the purpose of obedience

Posted on November 15, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

 

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Deuteronomy 4:5-8

Deuteronomy 4:5 Look, I have taught you prescriptions and rules as Yahveh my God has commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of.

Deuteronomy 4:6 Be careful and do them, because this will show your wisdom and understanding in the eyes of the peoples. When they hear about all these prescriptions, they will say, ‘This great nation is indeed a wise and understanding people.’

Deuteronomy 4:7 For what great nation is there that has a god near to it like Yahveh our God is to us whenever we call to him?

Deuteronomy 4:8 And what great nation has righteous prescriptions and rules like this entire instruction I set before you today?

the purpose of obedience

Israel was to demonstrate obedience to God, and that obedience was to show their connection to him, and their wisdom and understanding. That obedience was to draw the nations to God, which was the mission of the Mosaic covenant!

Christian, have you considered the commands of Christ? Our obedience to his commands is to be how we draw people to him. If we are genuinely obedient to the commands Jesus gave us, the nations around us will sit up and take notice.

Lord, give us the wisdom to reflect your commands by our actions.

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life or death quest

Posted on November 14, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 4:1-4

Deuteronomy 4:1 “Now, Israel, listen to the prescriptions1 and rules I am teaching you to follow, so that you may stay alive,2 enter, and take possession of the land Yahveh, the God of your fathers, is giving you.

Deuteronomy 4:2 You must not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it, so that you may watch the commands of Yahveh your God I am giving you.

Deuteronomy 4:3 Your eyes have seen what Yahveh did at Baal-peor, for Yahveh your God exterminated every one of you who followed Baal of Peor.

Deuteronomy 4:4 But you who have remained faithful to Yahveh your God are all alive today.

life or death quest

For the Israelites, accomplishing God’s mission meant more than just being successful at what they did. It was literally a life or death quest. If they didn’t follow God’s commands and take possession of the land, they would not stay alive. The rebels who fell at Baal-peor were a visual reminder of that fact.

Oh, Christian, if we could only regard our mission with such reverence! If we made the task of making disciples of all nations a life or death quest, it would not be so easy to get sidetracked.

Lord, teach us to revere our mission.

1חק

2חָיָה

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No, yes, yes

Posted on November 13, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 3:27-29 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 3:27 Go to the top of Pisgah and look to the west, north, south, and east, and see it with your own eyes, because you will not cross the Jordan.

Deuteronomy 3:28 But command Joshua and make him strong and tough, because he will cross over ahead of the people and enable them to inherit this land that you will see.’

Deuteronomy 3:29 So we stayed in the valley facing Beth-peor.

No, yes, yes

Moses got three answers to his prayer. He had prayed that he could see the promised land, and God’s answer was definitely no. But God did allow him the mountain-top experience of viewing it on Pisgah.

God’s third answer to Moses’ prayer was to give him a final mission. Training Joshua was to be his reward in this life.

Lord, teach us to find our joy in accomplishing your mission.

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no is enough

Posted on November 12, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 3:23-26

Deuteronomy 3:23 “At that time I begged Yahveh, and this is what I said:

Deuteronomy 3:24 Yahveh God, you have begun to show your greatness and your strong hand to your servant, because what god is there in the sky or on the land who can perform deeds and mighty acts like yours?

Deuteronomy 3:25 Please let me cross over and see the beautiful land on the other side of the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon.

Deuteronomy 3:26 “But Yahveh was angry with me because of you and would not listen to me. Yahveh said to me, ‘That’s enough! Do not speak to me again about this matter.

no is enough

If anyone ever had a truly personal relationship with God, Moses did. Yet that personal relationship with God did not guarantee that Moses would always want what God wants. Moses wanted to see the land that he had been leading the Israelites to. God didn’t want that. God didn’t even want Moses to keep praying for that.

The Bible does encourage believers to keep storming heaven with our prayers. We should always pray and never give up. But if God has his reasons for not giving us what we want, we need to respect that. Paul fervently prayed for removal of his thorn in the flesh. But God said no. Paul learned to glory in that weakness.

Lord, we trust you. When you say no, that is enough for us.

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Seeing his imprint

Posted on November 11, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 3:21-22 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 3:21 “I commanded Joshua at that time, and this is what I said: Your own eyes have seen everything Yahveh your God has done to these two kings. Yahveh will do the same to all the kingdoms you are about to enter.

Deuteronomy 3:22 Don’t be afraid of them, because Yahveh your God fights for you.

Seeing his imprint

Moses had been given the task of strengthening Joshua. Part of the task was training him to register what he had seen with his own eyes. Faith for Joshua began when he dared to believe that God was fighting for him. It was not so much seeing what was not there as it was recognizing what was. The defeat of Sihon and Og was either luck or God. Moses taught Joshua to see God’s imprint.

Lord, you are at work in our lives. Open our eyes so that we can see your imprint.

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sacrificing for your brothers

Posted on November 10, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 3:18-20 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 3:18 “I commanded you at that time: and this is what I said: Yahveh your God has given you this land to take possession of. All your militarily qualified sons1 will cross over in battle formation ahead of your brothers the Israelites.

