Milo

FEBRUARY 8

Reading 39

WORSHIPING GOD

Deuteronomy 12:1–16:17

“You must not worship the Lord your God in their way” (Deut. 12:31).Worship is the way we express intimacy in our corporate and personal relationship with God. Because God is special, worship is to be special too.

Definition of Key Terms

Worship. Moderns tend to think of worship simply as singing hymns and praising God on Sundays. Hebrew and Greek words translated “worship,” however, mean to “bow down” or “prostrate oneself.” The image is one of showing utmost respect. Broadly understood, any act by which we express deep respect for God is an act of worship. These chapters in Deuteronomy review some of the ways that Israel was to show respect for the Lord when they entered the Promised Land.

Overview

Worshiping Israel was to establish a central sanctuary (12:1–32), to reject idolatry (13:1–18) and pagan rites (14:1–2), honor dietary laws (vv. 3–21), faithfully pay tithes (vv. 22–29), and to forgive debts and release Hebrew slaves every seventh year (15:1–18). The Israelites were also to set firstborn animals apart to the Lord (vv. 19–23) and faithfully observe religious festivals (16:1–17).

Understanding the Text

“Seek the place the Lord your God will choose” Deut. 12:1–32. The people of Canaan had sacred sites scattered throughout the land. They offered sacrifices at these sites, held orgiastic rites, and practiced various kinds of magic intended to influence their gods. Israel’s rites of worship, such as sacrifice, were to be held at one place alone. The text promised that after Israel had taken the land, God would choose a particular site, and identify Himself with it (“put His Name” there). That site, not selected until the time of David, was Jerusalem. Emphasis on a single worship center reflects a common Old Testament theme. There was only one entrance into Israel’s tabernacle court, and one way to enter the tabernacle. Later the temple followed this plan.

There was to be only one altar of sacrifice, one high priest, one mercy seat where sacrificial blood was poured out each year on the Day of Atonement. The truth these things symbolized was expressed by Jesus, who told His disciples, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). It may be popular these days to be broad-minded and say there are “many roads to God.” But it is not biblical. Scripture supports that chorus: “One way, and only one.”

“He tried to turn you away from the Lord your God” Deut. 13:1–18. Modern history shows how vulnerable people are to cults. How do we respond when someone knocks on our door with the message of Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Mormons, Moonies, or some other cult? If anyone incites us to abandon the Lord for a cult, we will “not listen to [his] words” (v. 3). Rather we will remember that “it is the Lord your God you must follow, and Him you must revere” (v. 4). God deserves our total allegiance. Worshiping Him as He has revealed Himself in Scripture is to be our first priority. “Do not cut yourselves” Deut. 14:1–2. God’s people are not to adopt the practices that reflect the attitude of the surrounding pagan peoples toward death. “Do not eat any detestable thing” Deut. 14:3–21. Some have argued that Hebrew dietary laws prohibited the use of disease-carrying animals as food. The real explanation is more profound.

God wanted to remind His people that He is involved in every aspect of their lives. In everything we do we can demonstrate respect for the Lord. Everything we do can thus be an act of worship. “Bring all the tithes” Deut. 14:22–29. Israel’s economy was to be agricultural, and her wealth was the land and its products. God, the Giver of the land, claimed a 10th of its bounty as His share of every crop. Showing respect for God by giving has been an integral part of worship from the very first. “Do not be hard-hearted or tightfisted toward your poor brother” Deut. 15:1–18. The depth of a person’s relationship with God is displayed in the way he or she treats others. This principle, woven throughout Scripture, is particularly evident in laws explaining how to treat the poor. Those in need are to be helped willingly. Every seventh year, the debt of all who have not been able to repay loans is to be forgiven.

