Devotions

evidence of enmity

Posted on November 5, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 2:26-30 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:26 “So I sent messengers with an offer of peace to King Sihon of Heshbon from the open country of Kedemoth, and this is what they said:

Deuteronomy 2:27 ‘Let us travel through your land; we will keep strictly to the highway. We will not turn to the right or the left.

Deuteronomy 2:28 You can sell us food in exchange for silver so we may eat, and give us water for silver so we may drink. Only let us travel through on foot,

Deuteronomy 2:29 just like the descendants of Esau who live in Seir did for us, and the Moabites who live in Ar, until we cross the Jordan into the land Yahveh our God is giving us.’

Deuteronomy 2:30 But King Sihon of Heshbon would not let us travel through his land, because Yahveh your God had made his breath¹ stubborn and his heart obstinate in order to hand him over to you, as has now taken place.

evidence of enmity

The Israelites had learned from God that Sihon was going to be their enemy, but that did not imply that they should go immediately onto the offensive. No, they appealed to Sihon to treat them just like the Edomites and Moabites did. They waited for Sihon to demonstrate his animosity.

I have been relating these stories to the question of how Christians should live their lives today. I suggested yesterday that we have three categories: disciples, friends and enemies. It is not always easy to know who is an enemy of the gospel, and who is just an unbeliever who has not yet been convinced. In this case, the Israelites treated the king of the Amorites as if he were a friend until the king made that impossible.

This incident serves to illustrate a helpful principle for us. We should show the same love and trust to everyone until we see evidence that they are going to oppose us.

Lord, we trust you to guide us in our relationship with others. Give us patience to wait until the evidence proves who our enemies are.

1רוּחַ

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encountering our enemies

Posted on November 4, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 2:24-25 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:24 “Yahveh also said, ‘Get up, move out, and cross the Arnon Valley. See, I have handed the Amorites’ King Sihon of Heshbon and his land over to you. Begin to take possession of it; engage him in battle.

Deuteronomy 2:25 Today I will begin to put the fear and dread of you on the peoples everywhere under the sky. They will hear the report about you, tremble, and be in anguish upon seeing you.’

encountering our enemies

The mission of the Israelites was to take possession of the land that God had given to them. When they encountered the Edomites and Ammonites in the previous sections of the story, God’s instruction for them was to go through their territory without engaging them. They could be resources for the Israelites, but the Israelites were not allowed to attack them.

Now things are different. God warned the Israelites that they were not going to simply walk through the land of king Sihon. He was not going to allow it.

The Christian is responsible to love his neighbor, but in many cases, that love is not going to be reciprocal. By just being honest with our beliefs, we are going to make enemies. Christians cannot compromise who we are to make friends with God’s enemies. That is not our calling.

Our mission is not to possess a land, but to make disciples within it. The land we live in will contain three types of people: other disciples, friendly unbelievers with whom we can coexist, and enemies we must show love to, but not accept unconditionally because they actively oppose Christ and the gospel.

Lord, give us the wisdom to know how to love everyone, but also to know who our friends and enemies are.

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other peoples’ future

Posted on November 3, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 2:22-23 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:22 This was just as he had done for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir, when he exterminated the Horites ahead of them; they took possession from them and have lived in their place until now.

Deuteronomy 2:23 The Caphtorim, who came from Caphtor, exterminated the Avvites, who lived in villages as far as Gaza, and settled in their place.

other peoples’ future

This passage sounds a bit barbaric, and some use texts like this to accuse the Bible of promoting violence and genocide. But we have to understand the message in its context. Moses was explaining why the Israelites were not allowed to eliminate the Edomites. God would allow that under certain circumstances, but this was not one. The land that Esau’s descendants owned and lived in was theirs to use, and the Israelites were not allowed to take it by force. They could not be judge, jury and executioners. God alone decided who gets to keep their land.

Being a child of God, and a member of Christ’s church has its privileges. But it does not mean I get to play God. Other peoples’ future is in his hands, not mine.

