Introduction
This morning we are in the midst of reading through the Book of Deuteronomy, which concludes the Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible. This book is a series of sermons in which Moses reviews the teaching and events from the time of the exodus from Egypt and the Israelite’s wanderings through the wilderness. This book ends with the death of Moses and the official passing of the baton to Joshua, his successor. Deuteronomy, which means Second Law, documents Moses telling God’s people how to live as they enter into the Promised Land promised to Abraham as seen in Gen 12:1-3. Moses’ speeches to the Israelites are centered on the plains of Moab, just across the Jordan River from Canaan. This book highlights the previous three books, Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers.
As far sermons go, Deuteronomy has three major sections followed by an epilogue. Each major section presents a speech by Moses and begins with a special phrase marking it as a distinct unit.
· The first speech (Deut 1:1–4:43) is introduced with a phrase stating these are “the words” of Moses and God. Moses uses the wilderness stories to remind the Israelites about God’s faithfulness to them and to encourage their trust and obedience.
· Moses’ second sermon (Deut 4:44–28:68), is not for the faint of heart. This is a long sermon repeating a version of the Ten Commandments (Ex 20:1-17 and Deut 5:6–21), which he expands on them in the subsequent chapters.
· Thirdly, in Deut 29:1-30:20, calls on the Israelites to renew their covenant relationship with God.
· The final message found in Deut 31:1–34:12 deals with the death of Moses, along with introducing Joshua who will succeed Moses as leader of the Israelites.
By way of introduction there is a key passage found in Deut 6:4-5 – “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” These verses are called the Shema, from the Hebrew word translated Hear. The statement in these verses are the basic confession of faith in Judaism, which was prayed morning and evening. This was Israel’s declaration that the Lord (Yahweh) was and is totally unique. He alone is God and One, which was a serious contrast to their polytheistic neighbors. The Israelites were to Hear and Obey and Love God with all their heart, soul, and strength. Jesus himself grew up with these words on his lips as a young child. He also spoke these words to the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law – “Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matt 22:37–40).
I am reminded that Jesus came to fulfill the Law and the Prophets, not to abolish them (Matt 5:17). As followers of Jesus we are to hear and obey and love God and our neighbours each and every day. We do so not in order to be righteous or saved, but as a result of coming into relationship with God our Father, through grace and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Are you Hungry for God?
The Israelites wrestled with hunger and thirst while traveling through the wilderness. This drove them to test God on several occasions. God was faithful and answers their complaints, I am not sure if I can say they are prayers or not. This gets me thinking about how often do I pray, or should I say complain to God? How hungry am I to hear God’s Word? Do I thirst for the Spirit of Living Water? Do I want to make obedience my application? Can’t I just trust Jesus to fulfill these needs in my life? What part do I play in entering the Promised Land? Why do I ask these questions? Not to condemn us but to help us consider our journey with God.
Moses gave a similar exhortation in Deut 8:1-3, which deserves our attention. Moses’ repeated himself in Deuteronomy because he knew their history; the people strayed away from God. He emphasized truths that are important, while reminding the Israelites that their wilderness journey with God was less than stellar. In chapter 8 Moses went over ground previously traveled, pun intended. “Be careful to follow every command I am giving you today, so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land that the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors. 2 Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. 3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” Here are a few key observations.
· Be careful reminds me of paying attention, or as I said last week, “praying attention.”
· Live and increase and enter and possess; this speaks of the process of our journey. Entering into the Promised Land was going to be “little by little,” a partnership between God and His people. Life abundantly is a gift from Jesus. Enter and possess is putting boots on the ground. Wherever you go God goes with you.
· Remember and its derivatives are mentioned in the Bible over three hundred times. Unfortunately, we all struggle with remembering when it comes to hearing and obeying. That is why at times we experience the wilderness. This is one of God’s ways of humbling and testing us to know what is in our hearts. Will we keep his commands?
· The point of these challenging times is revelation - “To teach us that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”
God’s Sure Word
The Israelites were about to cross over into the Promised Land. They needed to be prepared in heart for action and the challenges ahead. They needed courage. Faith. Endurance. Moses is encouraging them to press on and into the Promised Land by taking God at His Word – “For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land—a land with streams and pools of water, with springs flowing in the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing; a land where the rocks are iron and you can dig copper out of the hills.
10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you. 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. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. 15 He led you through the vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with its venomous snakes and scorpions. He brought you water out of hard rock. 16 He gave you manna to eat in the desert, something your fathers had never known, to humble and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you. 17 You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.” 18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today” (Deut 8:7-18).
Just as the Israelites had lessons to learn in the wilderness, Moses is now bringing lessons to learn in the Promised Land. There is danger in abundant prosperity when people forget who is the Provider. Moses gives a sure antidote for this danger: praise the Lord your God. If there is a failure to praise the Lord, pride will result. Remember who God is… Remember His capabilities… His prosperity… His ability to authorize and approve His covenant…
In Conclusion
We are living in days when we need to have our faith strengthened, when we need to know God and His Word are sure and true. There are world events that are shaking us at the moment. We see challenges and persecutions. Tests and trials. When Jesus was tempted by satan, He said, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matt 4:4). He was directly quoting from this passage in Deut 8:3. Jesus was hungry physically. The devil was tempting him, but Jesus had faith food that he was eating daily. You see, God’s Word is food for the soul. God’s Word is sure. God’s Word is sufficient. One word from Him can change a nation. God speaking over you and me is powerful. His Word directs our future. His Word heals. His Word convicts. His Word is “from everlasting to everlasting” (Psalm 90:2). It is through the entrance of this everlasting Word that we are born again and come into this wonderful salvation, this spiritual Promised Land. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17). God has designed that the righteous will live by faith (Rom. 1:17), no matter where they are at in their journey, in the wilderness or in the Promised Land.
I want to close with this prayer from a missionary in Ukraine…
“No matter what the situation in the world, our divine mandate has not changed. We are in this world at this time for God’s purposes, not our own. We have not been called to comfort or ease, to success or prosperity, but to represent the Lord Jesus Christ. In an era of political chaos, economic instability, pandemic, paranoia and fear, we must keep our eye on God’s objective and press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ. There is but one question that must be answered: how can I please the Lord in this situation?”