And any Hebrew who has been forced to sell himself into slavery is to be released. Helping the poor is an act of worship which is especially pleasing to the Lord. The passage says, “Because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to” (v. 10), and again, “The Lord your God will bless you in everything you do” (v. 18). “Observe the month” Deut. 16:1–17. When Israel conquered the land the people were to hold annual worship festivals, attended by all. The chart on the next page shows the religious calendar of Israel. For the meaning of each festival, see Reading 28, Leviticus. Israel’s religious calendar

DEVOTIONAL

God’s Share (Deut. 14:22–15:18)

“Bring your tithes into the storehouse,” Pastor L. used to preach. “Then you can give to others.” What he meant, of course, was that the local church ought to get the Christian’s tithe. All other giving was over and above the 10 percent our pastor thought the local church deserved. I understand his message. But I question his exegesis. Particularly when I read chapters like these in Deuteronomy. Here one thing links the tithe, which Israel was obligated to give, and generosity, which Israelites were urged to display. Why is that? Both required that giving and optional giving were intended primarily to meet human need. The regular tithe was delivered to the temple to be used to support the Levites and priests who served God there. Then, every third year, the tithe was stored locally so that “the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied” (14:29). Both the giving God required and optional contributions He encouraged went to meet human needs. If you were to look at my income tax forms for the past few years, you’d see an interesting pattern. Our local church receives regular support. But a greater percent of our giving is directed to ministries like Prison Fellowship, which minister directly to the powerless in our society. And some goes to nondeductible and even “secular” causes. Certainly at the very least this important passage in Deuteronomy gives us fresh insight into the loving heart of our God. And perhaps cause to stop and evaluate the way we worship Him with our giving.

Personal Application

In what ways do you show your reverence for God on weekdays?

Quotable

“Piety cannot consist of specific acts only, such as prayer or ritual observance, but is bound up with all actions, concomitant with all doings, accompanying and shaping all life’s business. Man’s responsibility to God is the scaffold on which he stands as daily he goes on building life. His every deed, every incident of mind, takes place on this scaffold, so that unremittingly man is at work either building up or tearing down his life, his home, his hope of God.”—Abraham Heschel

FEBRUARY 7

Reading 38

REMEMBERING GOD

Deuteronomy 8–11“Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe His commands, His laws and His decrees that I am giving you this day” (Deut. 8:11).Memory is a great gift. Our tomorrows may be shaped by how well we remember God’s past deliverances and His judgments.

Definition of Key Terms

Remember.

In the Old Testament “remember” is more than the mental act of thinking about something that has happened in the past. Its deepest meaning is to recall or pay attention to, and then to act on what has been remembered. In these chapters God called on Israel to remember what had happened on the journey to Canaan, in order to help them make better choices when they entered the Promised Land.

Overview

Israel was to remember the wilderness years, when God taught His people to depend on Him (8:1–20). Events on that journey revealed Israel’s rebelliousness (9:1–29) and the faithfulness of the God who kept on calling His people to holiness (10:1–22). Looking back was to help Israel love God, to carefully observe His commandments, and so to experience His blessing (11:1–32).

Understanding the Text

“He humbled you” Deut. 8:1–9. The Hebrew root of “humble” means to be poor and thus dependent. During the wilderness years God let Israel hunger, then fed His people, to teach them to depend fully on Him. When Jesus was challenged by Satan to turn stones into bread (Matt. 4; Luke 4), He quoted a verse from this passage: “Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” Jesus knew what it means to depend completely on God and to be satisfied with what the Lord provides. Before we assume that God intends to keep His people in poverty, note what the Lord provided for Israel. Food (v. 3), clothes that did not wear out (v. 4), and good health (v. 4). In the land they were about to possess God would give Israel agricultural and mineral wealth (vv. 7–9). God may hold back material things to teach us to depend on Him. But Isaiah’s promise still holds. “If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land” (Isa. 1:19). “It is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth” Deut. 8:10–20. Pride and humility are contrasting attitudes.

The humble person acknowledges his dependence on God. The proud individual credits his own “power and the strength of [his] hands” for his success. The curse of the proud is that in taking credit for abilities God has given, they forget the Lord. Moses warned that if Israel became proud, “You will surely be destroyed.” Paul portrayed the viewpoint you and I are to develop. “Who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” (1 Cor. 4:7) If all that we have is ultimately a gift of God, we have nothing to be proud about but much to be grateful for. This small metal calf was recovered by archeologists at a hilltop worship site in territory once occupied by the Israelite tribe of Dan. A calf or bull was a frequent motif in Canaanite worship. The animal either represented Baal, or was thought of as a throne on which the invisible deity sat. The bull symbolized virility in religions where ritual prostitution and sexual orgies played a major part. Israel’s worship of a golden calf was a retreat to gross paganism. “Because of my righteousness” Deut. 9:1–29.

