Deuteronomy 13 – Speaking on God’s behalf

Deuteronomy 13:1-5 “If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, 2 and the sign or the wonder comes true, concerning which he spoke to you, saying, ‘Let us go after other gods (whom you have not known) and let us serve them,’ 3 you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams; for the LORD your God is testing you to find out if you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 “You shall follow the LORD your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him. 5 “But that prophet or that dreamer of dreams shall be put to death, because he has counseled rebellion against the LORD your God who brought you from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, to seduce you from the way in which the LORD your God commanded you to walk. So you shall purge the evil from among you.

False prophets are not a new thing. One of the easiest paths to power is to claim supernatural knowledge from God. I think it is fair to be suspicious of anyone claiming to speak on God’s behalf (this would include pastors). Blind acceptance can and will lead to a horrible outcome.

God does not work in secret and God does not reveal his plan to only one person. If we can learn anything from the Bible it is that God reveals himself over and over again. If someone claims to be speaking a word from God, it is not wrong to wait for God to confirm that word. A degree of cynicism can be good.

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Deuteronomy 6 – Love God, love neighbors

Deuteronomy 6:4-19 Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! 5 “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 “These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. 8 “You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. 9 “You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 10 “Then it shall come about when the LORD your God brings you into the land which He swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you, great and splendid cities which you did not build, 11 and houses full of all good things which you did not fill, and hewn cisterns which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant, and you eat and are satisfied, 12 then watch yourself, that you do not forget the LORD who brought you from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 13 “You shall fear only the LORD your God; and you shall worship Him and swear by His name. 14 “You shall not follow other gods, any of the gods of the peoples who surround you, 15 for the LORD your God in the midst of you is a jealous God; otherwise the anger of the LORD your God will be kindled against you, and He will wipe you off the face of the earth. 16 “You shall not put the LORD your God to the test, as you tested Him at Massah. 17 “You should diligently keep the commandments of the LORD your God, and His testimonies and His statutes which He has commanded you. 18 “You shall do what is right and good in the sight of the LORD, that it may be well with you and that you may go in and possess the good land which the LORD swore to give your fathers, 19 by driving out all your enemies from before you, as the LORD has spoken.

Jesus uses this passage when he is asked to give the greatest commandment; he tells the people to love the Lord their God. In referring back to this passage Jesus was implying all of the other things that Moses wrote down here: there is only one God, that God is the only God worthy of worship, and we are responsible for raising our families to know and honor that God.

But Jesus adds something. Jesus adds something that is not explicitly stated here. Jesus says to love your neighbor as well. To some extent loving your neighbor is emplied here in Deuteronomy; but, only if your neighbor is an Israelite. If your neighbor was “an enemy of Israel” then Israel was called to drive them out of the land.

Jesus made our faith more focused on the needs of the world around us. That makes sense. If we have found Jesus then we have been brought out of the slavery of sin, we are living in a communion with God that we did not earn, we are awaiting a future home in heaven that we do not deserve. If we have found Jesus then praise of our heavenly Father should be on our lips at every moment.

But, if we have found Jesus we have a responsibility to love those who are still looking for him. We are to love those who are still in slavery, who have not yet “come out of Egypt”. That is why Jesus added that we are to love our neighbors, rather than try to defeat them. If we can share a small portion of the love Christ has showered on us, then maybe they will realize who Jesus is, and decide to join his family.

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Deuteronomy 5 – The Ten Commandments

Deuteronomy 5:6-21 ‘I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 7 ‘You shall have no other gods before Me. 8 ‘You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. 9 ‘You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, and on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, 10 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments. 11 ‘You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain. 12 ‘Observe the sabbath day to keep it holy, as the LORD your God commanded you. 13 ‘Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14 but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God; in it you shall not do any work, you or your son or your daughter or your male servant or your female servant or your ox or your donkey or any of your cattle or your sojourner who stays with you, so that your male servant and your female servant may rest as well as you. 15 ‘You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the LORD your God brought you out of there by a mighty hand and by an outstretched arm; therefore the LORD your God commanded you to observe the sabbath day. 16 ‘Honor your father and your mother, as the LORD your God has commanded you, that your days may be prolonged and that it may go well with you on the land which the LORD your God gives you. 17 ‘You shall not murder. 18 ‘You shall not commit adultery. 19 ‘You shall not steal. 20 ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 21 ‘You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, and you shall not desire your neighbor’s house, his field or his male servant or his female servant, his ox or his donkey or anything that belongs to your neighbor.’