Lord, keep us out of other peoples’ business when it does not involve us.

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pine boxes

Posted on November 2, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 2:16-21 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:16 “When all the fighting men had died among the people,

Deuteronomy 2:17 Yahveh spoke to me, and this is what he said:

Deuteronomy 2:18 ‘Today you are going to cross the border of Moab at Ar.

Deuteronomy 2:19 When you get close to the Ammonites, don’t show any hostility to them or provoke them, because I will not give you any of the Ammonites’ land as a possession; I have given it as a possession to the descendants of Lot.'”

Deuteronomy 2:20 This too used to be regarded as the land of the Rephaim. The Rephaim lived there previously, though the Ammonites called them Zamzummim,

Deuteronomy 2:21 a great and numerous people, tall as the Anakim. Yahveh exterminated the Rephaim at the advance of the Ammonites, so that they took possession from them and settled in their place.

pine boxes

A death in the family or social group is a terrible thing, and always brings sadness and a feeling of despair. There is something wrong about death, and I am grateful that God has death on his enemies list. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.¹ But in today’s text, it was the death of the last warrior who rebelled against God’s command that made it possible for the Israelites to go forward.

Lord, although we don’t understand when the people we know and love start filling pine boxes, we choose to trust you to finish your plan.

11 Corinthians 15:26.

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long waits

Posted on November 1, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 2:13-15 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:13 “Yahveh said, ‘Now get up and cross the Zered Valley.’ So we crossed the Zered Valley.

Deuteronomy 2:14 The time we spent traveling from Kadesh-barnea until we crossed the Zered Valley was thirty-eight years until the entire generation of fighting men had been finished¹ from the camp, as Yahveh had sworn to them.

Deuteronomy 2:15 Indeed, Yahveh’s hand was against them, to eliminate them from the camp until they had all been finished.

long waits

God had a reason for the long wait that kept the Israelites out of the promised land. It was a time of punishment for those who had rebelled against his command. It was also a time of preparation for those destined to obey it. No time is wasted in God’s economy, but time can be lost by our own stubborn independence.

Christian, are you in a long wait? Don’t try to determine whether this is a time of punishment or a time for preparation. Assume it is both. Cry out to God for forgiveness. We all know we need it. But also ask him what’s his plan from now on, and start preparing for it.

Lord, forgive us and prepare us!

1 תָּמַם

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not our circus, not our monkeys

Posted on October 31, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 2:9-12 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:9 Yahveh said to me, ‘Show no hostility toward Moab, and do not provoke them to battle, because I will not give you any of their land as a possession, since I have given Ar as a possession to the descendants of Lot.'”

Deuteronomy 2:10 The Emim, a great and numerous people as tall as the Anakim, had previously lived there.

Deuteronomy 2:11 They were also regarded as Rephaim, like the Anakim, though the Moabites called them Emim.

Deuteronomy 2:12 The Horites had previously lived in Seir, but the descendants of Esau took possession from them, exterminating them completely and settling in their place, just as Israel did in the land of its possession Yahveh gave them.

not our circus, not our monkeys

Both the Edomites and the Moabites would prove to be enemies to the children of Jacob. But Yahveh was giving them the land they were on. He had a destiny for them as well as for the Israelites. The Israelites needed to keep going and not get sidetracked. The Edomites and Moabites were currently not their circus and not their monkeys.

Lord, give us the wisdom to stay away from anything that might hinder our mission and sidetrack us from our destiny.

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resources, not enemies

Posted on October 30, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

Photo by Daniel Reche on Pexels.com

Deuteronomy 2:6-8 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:6 You may purchase food from them, so that you may eat, and buy water from them to drink.

Deuteronomy 2:7 You see, Yahveh your God has empowered you in all the work of your hands. He has watched over your journey through this immense open country. Yahveh your God has been with you this past forty years, and you have lacked nothing.’