How are we to interpret God’s good gifts? Moses warned Israel not to assume that God’s blessings were “because of your righteousness or your integrity.” In fact, as the incident of the golden calf (vv. 7–21) and several other events (vv. 22–29) demonstrated, Israel had been “stiff-necked.” This one graphic term sums up Scripture’s portrait of sinful human nature. All mankind, like Israel, is unresponsive to God, disobedient, and actively rebellious. Israel’s occupation of the land is evidence of God’s faithfulness to the covenant promises, not of Israel’s righteousness. God’s love and faithfulness, not our good works, are the true explanation of any blessings He may shower on you or me today. “At that time” Deut. 10:1–11. God’s matchless grace is displayed in these verses. God forgave Israel’s sin, provided new tablets on which His Law was inscribed, and told Moses to “lead the people on their way, so that they may enter and possess the land that I swore to their fathers to give them.”

When remembering God, we must stand amazed at His forgiving grace. “What does the Lord your God ask of you?” Deut. 10:12–22 In a brief review, Moses summed up the holy way of life God expected His people to live. Today too we are to “circumcise our hearts” (demonstrate inner commitment to God) by loving others and by worshiping and praising the Lord. “Faithfully obey” Deut. 11:1–32. Note how intimately this chapter links remembering and responding. Again and again Moses reminded his listeners of what God had said and done. On this basis he called on Israel to “love the Lord your God and keep His requirements” (v. 1), to “observe therefore all the commands” (v. 8), to “faithfully obey the commands” (v. 13), to “be careful” to worship God only (v. 16), and to “carefully observe all these commands I am giving you to follow—to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to hold fast to Him” (v. 22).

Yet Moses did more than appeal to the past to show the value of obedience. He looked ahead as well, and linked the divine promise of future blessing to loving and serving God. In remembering God and how He had dealt with His people Moses was “setting before you today a blessing and a curse—the blessing if you obey the commands of the Lord your God . . . the curse if you disobey.” What God has done, He will do. For God is faithful and consistent.

DEVOTIONAL

Remember Our Golden Calves (Deut. 9:7–10:11)

I really don’t like to remember my sins. That flush of shame, that awareness of failure, aren’t at all pleasant. Besides, as forgiven people, aren’t our sins forgiven and the past forgotten? While there’s nothing spiritual about wallowing in guilt, every now and then we need to revisit sites where we have erected golden calves. The golden calf that Israel made on the plains of Sinai was the ultimate affront to God. God had delivered His people from slavery; Israel ignored Him and chose to worship an idol. God had fed and protected Israel; they decided to praise a creation of their own hands. In the most basic way the golden calf was a total rejection of God. And yet, the Bible says, “At that time, the Lord said” (10:1). At that time, when Israel overtly rejected Him, God told Moses to return to the Mount, and there God gave Moses new tablets containing His Law (vv. 2–8). And at that time, God also said, “Go . . . and lead My people on their way, so that they may enter and possess the land that I swore to their fathers” (vv. 10–11).

Moses reminded Israel of the golden calf not to shame them, but to help them realize how great and how gracious God is. This is why we need to revisit our golden calves now and then. To remember how forgiving, how loving, how gracious God has been to us. “At that time” in our lives, the time of our greatest failure, God came to us in Jesus. He lifted us up, took us in His arms, forgave us, and set us on our way again. Revisiting our golden calves reminds us that not even our sins can cut us off from the love of God. Whenever we fail, God is able to pick us up and set us on the path of righteousness once again.

Personal Application

What event in your past makes you most grateful for God’s forgiveness?

Quotable

“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His Word has no place in our lives. My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have One who speaks to the Father in our defense—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”—1 John 1:9–2:2

FEBRUARY 6

Reading 37

LOVING GOD

Deuteronomy 5–7 “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” (Deut. 6:5).These chapters identify the fundamental principles of personal relationship with God. The rules which come later are merely illustrations of how these fundamental principles are to be applied by a people who love God.