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Deuteronomy 3 – Taking responsibility

Deuteronomy 3:21-28 “I commanded Joshua at that time, saying, ‘Your eyes have seen all that the LORD your God has done to these two kings; so the LORD shall do to all the kingdoms into which you are about to cross. 22 ‘Do not fear them, for the LORD your God is the one fighting for you.’ 23 “I also pleaded with the LORD at that time, saying, 24 ‘O Lord GOD, You have begun to show Your servant Your greatness and Your strong hand; for what god is there in heaven or on earth who can do such works and mighty acts as Yours? 25 ‘Let me, I pray, cross over and see the fair land that is beyond the Jordan, that good hill country and Lebanon.’ 26 “But the LORD was angry with me on your account, and would not listen to me; and the LORD said to me, ‘Enough! Speak to Me no more of this matter. 27 ‘Go up to the top of Pisgah and lift up your eyes to the west and north and south and east, and see it with your eyes, for you shall not cross over this Jordan. 28 ‘But charge Joshua and encourage him and strengthen him, for he shall go across at the head of this people, and he will give them as an inheritance the land which you will see.’

Moses is in his last few days, but he is still being God’s servant to the nation of Israel. Meanwhile, God is working with Moses to raise up a leader for the next generation. (In our churches we should always be working toward raising up leaders for the next generation)

However, God told Moses that he would not be allowed to enter the Promise Land. The mercy God does grant Moses is the opportunity to look across the river into the Promised Land. There is some confusion in the Pentateuch whether it was the unfaithfulness of Moses or the unfaithfulness of the Israelites which kept Moses out. To what extent are we responsible for the unfaithfulness of the people we lead? I would guess, to a larger extent than we think.

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Numbers 35 – Love Your Neighbor

Numbers 35:9-11 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 10 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, 11 then you shall…

The Lord was giving instruction to Moses that he was to pass on to the people regarding what they were to do upon entering the Promised Land. There is an undertone of sadness here, because Moses will not be entering the Promised Land with them. Moses, like the rest of his generation, had acted unfaithfully and so was not allowed to enter the land. However, God was giving instructions on the blessing the Israelites were to receive through Moses.

Sometimes, we do not get to partake of the blessings that help to bring about. Sometimes, we are like Moses, giving instruction to those who will go and be blessed, while we are left on the outside. Are you willing to do the hard things God may ask you to do, even if you are not the one who receives the blessing from your actions?

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Numbers 27 – Looking to the future

Numbers 27:15-23 Then Moses spoke to the LORD, saying, 16 “May the LORD, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation, 17 who will go out and come in before them, and who will lead them out and bring them in, so that the congregation of the LORD will not be like sheep which have no shepherd.” 18 So the LORD said to Moses, “Take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him; 19 and have him stand before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation, and commission him in their sight. 20 “You shall put some of your authority on him, in order that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may obey him. 21 “Moreover, he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before the LORD. At his command they shall go out and at his command they shall come in, both he and the sons of Israel with him, even all the congregation.” 22 Moses did just as the LORD commanded him; and he took Joshua and set him before Eleazar the priest and before all the congregation. 23 Then he laid his hands on him and commissioned him, just as the LORD had spoken through Moses.

I have always been amazed at how many good leaders are too short sighted to prepare a future generation to lead. In my opinion, from the moment you enter leadership you should work to build up your replacement.

As the time for you to retire approaches. Take the time to build up your predecessor. Encourage, pray for, and anoint them.