Deuteronomy 2:8 “So we bypassed our brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. We turned away from the Arabah road and from Elath and Ezion-geber. We traveled along the road to the open country of Moab.

resources, not enemies

The Lord didn’t forbid any interaction with the Edomites in Seir. The Israelites were free to do business with them so that their basic needs could be supplied. The Edomites were there as a resource for their journey. They were a gift from God.

We live in an age when it is all too easy to make enemies. We have to learn the the art of doing business with others who are different from us, seeing them as a gift from God, rather than enemies to be conquered. We will have enemies, but we should be careful not to brand everyone who is different than us as enemies.

Lord, thank you for providing resources for our journey.

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not even a foot-width

Posted on October 29, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

Photo by Juliano Ferreira on Pexels.com

Deuteronomy 2:1-5 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 2:1 “Then we turned back and headed for the open country by way of the Red Sea, as Yahveh had told me, and we traveled around the hill country of Seir for many days.

Deuteronomy 2:2 Yahveh then spoke to me, and this is what he said:

Deuteronomy 2:3 ‘You’ve been traveling around this hill country long enough; turn north.

Deuteronomy 2:4 Command the people, and this is what you should say: You are about to travel through the territory of your brothers, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. They will be afraid of you, so be very careful.

Deuteronomy 2:5 Don’t provoke them, because I will not give you any of their land, not even a foot-width¹ of it, because I have given Esau the hill country of Seir as his possession.

not even a foot-width

Many would have been tempted to attack the Edomites who lived in Seir. The Israelites probably outnumbered them, and the Edomites were already aware that they were out there somewhere, and were afraid of them. But God expressly prohibited any action against them. He called them brothers to the Israelites because they descended from Esau. Most importantly, he prohibited any hostility because he had not chosen to give the Israelites their land.

It is unwise for a disciple of Christ to get involved in a conquest that Christ himself has not sanctioned. He is the commander. It is not the task of underlings to orchestrate the battle. We go where he has sent us. If we get involved where he has not sent us, we can expect defeat. The only territory we can expect to inherit is what he has chosen to give us.

Lord, give us wisdom to know which battles to fight, and which to avoid, because they do not concern you.

1 מִדְרָךְ

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Israel who?

Posted on October 28, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 1:44-46 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 1:44 Then the Amorites who lived there came out against you and chased you as if you were a swarm of bees. They crushed¹ you from Seir as far as Hormah.

Deuteronomy 1:45 When you returned, you wept in Yahveh’s sight, but he didn’t listen to your requests or pay attention to you.

Deuteronomy 1:46 This is the reason you stayed in Kadesh as long as you did.

Israel who?

The Lord refused to listen to the prayers of his own people because they had refused to follow his instructions. Oh, people of God, our God wants us to take him seriously. Perhaps we would not suffer so many defeats if we would go back to his word and find out what he wants.

Lord, show us your way, and give us the wisdom and courage to follow your instructions.

1כְּתַת

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no easy reset

Posted on October 27, 2019 by Jefferson Vann

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Deuteronomy 1:41-43 (JDV)

Deuteronomy 1:41 “You answered me, ‘We have made a mistake¹ against Yahveh. We will go up and fight just as Yahveh our God commanded us.’ Then each of you put on his weapons of war and thought it would be easy to go up into the hill country.

Deuteronomy 1:42 “But Yahveh said to me, ‘Tell them: Don’t go up and fight, because I am not with you to keep you from being defeated in your enemies’ sight.’

Deuteronomy 1:43 So I said that to you, but you didn’t listen. You rebelled against Yahveh’s command and defiantly went up into the hill country.

no easy reset

We live in a reset generation. We have grown up with video games in which you can fail, be destroyed, and then reset to zero and start over. Living for God is not like that. Making wrong choices lead to losing coverage. After the Israelites had chosen not to go up and possess the land, they changed their mind. But God warned them not to try to do it because he was no longer with them to keep them from being defeated. There was no easy reset.

Lord, give us the wisdom to obey you the first time. Keep us from the arrogant presumption that you will always undo the consequences of our rebellion.

1חטָא

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