Definition of Key Terms

Deuteronomy 6 calls on us to dedicate “heart,” “soul,” and “strength” to loving God. “Heart” in the Old Testament is the seat of both the mind and emotions. “Soul” is best understood here as one’s “being.” We are to love God with our whole self, not limit Him to smaller compartments of our lives. “Strength” suggests the will’s direction of every capacity toward love. Use of three such powerful terms in a single verse makes it clear that relationship with God calls for wholehearted devotion. The implication of these chapters is that only a person truly devoted to God will obey Him. Ten Commandments. Ten brief, basic rules showing human beings how to love God and other persons. For explanation of the Ten Commandments, see Exodus Reading 19.

Overview

The 10 basic commandments given at Sinai show how to love God and others (5:1–21). Keeping them promotes well-being (vv. 22–33). Love and reverence for God produce obedience, and are to be taught to future generations (6:1–25). God demands complete allegiance; competing faiths were to be driven from the land so that God could keep His covenant of love with Israel (7:1–26).

Understanding the Text

“It was not with our fathers . . . but with us” Deut. 5:1–21. The adults who stood before God at Mount Horeb (Sinai) and first heard the Ten Commandments were dead when Moses proclaimed them to this new generation. Yet Moses said God’s covenant was “not with our fathers” but was “with all of us who are alive here today.” What did Moses mean? That God’s Word has a powerful, present message for each listener. God’s Word was first spoken centuries ago, but it is as fresh, vital, and compelling as if it had been just uttered today. In a real sense, God’s Word is spoken today. The living God meets us in His Word. All He says there is said to us as well as to generations past. You and I must never read the Bible as though it were merely a record of something that happened long ago. We are to read Scripture attentively, expecting God to speak to us in our today. As the writer of Hebrews says, “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Heb. 3:15). The Bible is God’s voice. Through it He is speaking not only to our fathers, but to us! “Hear . . . learn . . . and be sure to follow” Deut. 5:1. Each of these words is found in Moses’ first words to the assembled Israelites (v. 1). The Ten Commandments state fundamental principles which are to be applied in our relationship with God and with others. It’s important not to confuse loving God and others with love feelings. Love is a choice. The person who loves God will hear God’s Word, study to understand what that Word means, and then carefully apply it in daily life. “That it might go well with them and their children forever” Deut. 5:22–33. Some act as if the moral standards revealed in the Ten Commandments are arbitrary and restrictive. They resent the “You shall nots” of Scripture, as if these were intended to spoil mankind’s fun and make human life as miserable as possible. Nothing could be further from the truth. God’s laws are actually intended to promote human happiness. We humans are moral beings, created by God with a sense of right and wrong. Like a train that functions only when running on a track, human beings function in a healthy, happy way only when living morally good lives. There is a special urgency in Moses’ call to Israel to obey God. Israel enjoyed a covenant relationship with God. In this relationship God was committed not only to bless obedience, but also to punish disobedience. Unbelievers as well as believers are better off living a morally good life. But God is actively involved in the life of believers. Because God cares so much about us, you and I are more likely to feel the immediate effect of our sins. “When you eat and are satisfied” Deut. 6:10–25. Moses said “when” because he knew that God would surely bless His people. For Israel this meant inheriting “a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant.” Still, such blessings are dangerous. When life is too easy, and we become satisfied, we tend to “forget the Lord.” Moses explained the way for believers to guard themselves when blessed. First, “fear the Lord your God.” The word here means to treat Him with respect, remembering that He is able to discipline as well as to bless. Then, “keep the commands.” The believer is to “do what is right and good.” Finally, the believer is “in the future” to pass on faith to the next generation. This is the only way to guard ourselves and our children from empty, meaningless lives. “You must destroy them totally” Deut. 7:1–6. The demand that Israel utterly destroy the people who inhabited Canaan before her has troubled many. How does this command square with all the talk in Deuteronomy 6 of love? How do we understand it in view of God’s revelation of love for all people in Jesus? To answer we need to make several observations. First, archeology has confirmed Scripture’s portrait of Canaanite culture as morally and religiously depraved. Some 600 years earlier God had told Abraham that He would not expel the people of the Promised Land then, because “the sin of the Amorites has not yet reached its full measure” (Gen. 15:16). Now that full measure of sinfulness had been reached, and Israel was to be God’s instrument of punishment. It’s important for us to remember that the God who loves human beings also hates evil. Any concept of God that fails to take His commitment to punish sin into account is essentially unscriptural. Second, the command to destroy the Canaanites emphasized Israel’s call to be a holy people. Intimate association with the Canaanites would (and did!) lead Israel into idolatry. Only by destroying the Canaanites who currently inhabited the Promised Land could Israel be safe from moral and spiritual corruption. It would be a strange parent indeed who would stand idly by and watch a much-loved child be infected with a deadly disease. God was protecting His children. One other observation. Israel was not commanded to go beyond the borders of Canaan and wipe out the several racial groups represented in Palestine. God’s first concern was for the well-being of His people. Yes, God does care about everyone. But those who know and love Him are His first priority. “It was because the Lord loved you” Deut. 7:7–26. Why did God choose Israel and decide to bless them? Why does God care so much for you and me today? The puzzle is resolved by stating an even greater mystery. Why? “It was because the Lord loved you.” God needs no reason other than love to bless us. Though there are many reasons why it is to our benefit to obey, we need no other reason than love for Him.