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Numbers 23 – The immovable object and the irresistible force

Numbers 23:18-27 “Arise, O Balak, and hear; Give ear to me, O son of Zippor! 19 “God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? 20 “Behold, I have received a command to bless; When He has blessed, then I cannot revoke it. 21 “He has not observed misfortune in Jacob; Nor has He seen trouble in Israel; The LORD his God is with him, And the shout of a king is among them. 22 “God brings them out of Egypt, He is for them like the horns of the wild ox. 23 “For there is no omen against Jacob, Nor is there any divination against Israel; At the proper time it shall be said to Jacob And to Israel, what God has done! 24 “Behold, a people rises like a lioness, And as a lion it lifts itself; It will not lie down until it devours the prey, And drinks the blood of the slain.” 25 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Do not curse them at all nor bless them at all!” 26 But Balaam replied to Balak, “Did I not tell you, ‘Whatever the LORD speaks, that I must do ‘?” 27 Then Balak said to Balaam, “Please come, I will take you to another place; perhaps it will be agreeable with God that you curse them for me from there.”

It’s a little odd to a contemporary reader that the king would believe God might change his mind just because the king made his offering from a different location. This points out the difference between the God of the Bible and the other gods Ancient Near-East societies worshiped. The God of the Bible is not a servant to man in the way some other gods were. The God of the Bible does not change in response to our movement; we change in response to the movements of God.

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Numbers 15 – God cares about unintentional sins

Numbers 15:27-31 ‘Also if one person sins unintentionally, then he shall offer a one year old female goat for a sin offering. 28 ‘The priest shall make atonement before the LORD for the person who goes astray when he sins unintentionally, making atonement for him that he may be forgiven. 29 ‘You shall have one law for him who does anything unintentionally, for him who is native among the sons of Israel and for the alien who sojourns among them. 30 ‘But the person who does anything defiantly, whether he is native or an alien, that one is blaspheming the LORD; and that person shall be cut off from among his people. 31 ‘Because he has despised the word of the LORD and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt will be on him.’”

We need to repent of our sins both intentional and unintentional.

Numbers 15:32-41 Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day. 33 Those who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation; 34 and they put him in custody because it had not been declared what should be done to him. 35 Then the LORD said to Moses, “The man shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.” 36 So all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death with stones, just as the LORD had commanded Moses. 37 The LORD also spoke to Moses, saying, 38 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue. 39 “It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the LORD, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you played the harlot, 40 so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God. 41 “I am the LORD your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt to be your God; I am the LORD your God.”

We need to repent of our sins, both intentional and unintentional.

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Numbers 12 – God treats us all differently

In Chapter 12 Aaron and Miriam go to God and say, “hey, we’re prophets too; don’t just talk to Moses, give us something to say to the people.”

God was not happy with this attitude so he told them that he had a special relationship with Moses and would speak to him differently than he spoke to Aaron and Miriam. Then he gave Miriam leprosy.

Moses prayed for the leprosy to go away, but God said “not yet,” and Miriam had to wait outside of the camp for a week while she was unclean.

There are a couple important takeaways from this passage:

1) God interacts with each of us differently. Do not be jealous of how God interacts with someone else. God chooses the best way to interact with you. We need to trust that God is working for our good and knows what kind of interaction we need. So don’t look at a great spiritual leader and wish you were them, look to God and how he is interacting with you.

2) Just because someone is outside of God’s community does not mean that God has rejected them. God has prepared a place for them, just as God had a place and a role prepared for Miriam. Sometimes God makes us wait on him. It’s okay to wait on God.

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Numbers 7 – Leaders publicly presenting offerings

Numbers 7:11 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Let them present their offering, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar.”

…and the rest of the chapter (all 89 verses!) is the recounting of each tribe coming forward and presenting their offering.

This got me thinking how cool it could be if the church leaders’ families publicly presented an offering to the Lord each day (or week).

