who kills his neighbor unintentionally, without being at enmity with him in time past; he may flee to one of these cities and save his life: 43 Bezer in the wilderness on the tableland for the Reubenites, Ramoth in Gilead for the Gadites, and Golan in Bashan for the Manassites.
Introduction to the Law
44 This is the law that Moses set before the people of Israel. 45 These are the testimonies, the statutes, and the rules, which Moses spoke to the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt, 46 beyond the Jordan in the valley opposite Beth-peor, in the land of Sihon the king of the Amorites, who lived at Heshbon, whom Moses and the people of Israel defeated when they came out of Egypt. 47 And they took possession of his land and the land of Og, the king of Bashan, the two kings of the Amorites, who lived to the east beyond the Jordan; 48 from Aroer, which is on the edge of the Valley of the Arnon, as far as Mount Sirion (that is, Hermon), 49 together with all the Arabah on the east side of the Jordan as far as the Sea of the Arabah, under the slopes of Pisgah.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Family Discussion Question:
- Why are we so prone to forget God when He has been so overwhelmingly gracious towards us? What are some steps you can take towards being more mindful of Him?
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Dear Heavenly Father,
Like the Israelites, we forget so easily what You have done for us. We get so wrapped up in our earthly responsibilities and cares that we forget to make You the main part of our lives. Without You, we are nothing. When, in actuality, You should be put first in our lives and everything else will fall into place, according to Your wishes and purpose. Please keep me ever mindful of this truth. I know if I stay connected through prayer and the daily reading of Your Word , I will have a good foundation by which to live and will be drawn closer to You. Thank You for Your love and grace and for all of my blessings great and small. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Father of all, I praise you this morning. Strengthen me this day to stand against the plans of the devil, for his is roaring. I rebuke him in the name of Jesus and turn my back to him and shake the dust off my feet as I walk away.
Father, you are my provider. No matter what comes this way today, may I stand firm on your promise never to leave me nor forsake me.
Bless me today, Father. Enlarge my sphere of influence. Fill me anew and afresh with the Holy Spirit. May my eyes see evil so I can run from it, so as not to cause you and others pain.
Trust in the Lord with all my heart and lean not on my own understanding; in all my ways acknowledge Him and He will direct my path!
It is our charge to intentionally stay connected to God. He has given us His Word, a powerful hotline through prayer, other believers for counsel through fellowship, His beautiful creation, and He indwells us aka THE Holy Spirit!!!!
You know that parent that has it all together and produces the most amazing children, or that teacher that can meet every students’ need while having an amazing student centered environment on top of leading committees that make progress, plus pour in 100% to their own child(ren), family, keep an immaculate house, support the community, serve at church, etc. That pales in comparison to what all our Lord has provided for us. He literally has thought of everything. All we have to do is accept, believe, and choose to seek Him and follow. Thank you Lord ❤
When I get down which has been a lot lately thank you God for bringing back all the memories of what you have done in my life for me. Thank you for coming through for the refinance on our home the enemy caused all kinds of problems but you are a faithful God who never leaves us I signed the papers yesterday Amen!
Lord help me not to make things my idols.
AMEN and HALLELUJAh!!! Dear Lord you are the only Lord and Savior I Worship. Reading your word every day brings me to know you and to be closer to you. I am a child of God always and forever. I will never stray. In Jesus name I pray Amen ????????
My heart is convicted as to how much we are like the Israelites today in our walk. We have seen Him do miraculous thing in our lives and yet when we hit the rough spots we grumble. I believe we must train ourselves to see past the difficult and glory in all the good our Father has, is and will give us if we seek Him. These scriptures are convicting.
Thank you Father that you have given us guidance/steps in your word on ways to keep us from wandering form You/Your Way in Psalms 119. By your grace & power, help me to take these to heart & walk in the truth & power of them. For thine is the glory forever, Amen?
9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.
10 With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments!
11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
12 Blessed are you, O LORD; teach me your statutes!
13 With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth.
14 In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches.
15 I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways.
16 I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word. – Psalm 119:9-16
I will hold fast to the Lord my God.
Good morning my Father, I worship you for who you are Lord. I thank you for another day in this land of the living. I thank you for your Word. It is life to me. Even in it, I am prone to wander. Father you know it because in Psalm 139, you have said there is nothing about me that is hidden before you. Forgive me Lord. My desire and I pray is, Father, take my heart and seal it for your glory till the day you call me home to you. It is in Jesus name I pray. Amen!
Forgive me father for my disobedience, by worshiping the created, rather than you who created all. Thank you for forgiving me, for your grace, mercy and the hope in my salvation through Jesus. I pray your word will continue to remind me of my inability to save myself, as well as your character, your perfect judgment, love for me and plan to save me.