DEVOTIONAL

“Communicating God’s Love”(Deut. 6:4–8)

Loving God is so important. Surely a love for the Lord is the most important heritage we can pass on to our children. When my oldest son was a seventh-grader in our local Christian grammar school, and I was a professor of Christian education at Wheaton College Graduate School, I did an experiment with his class to learn how boys and girls from Christian homes “caught” their parents’ faith. What I found was that most of the things parents did or did not do to pass on their faith made very little difference in their children’s lives. The one thing that did make a difference is explained here, in words spoken by Moses millenniums ago. Moses says that communicating faith begins with a parent’s own love for God. A love “with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength” (v. 5). This kind of love opens us up to God, so that He can write His commandments on our hearts (v. 6). Why is this so important? Because as long as God’s commandments seem only like demands engraved in stone, we will never be able to communicate either them or a love for God. It’s only when God has written His laws on our hearts and they find expression in our lives that we are able to “impress” them on our children (v. 7). When God’s love has made us sensitive to His commandments, so that He and they become such an integral part of our lives that we “talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up,” then the God who is real to us will be real to our children too. Then our own love for God will find a home in the hearts of our boys and girls. What makes the difference? Simply this. If God is real to you—if you love Him and follow Him faithfully—then God will be real to your children too.

Personal Application

Show your love for God daily by your commitment to doing His will.

Quotable

“Too often Christians regard the Law merely as a set of legalisms, and they view Jewish people as trying to follow the letter of the Law. On the other hand [they] then proclaim that the New Covenant describes how God works in grace to redeem His people and shower His love on them. In no way should such a compartmentalization exist between the Old and New Testaments. Deuteronomy describes how God blessed Israel and showered His love on them because of His grace and mercy. What the Lord expected from Israel in return was an outpouring of love. While some people misappropriated God’s intentions and developed a legalistic substitute, a remnant in every generation always deeply loved, honored, and served the Lord their God.”—Lewis Goldberg

Deuteronomy

FEBRUARY 5

Reading 36

GOD’S MIGHTY ACTS Deuteronomy 1–4

“These forty years the Lord your God has been with you, and you have not lacked anything” (Deut. 2:7).Moses’ review of the Exodus reminds a new generation that God is faithful despite human failure. But only if they are faithful to Him can God’s people know success.

Overview

Moses reviewed each stage of Israel’s journey from Sinai to their present camp just east of the Jordan River (1:1–3:29). Moses applied the lessons of history and challenged the new generation to obey and to worship God (4:1–49).