On Monday the Smith family gave $100 to the Lord’s Cupboard, on Tuesday the Jones family committed to sponsoring a Compassion child, on Wednesday the Small family served at a soup kitchen.

I think that idea has merit, just need to work out the details.

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John 19 – Consistently in Christ

“After [Jesus' crucifixion] Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate granted permission. So he came and took away His body. Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about a hundred pounds weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen wrappings with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where He was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. Therefore because of the Jewish day of preparation, since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.”

Joseph had been a secret disciple of Jesus because he feared that being a public disciple would ruin him. It was only after Jesus had died that Joseph was willing to publicly align himself with Jesus. It was not until he believed Jesus to have failed that Joseph was willing publicly proclaim faith in Jesus. We know nothing else about Joseph of Arimathea. I have often wondered what happened to him after Jesus resurrection. Was he one of the multitudes in the upper room on the day of Pentecost? Was he one of the disciples who ultimately deserted Jesus? We do not know.

It is not good for us to wait until a moment of failure to publicly proclaim our faith in Jesus. On Monday we need to be the same person we were on Sunday. In public we need to be the same person we are in private. In failure we need to be the same person we are in success.

Do not wait for failure to publicly proclaim Jesus. Live every moment of your life so that everyone can see the light of Jesus in you.

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John 6 – Finding balance

“A large crowd followed [Jesus], because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick.”

For the most part Jesus did three things while he was on Earth: he preached repentance, he entered into relationship with those around him, and he cared for those in need. These are the same three things the Church is called to do. We need to be sure that our church communities have a healthy balance of these three activities. If we are not preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ AND living lives in relationship with the lost and the saved AND caring for the needs of others, then we are failing. i need to consciously align myself with people who will enable US to meet all three needs.

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Joshua 24 – When have we failed you, God?

“Then Joshua said to the people, ‘You will not be able to serve the LORD, for He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgression or your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then He will turn and do you harm and consume you after He has done good to you.’ The people said to Joshua, ‘No, but we will serve the LORD.’ Joshua said to the people, ‘You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen for yourselves the LORD, to serve Him.’ And they said, ‘We are witnesses.’”

One way of reading the Bible is a series of conversations between people and God that goes something like this…

God: I will bless you if you obey me.
People: We will obey you.
G: Okay let me help you
P: Come on God, it’s us, we can do it ourselves.
G: I can make it easier for you.
P: God, we got this.
G: Are you sure.
P: You are just like our parents.
G: I just want you to succeed.
P: God, it’s us…when have we failed?
G: (silence)
P: Come on God we got this.
G: You’re sure you want to do it yourself?
P: For the last time God, we got it.
G: I’m going to hold you to that.
P: Don’t worry, we are totally in control.

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Joshua 23 – To whom do you cling?

“You are to cling to the LORD your God, as you have done to this day. For the LORD has driven out great and strong nations from before you; and as for you, no man has stood before you to this day. One of your men puts to flight a thousand, for the LORD your God is He who fights for you, just as He promised you. So take diligent heed to yourselves to love the LORD your God. For if you ever go back and cling to the rest of these nations, these which remain among you, and intermarry with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, know with certainty that the LORD your God will not continue to drive these nations out from before you; but they will be a snare and a trap to you, and a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good land which the LORD your God has given you.”

With these words Joshua instructs the nation of Israel as he nears death.

Joshua offers two options for their future: they can cling to God or they can cling to “the rest of these nations”. The Israelites can live in fellowship with God or they can live in fellowship with the world around them. One of these options offers prosperous life and one offers death and destruction. Who will they choose to cling to?

Who do we cling to? Do we cling to Jesus? Do we cling to comfort? Do we cling to God? Do we cling to man?

With apologies to Robert Zimmerman you “Gotta serve somebody”.

You may be a construction worker working on a home,
You may be living in a mansion or you might live in a dome,
You might own guns and you might even own tanks,
You might be somebody’s landlord, you might even own banks

But you’re gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You’re gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody.

