How to Live with More Discernment

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 32:26-39.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 32:26-39 (NIV)
26  I said I would scatter them and blot out their memory from mankind,
27  but I dreaded the taunt of the enemy, lest the adversary misunderstand and say, ‘Our hand has triumphed; the LORD has not done all this.'”
28  They are a nation without sense, there is no discernment in them.
29  If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be!

On verses 26-39:  Moses turns his attention to the enemies of Israel.  He foresees that when Israel is defeated by their enemies as a consequence of disobeying God, their enemies will think that they were victorious because of their own strength and power, rather than giving the credit to God.  God wishes that they would all have the discernment to know that without Him there is no way they could have been successful.  Knowing that this is how Israel’s enemies will respond, Moses says that God in His sovereignty will deal with Israel’s enemies in His own time, such that not just Israel but other nations will see that the LORD is God.

You’re Blessed with God’s Best

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 32:13-25.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 32:13-15 (NIV)
13  He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him with the fruit of the fields. He nourished him with honey from the rock, and with oil from the flinty crag,
14  with curds and milk from herd and flock and with fattened lambs and goats, with choice rams of Bashan and the finest kernels of wheat. You drank the foaming blood of the grape.
15  Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek…

On verses 13-15a:  Verses 13-14 describe how God gave Israel His best provision.  His provision for them was not ordinary, but extraordinary.  Truly God had allowed the Israelites to come into a land of milk (v14) and honey (v13).  In the same way, the Holy Spirit is working in your life when you acknowledge that your heavenly Father’s provision for your life is not ordinary but extraordinary.  That includes every blessing He has given you and most especially His Son Jesus Christ.

You are the Apple of God’s Eye

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 32:1-12.  As promised we’ll also look at Deuteronomy 31:30 as well.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 31:30 (NIV)
30  And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel:

On verse 30:  Moses is known more as a lawgiver than a songwriter.  Still, there are two songs that Moses is credited with in the Bible.  One of them is here.  Moses’ purpose in presenting this song is to give praise to God as well as to teach the current generation of Israelites some important truths.  Let’s take a look in the verses that follow.

Deuteronomy 32:1-2 (NIV)
1  Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.
2  Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants.

God’s Love For You Is Stronger Than Your Sin Against Him

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 31:14-30.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 31:14 (NIV)
14  The LORD said to Moses, “Now the day of your death is near. Call Joshua and present yourselves at the Tent of Meeting, where I will commission him.” So Moses and Joshua came and presented themselves at the Tent of Meeting.

On verse 14:  God had been preparing Joshua to be Moses’ successor for some time already (see Deuteronomy 3:28 and Numbers 27:15-23).  Moses had already publicly commissioned Joshua so that all the people knew who would lead them after Moses died (Deuteronomy 31:7-8).  Now in verse 14, we see God personally and privately commissioning Joshua at the Tent of Meeting in Moses’ presence (v14).  In verse 23, God speaks to Joshua directly and tells him to be strong and courageous.  

Notice that it is God who chose, prepared and raised up the next leader for Israel.  It wasn’t done by a democratic vote by the people.  It was God’s decision, which He communicated to Moses.   

Two Reasons You Can Be Courageous

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 31:1-13.  Let’s go!
 
Deuteronomy 31:1-6 (NIV)
1  Then Moses went out and spoke these words to all Israel:
2  “I am now a hundred and twenty years old and I am no longer able to lead you. The LORD has said to me, ‘You shall not cross the Jordan.’
3  The LORD your God himself will cross over ahead of you. He will destroy these nations before you, and you will take possession of their land. Joshua also will cross over ahead of you, as the LORD said.
4  And the LORD will do to them what he did to Sihon and Og, the kings of the Amorites, whom he destroyed along with their land.
5  The LORD will deliver them to you, and you must do to them all that I have commanded you.
6  Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
 
On verses 1-6:  In Deuteronomy 31, 120 year old Moses knows his time on earth is almost up (v2). He does his best to prepare the Israelites to conquer the land that God promised to them. He reassures them that God will help them succeed (v3-5a) and reminds them to obey God (v5b). He tells them to be strong and courageous and that though he will not always be with them, God will never leave them or forsake them (v6). 