Understanding the Text

“It takes eleven days” Deut. 1:1–5. The three sermons of Moses that make up the bulk of Deuteronomy were delivered just over the Jordan from the Promised Land. The site was just an 11-day hike from Mount Horeb (Sinai) where God had given His people the Law. But that Law had been given 40 years earlier! What delay disobedience caused. Deuteronomy 1–3 isolates crises that occurred on the journey, to explain Israel’s years of frustrating delay. God is committed to bring us to the place of blessing. But the length of time it takes you and me to arrive still depends on our willingness to obey. “Hear the disputes” Deut. 1:9–18. Moses first mentioned problems, burdens, and disputes. These characterize all of us and reflect normal human weakness. Note that these did not delay Israel. Moses simply appointed judges and laid down guiding principles. We’re all subject to human weakness and to a variety of failings. This need not delay us on our spiritual journey. We are to judge ourselves and move on. God does not demand perfection, but He does expect us to deal honestly with our sins and failures. “You rebelled against the command of the Lord” Deut. 1:19–46. Israel’s tragic delay in arriving at the Promised Land was caused by conscious, willful disobedience of God’s command. Moses identifies fear of the Canaanites as the immediate cause of the disobedience. That fear was rooted in a failure to trust God’s love (v. 27) and His ability to help (v. 32). Conscious disobedience is sure to delay our spiritual progress. However we may rationalize or explain rebellion, disobedience brings discipline and makes us vulnerable to disaster. “He has watched over your journey” Deut. 2:1–15. This is one of the most touching statements in Moses’ review of history. Despite Israel’s rebellion and repeated sins, God “watched over your journey.” The New Testament says, “If we are faithless, He will remain faithful, for He cannot disown Himself” (2 Tim. 2:13). God’s commitment to us is rooted in His own character, not in anything we may do or fail to do. Even when we rush headlong away from God, He continues to watch over us. But Moses reminded Israel that the nation then wandered for 38 years until the entire rebellious generation perished (Deut. 2:14–15). God will watch over us. But He will also discipline us until tragedy roots out our tendency to rebel. Rugged Mount Sinai (Horeb) is a symbol of the Law that God gave Israel through Moses. Today a monastery stands where Israel once camped. As Deuteronomy shows, despite the thunder that shook the mountain then, God’s Law is rooted in and expresses His love. “Now begin to conquer” Deut. 2:16–3:20. When the old generation died out, God began to give the new generation a taste of success. In a series of increasingly difficult battles God gave Israel increasingly greater victories. When you or I return to the Lord after a time of disobedience, our renewed trust is frequently developed by small, and then greater, spiritual victories. Each step of faith is rewarded as we relearn how to trust God completely. “I pleaded with the Lord” Deut. 3:21–29. Moses is honest in reporting his own personal failure to trust God, though he does not go into detail here. The image of Moses pleading with God to be allowed to go over the Jordan and see the Promised Land is touching. Moses had been a faithful and godly leader. Yet his one act of disobedience was severely punished (cf. Num. 20). Why? Undoubtedly to remind us that no one is immune to divine discipline. No one can sin safely. The text shows that God did, in a sense, grant Moses’ request! The aged leader, then some 120 years old, begged to “go over and see the good land.” Instead God led Moses to the top of Mount Pisgah and gave him a glimpse of Canaan. The sight from this height across the Jordan is impressive. Rising from the fertile plain is a series of hills that gradually flow into an impressive range of mountains. The rich colors and shades reflect the complexity of Palestine, with its wide range of climates and soils which make the land capable of growing every kind of crop. Moses did not “go over” the Jordan. But he did “see the good land” to which he had successfully led God’s people. “Ask now about the former days” Deut. 4:32–40. Now Moses made it very clear why Israel needed to look back as well as to look ahead. In looking back at what God had done, the people would discover how great God is, and who they were to Him. God alone had taken “one nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds.” Who God is is defined by His acts in history. Israel is defined by its relationship with God. Israel is a people whom God “loved” and “chose” and “brought . . . out of Egypt . . . to bring you into their land to give it to you for your inheritance.” All this is understood by looking back. Appreciating who God is and seeing Israel’s identity in Him would motivate Israel to obey and would bring God’s people future blessing when taken “to heart.” It’s the same with you and me today. We look back and realize what God has done in Jesus Christ. When we remember that His suffering and subsequent triumph were for us, and we realize how precious we are to God, our awakened love motivates us to serve our Lord.