You may be a preacher with your spiritual pride,
You may be a city councilman taking bribes on the side,
You may be workin’ in a barbershop, you may know how to cut hair,
You may be somebody’s mistress, may be somebody’s heir

But you’re gonna have to serve somebody, yes indeed
You’re gonna have to serve somebody,
Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord
But you’re gonna have to serve somebody.

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Joshua 22 – A blessing

“‘Only be very careful to observe the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, to love the LORD your God and walk in all His ways and keep His commandments and hold fast to Him and serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.’ So Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their tents.”

This is very similar to the commandment in Deuteronomy and the Gospels to love God with all you heart, mind, strength, and soul. Let’s break it down:

Love the Lord your God and…
1) Walk in his ways
2) Keep his commandments
3) Hold fast to him
4) Serve him with all your heart and soul

With this instruction the Joshua blessed the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

This weekend may you walk in the ways of Jesus, keep his commands, hold fast to Jesus in all your circumstances, and serve Jesus with all your heart and soul.

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Joshua 18 – In the hands of God

“And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD, and there Joshua divided the land to the sons of Israel according to their divisions.”

If we made decisions in our churches today by casting lots I think there would be a scandal. It just isn’t the way things are done. It smacks of gambling, and irresponsibility; doesn’t it?

The other side of casting lots is that, to a certain extent, it places the outcome in God’s hands. It seems to me that a hard-core Calvinist, who believes that God is directly in control of everything that happens on earth, would be comfortable using this decision making method.

Speaking as someone who does not believe that God directly orchestrates the universe, I think we do need to focus on making responsible decisions guided by reason, scripture, prayer, and (yes I dare say it) tradition. However, as I do believe that God does still interact with the universe, there may be times when the best course of action is to allow God to make the decision; whether that be by casting lots, flipping a coin, or throwing a dart. Sometimes that is the only way a decision can be made.

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Joshua 17 – Caring for those in need

“However, Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, only daughters; and these are the names of his daughters: Mahlah and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah and Tirzah. They came near before Eleazar the priest and before Joshua the son of Nun and before the leaders, saying, ‘The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers.’ So according to the command of the LORD he gave them an inheritance among their father’s brothers.”

The takeaway I get from this story is that the Lord was more concerned with caring for all of the people than with conforming to the social norms. God’s goal is to take care of God’s people, society can figure itself out.

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Joshua 13 – Preparing at the beginning of the end

“Now Joshua was old and advanced in years when the LORD said to him, ‘You are old and advanced in years…’”

In every life and in every ministry there comes a time when God leads us to prepare for a future in which we will not take a part. None of us will live for ever and we will all leave behind people who are dependent upon our legacy. We can not continue in a ministry forever and no ministry should be totally dependent upon one person.

In those times when it is the beginning of the end, listen to how the Lord is leading you. What steps are you called to take to prepare for that which will come after you. The beginning of the end is no time to stop listening to God.

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Joshua 9 – Short term gain, long term loss

“So the men of Israel took some of their provisions, and did not ask for the counsel of the LORD.”

And because Israel did not seek out the Lord’s counsel, they were forced to share a portion of their land with a people that God would have driven away. Eventually this will cause the people to disobey and fall away from God.

When we do not seek out God’s counsel we make mistakes. The consequences of those mistakes can be harsh and long lasting.

I now I can get impatient and start to make assumptions, but taking the time to talk to God will always benefit me and will always help me make a better decision.

Don’t risk a short term gain for a long term loss. In everything you do seek out the counsel of the Lord.

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Joshua 7 – Making an enemy of my savior

“So the LORD said to Joshua, ‘Rise up! Why is it that you have fallen on your face? Israel has sinned, and they have also transgressed My covenant which I commanded them. And they have even taken some of the things under the ban and have both stolen and deceived. Moreover, they have also put them among their own things. Therefore the sons of Israel cannot stand before their enemies; they turn their backs before their enemies, for they have become accursed. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy the things under the ban from your midst.”

I have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, but I still make God my enemy when I disobey.

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