You Can Always Reach God Because of Jesus

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 30:11-20.  Let’s go!
 
Deuteronomy 30:11-14 (NIV)
11  Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach.
12  It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?”
13  Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?”
14  No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.
 
On verses 11-14:  Moses recognized that in each of our hearts is both the ability to obey (v14) as well as the ability to turn away and go astray (v17).  God knew this as well but He went one step further.  Knowing our propensity to turn away and go astray, God sent His Son Jesus Christ to earth to perfectly obey His commandments on our behalf and then die on the cross for our sins.  So whereas we could never reach God on our own, through Jesus, God is now within our reach.
 

You Are Never Beyond God’s Reach

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 30:1-10.  Let’s go!
 
Deuteronomy 30:1-10 (NIV)
1  When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come upon you and you take them to heart wherever the LORD your God disperses you among the nations,
2  and when you and your children return to the LORD your God and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today,
3  then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where he scattered you.
4  Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the LORD your God will gather you and bring you back.

On verses 1-10:  In Deuteronomy 30:1-10 we see God’s heart to restore people who have run away from Him. For those Israelites who had rebelled against God and who were cursed and banished for their disobedience, verses 1 to 3 say that if they will return to the Lord and obey Him once again, then God will restore them and have compassion on them.

“Do You Want to Know A Secret?”

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 29:16-29.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 29:16-28 (NIV)
16  You yourselves know how we lived in Egypt and how we passed through the countries on the way here.
17  You saw among them their detestable images and idols of wood and stone, of silver and gold.
18  Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the LORD our God to go and worship the gods of those nations; make sure there is no root among you that produces such bitter poison.

On verses 16 to 28:  Deuteronomy 29:16-28 talks about the consequences of living presumptuously and having a hard heart toward God.  In verse 19, Moses describes a hardhearted person who hears God’s Word and presumptuously says, “I will be safe, even though I persist in going my own way.”  Moses warns that when people live with such presumption, what they can expect are disastrous consequences to come upon them: their sins will not be forgiven (v20), God’s wrath will remain on them (v20), and they will be cut off from heaven (v20). 

Don’t Harden Your Heart

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 29:1-15.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 29:1-4 (NIV)
1  These are the terms of the covenant the LORD commanded Moses to make with the Israelites in Moab, in addition to the covenant he had made with them at Horeb.
2  Moses summoned all the Israelites and said to them: Your eyes have seen all that the LORD did in Egypt to Pharaoh, to all his officials and to all his land.
3  With your own eyes you saw those great trials, those miraculous signs and great wonders.
4  But to this day the LORD has not given you a mind that understands or eyes that see or ears that hear.

On verses 1-4:  The Israelites had witnessed some of the most incredible miracles ever recorded (v2-3).  Yet after all that God had done for them, Moses says that the Israelites still could not understand, see or hear God in their lives.  Instead, they often fell back in unbelief and rebellion.  Why is that?  It wasn’t a problem with their minds, eyes or ears.  It wasn’t a problem with God.  It was a heart problem.  Their hearts remained hard toward God.   

Is COVID 19 God’s Way of Punishing the World?

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Deuteronomy 28:58-68.  Let’s go!

Deuteronomy 28:58-68 (NIV)
58  If you do not carefully follow all the words of this law, which are written in this book, and do not revere this glorious and awesome name–the LORD your God–
59  the LORD will send fearful plagues on you and your descendants, harsh and prolonged disasters, and severe and lingering illnesses.
60  He will bring upon you all the diseases of Egypt that you dreaded, and they will cling to you.
61  The LORD will also bring on you every kind of sickness and disaster not recorded in this Book of the Law, until you are destroyed.
62  You who were as numerous as the stars in the sky will be left but few in number, because you did not obey the LORD your God.

On verses 58-68:  In Deuteronomy 28:58-67, we read about another problem that the Israelites would face if they did not carefully follow the law of Moses: Moses says that God will send plagues, sicknesses, and diseases on them.  The end result is that the Israelites will be full of anxiety, worry, fear and despair (v65-67) and ultimately give themselves as slaves to a foreign nation (v68).