DEVOTIONAL

Guaranteed Spiritual Success (Deut. 4:1–31)

I’m fascinated by those ads in airline magazines that promise salesmen quick and easy success. I’ve known one salesman, Ed, who listened daily to the tapes and regularly attended the seminars such ads market. But Ed wasn’t exactly successful, and I remain suspicious about the promises those ads make. On the other hand, I’m positive that what Moses told Israel in Deuteronomy 4 can guarantee success in anyone’s spiritual life. What would you hear on one of Moses’ tapes, or at one of his seminars? Probably something like this: (1) “Keep the commands of the Lord your God” (v. 2). Absolutely safe guidelines to the good life! (2) “Watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them slip from your heart” (v. 9). Review what God has done for you every day, and you’ll stay motivated! (3) “Teach them to your children and to their children after them” (v. 9). Share what God means to you. It will keep your faith fresh and make God real to your loved ones. (4) “Watch yourselves very carefully, so that you do not become corrupt” (vv. 15–16). Don’t get cocky. Anyone can slip and fall. Never give any idol-whether wealth, pleasure, power, love, or even good works-God’s central place in your life. Of course, I’m not sure Moses’ tapes and seminars would sell. You see, people are always looking for an easy way to succeed. As far as spiritual success is concerned, there isn’t any easy way. So perhaps Moses would add one other step for us moderns. Like, “Work at your relationship with God.” Certainly Moses and the new generation of Israelites would say, with spiritually successful saints through the ages, “It’s worth it!”

Personal Application

What disciplines have you developed to help you achieve spiritual success?

Quotable

“God calls us, not to success, but to faith-obedience and trust and service—and He bids us to be unconcerned with measuring the merits of our work the way the world does. We are to sow; He will reap as He pleases.”—Charles Colson

Deuteronomy

INTRODUCTION

Deuteronomy is the fifth and last book written by Moses. Deuteronomy, placed historically about 1400 B.C., means “second (repeated) law.” It is written in the form of a second-millennium-B.C. treaty between a ruler and his people. The Israelites had been slaves in Egypt until God intervened about 1450 B.C. God set them free through a series of miracles and led them to Mount Sinai. There Moses, whom God had called to lead Israel, gave God’s people a Law, a priesthood, a sacrificial system, and a portable place of worship. But when the Exodus generation approached Canaan, a land God had promised to Israel’s ancestor Abraham, the Israelites rebelled.

For 40 years Israel wandered in circles in the desert, until every adult member of that first, rebellious generation had died. In Deuteronomy Moses is speaking to their children—a new generation that is now ready to obey God and about to conquer the land God has promised to His people. This review of the divine Law is given to this new generation of Israelites to explain the nature of their relationship with the Lord. At the end of the book this new generation, knowing the nature of the relationship God intends to have with Israel, is challenged to commit itself fully to the Lord. Deuteronomy reminds us that grace has always characterized God’s relationships with human beings.

God was motivated by love alone in choosing Israel. The Law showing Israel how to live in covenant relationship with Him is also an expression of love. Deuteronomy also teaches that love for God is the sole motive powerful enough to move human beings to respond obediently to the Lord. Deuteronomy, which is quoted some 80 times in the New Testament, has rightly been called the Old Testament’s “gospel of love.”

OUTLINE OF CONTENTS

I.	Moses’ Review of History	Deut. 1–4
	A. What God has done for Israel	Deut. 1–3
	B. How Israel is to respond	Deut. 4
II.	Moses’ Presentation of the Treaty with God	Deut. 5–28
	A. Fundamental principles of relationship	Deut. 5–11
	B. Specific examples of requirements	Deut. 12–26
	C. Challenge to personal commitment	Deut. 27–28
III.	Moses’ Exhortation to Complete Commitment	Deut. 29–30
IV.	Moses’ Last Acts	Deut. 31–34
	(pge 106)