Moses has been restating all the Lord's laws in the book of Deuteronomy. He now pauses to give the congregation a reminder about how important it is to follow the Lord's commands.
"The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul." (Deuteronomy 26:16) Moses has been speaking to the next generation---the generation that will go into the promised land. The original generation that came out of Egypt was not allowed to enter the promised land because so many of them rebelled against the Lord at Kadesh in Numbers 14. They accused Him of having brought them out of Egypt only to die by the sword and to have their women and children captured. As a result of their faithlessness, the Lord declared, "Not one of them will ever see the land I promised on oath to their ancestors." He made an exception for Joshua and Caleb who, after returning from the reconnaissance mission into the promised land, believed the Lord would enable them to take the fortified cities and defeat the giants in battle.
Because the older generation has died out during the years in the wilderness, Moses has restated all the Lord's laws and commandments to the next generation. The time is almost at hand to begin taking possession of the land. Moses reminds them they must always follow the Lord's commands, today and every day going forward.
Four decades ago the Israelites accepted the Lord's covenant with them in Exodus 24 and perhaps have restated their acceptance of His covenant here in Deuteronomy 26, for Moses says, "You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in obedience to Him, that you will keep His decrees, commands and laws---that you will listen to Him." (Deuteronomy 26:17) There's nothing wrong with reminding ourselves that the Lord is our God and that we intend to remain faithful to Him. We don't have to get saved over and over again; that is, we don't lose our salvation and have to be reinstated into the Lord's grace by praying the "sinner's prayer" more than once. But there's nothing wrong with making a statement of faith a number of times over the course of our lives. Doing so reminds us who the Lord is and who we are in Him. It strengthens our souls. It provides courage to our hearts when we say, "Lord, You are still my God. I still believe in You. I still trust You. I still love You. I will continue to follow You all the days of my life."
The people testify that the Lord is their God. In response He testifies that they are His people. "And the Lord has declared this day that you are His people, His treasured possession as He promised, and that you are to keep all His commands." (Deuteronomy 26:18)
One of the most obvious outward signs that they are His people is that they strive to follow His commands. The Lord Jesus told His disciples (and by extension, all who would believe on Him as Lord) that there would be outward signs of belonging Him. He said the world would know we are His if we love our fellow man. (John 13:15) And He said that the world would know we are His if we keep His commandments. (John 14:15)
In return for loving Him and keeping His commandments, the Lord plans to bless the nation of Israel abundantly. Moses tells the congregation, "He has declared that He will set you in praise, fame and honor high above all the nations He has made and that you will be a people holy to the Lord your God, as He promised." (Deuteronomy 26:19) Israel will stand out from all the nations of the world by her obedience to the Lord. Because of her obedience to the Lord, she will also stand out from all the nations of the world by how the Lord will bless her.
You and I should stand out too, if we are children of the one true God. We shouldn't be indistinguishable from unbelievers. If we are faithful and obedient to our God, we will stand out not only by our behavior toward the Lord but also by the Lord's behavior toward us in the matter of blessing. This may or may not take the form of wealth or of everything in life going just as we want it to go, but it will certainly take the form of spiritual blessing. There will be something about us---a peace, a confidence, a calmness---that the unbelieving world doesn't have. We will shine like lights in a dark world, hopefully drawing others to the light. Just as the ancient heathen world noticed something different about Israel (and untold numbers converted to the God of Israel because of this), today's world will notice something different about those of us who believe in and serve the Lord and may come to Him in faith because they want what we have. They want peace with God. They want peace in their hearts. They want the comfort of knowing He is always with them. They want the confidence of feeling His love for them. They want the assurance of knowing the eternal destiny of their souls. We must stand out so that, when a person wants to know about the Lord, they will know who to ask.
No comments:
Post a Comment