Deuteronomy 3:19 But your wives, dependents, and livestock – I know that you have a lot of livestock – will stay in the cities I have given you

Deuteronomy 3:20 until Yahveh gives rest to your brothers as he has to you, and they also take possession of the land Yahveh your God is giving them across the Jordan. Then each of you may return to his possession that I have given you.

sacrificing for your brothers

At this stage, there was already considerable land and several cities which had been conquered. But Yahveh did not want the young men who were qualified to fight to stay behind in that territory. He wanted them to keep fighting so that their brothers would also have some of the land God had promised. This meant that they would have to temporarily leave their wives, children, and possessions. They were being challenged to sacrifice for the benefit of their brothers.

God has not called us to obtain land, but to make disciples in every land. It is fitting as we consider this new mission for us to ask how we can best secure a place in the kingdom for our brothers and sisters who are not yet in it. We should take those best qualified for missionary service, and send them to the field. Such service requires sacrifice on the part of the missionaries, and their senders.

Lord, give us the courage to send our best qualified to enlarge your kingdom.

1‎כָּל־בְּנֵי־חָֽיִל

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there will be giants

Posted on November 9, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 3:8-11 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 3:8 “At that time we took the land from the two Amorite kings across the Jordan, from the Arnon Valley as far as Mount Hermon,

Deuteronomy 3:9 which the Sidonians call Sirion, but the Amorites call Senir,

Deuteronomy 3:10 all the cities of the plateau, Gilead, and Bashan as far as Salecah and Edrei, cities of Og’s kingdom in Bashan.

Deuteronomy 3:11 (Only King Og of Bashan was left of the remnant of the Rephaim. Notice his bed was made of iron. Isn’t it in Rabbah of the Ammonites? It is nine cubits1 long and four cubits2 wide by a standard measure.)

there will be giants

The Rephaim were a race of giants who populated the lands destined to be occupied by Israel. Og was a descendant of this race. No doubt he was a frightening sight in battle. But the Israelites had learned that no one can stand in their way when they were going God’s way.

Christians will also face giants as they pursue the mission of spreading the gospel to the nations. One by one these giants will appear, and one by one they must be defeated by the reality of God’s truth.

What giants are you facing? Don’t be afraid of them. God has put them in your way because he wants the glory when you push through them.

Lord, bring on the giants. When we are going your way, we are invincible.

113 1/2 feet

26 feet

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success without settling

Posted on November 8, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 3:1-3 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 3:1 “Then we turned and went up the road to Bashan, and King Og of Bashan came out against us with his whole army to do battle at Edrei.

Deuteronomy 3:2 But Yahveh said to me, ‘Do not be afraid of him, because I have handed him over to you along with his whole army and his land. Do to him as you did to King Sihon of the Amorites, who lived in Heshbon.’

Deuteronomy 3:3 So Yahveh our God also handed over King Og of Bashan and his whole army to us. We struck him until there was no survivor left.

success without settling

The Israelites had just won a major victory and were in possession of considerable land. Some might have been tempted to stay and settle and solidify their holdings. But that is not what happened. They turned and went up the road to Bashan – right in the face of another king with a formidable army.

Our mission today as disciples of Christ is not to gain territory but to rescue people from slavery to sin. We cannot afford to settle for success in only one place. We have to keep moving, keep preaching the gospel, keep making disciples.

Lord, give us the tenacity of warriors who succeed without settling.

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his campaign, his limits

Posted on November 7, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 2:34-37 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:34 At that time we captured all his cities and completely destroyed the people of every city, including the women and children. We left no survivors.

Deuteronomy 2:35 We took only the livestock and the spoil1 from the cities we captured as plunder2 for ourselves.

Deuteronomy 2:36 There was no city that was inaccessible to us, from Aroer on the rim of the Arnon Valley, along with the city in the valley, even as far as Gilead. Yahveh our God gave everything to us.

Deuteronomy 2:37 But you did not go near the Ammonites’ land, all along the bank of the Jabbok River, the cities of the hill country, or any place about which Yahveh our God had commanded.

his campaign, his limits

The victory over Sihon’s cities was a demonstration of success, including the fact that the Israelites were careful not to overstep the boundaries that God had set. That showed faith in God to give them victory, and respect for the limits God had set for the campaign.

When we want to reach people with the gospel, perhaps we need to first spend time praying over where the Lord wants to send us. Let him set the limits for us, determining which target groups we should be seeking to reach.

Lord, teach us how to discipline ourselves so that we are attempting the missions you want us to be involved in.

1שָׁלָל

2בָּזָז

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victory in line with the mission

Posted on November 6, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Deuteronomy 2:31-33 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:31 “Then Yahveh said to me, ‘See, I have begun to give Sihon and his land to you. Begin to take possession of it.’

Deuteronomy 2:32 So Sihon and his whole army came out against us for battle at Jahaz.

Deuteronomy 2:33 Yahveh our God handed him over to us, and we defeated him, his sons, and his whole army.

victory in line with the mission

Finally a victory came after almost 40 years of wandering and wondering. The victory came because God planned it, announced it, and his people believed and acted on what God said. Also, and more importantly – the victory was in line with the mission. God’s mission for the Israelites was to possess the land he had promised them – a portion of which was currently under the feet of these Amorites. We can be more assured that we can get the victories we pray for if they are in line with God’s mission for us. His mission for us is not to possess a land but to disciple the nations in every land.

Lord, lead us to victory by allowing us to share the gospel and reach the nations for Christ.

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