Text: Deuteronomy 1:29-40
Theme: “The Lord Goes before You”
Greetings:
A Happy and a Prosperous New Year 2024!
The Lord is good and His love endures forever!!
Introduction: Deuteronomy means “Second Law”. This Book of Deuteronomy is didactic rather than historical. It consists of a collection of the well-constructed brilliant final discourses of Moses. It contains the basic truths, facts, and rules which were essential for the religious, moral, and social well-being of the pilgrims, sojourners on the earth.
The law which was formerly delivered, now repeated, and largely explained; and added several particular laws, instructions, and directions.
Jews call this book "the book of reproofs” because of its several sharp reproofs of the people of Israel for their rebellion and disobedience.
Our Lord Jesus Christ quoted Deuteronomy only to counter Satan when he was tempted. It is established that the New Testament writers quoted Deuteronomy alone nearly 200 times.
On this New Year day, I would like to Meditate with you from Deuteronomy 1:29-40, this passage talks about the refusal of the Israelites entering into the promised land. Some of us are afraid of the future affairs of 2024.
The nutshell of this passage is ‘Do not be terrified, and do not be afraid of. The Lord your God is going before you, He will fight for you as he did in Egypt and in wilderness. He carried you like a father all the way from Egypt to his Kadesh-Barnea. He goes ahead of your Journey. He Searches your places of camp, he shows you the route of your journey. Caleb Followed the Lord wholeheartedly.’
I would like to leave with you three thoughts for the entire year; Firstly, understand that The Lord Your GOD CARRIED YOU thus far; Secondly, THE LORD YOUR GOD LEADS YOU AHEAD of your sojourn; Thirdly, THE Lord YOUR GOD WILL REWARD YOU if you prove your fidelity.
So, we must give importance to our spiritual experiences of the past, trust in God for the unknown best future, and believe strongly that God rewards the faithful and rejects faithless, even if they are great men like MOSES.
GOD CARRIED YOU in the Past (Deuteronomy 1:29-31)
First of all, we can understand that God carried us throughout the past. When we think of our Spiritual experiences with the Lord, The Lord was good in the Past, so the past has given us pleasant experiences despite challenges, sicknesses, failures.
God had brought Israel out of furnace of Egyptian slavery to the border of the Promised Land. They had experienced miracles, and wonders (Deuteronomy 1:19-20). The problem with the Israelites was that they had a mind to forget very quickly all the good things they had received from God. They failed to trust God, and rebelled against God’s plans, promises and assurances he made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Deuteronomy 1:7-8).
He narrated them that How the Lord God carried them. He used various similitudes to explain this truth: Moses told that God carried you: Deuteronomy 32:11- He carried you like an Eagle, 32:12 – He guided you in the wilderness, Exodus 19:4 – He bore you by like Eagles wings, Numbers 11:12 – He carried you like a nurse carries the nursing child, Isaiah 40:11 – He carried you as a shepherd carries the lambs with his arms, Isaiah 46:3, 4; 63:9 – He carried you all the days of your lives. Hosea 11:3-4 – He took you in His arms.
He “carried you” as a father carries His Son and daughter. God as Father is a wonderful biblical family metaphor (Deuteronomy 8:5- Disciplining Father; Proverbs 3:12 – as father disciplines, corrects the son; (Deuteronomy 32:6- he is your father who created you and established you; Exodus 4:22- Israel is my Son, my first born; Psalm 103:13-as father has compassion, he had compassion; Hosea 11:1–4 – called my Son from Egypt (Malachi 1:6).
But, Israelites refused to go into that promised Land (Deuteronomy 1:26). They were good at imaginations. However, Moses recalls God’s faithfulness in the life of his chosen people. HE is dependable, reliable God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (1:8). Moses frequently repeated and reminded them that they were the seed of Abraham, and the promise of the Land flowing with milk and honey (Deuteronomy 1:35, 6:10, 18, 23, 7:13, 8:1, 9:5, 10:11). He assured them that God will fight for them yet they did not trust neither in their powers nor in the power of the Lord God God and in his promises (Deuteronomy 1:29-33).
Failures in faith happen when we look for our own deliverance and our own hope. Israel failed because they did not look at God but self-reliant. Looking to our own power will always be a spiritual failure. Moses told the people to see what God had already done for them and not consider what they think they can do for themselves.
We may tend to forget all that God has done for us, we may forget to remember the countless times God has helped us and delivered us. So, Faith looks at God and not look at self. Faith does not listen to the sayings of people around us but listens to Word of God. Listening to unspiritual people brings spiritual disaster.
But these people were murmurers, rebellious and wicked to react quickly without grateful heart. Their poor memory robed all the blessings of God. They knew what God achieved for them in Egypt, they knew how they had plenty in the wilderness. They had pillars of Clouds day and night. They were pillars of Shadows and the pillars of fire.
“It is profitable for us to divide our past lives into distinct periods; to give thanks to God for the mercies we have received in each situation, to confess and seek the forgiveness of all the sins we can remember; and thus to renew our acceptance of God's salvation, and our surrender of ourselves to his service.”(Matthew Henry).
2. THE LORD LEADS YOU into the Future (Deuteronomy 1:32-33)
The future is God’s gift to us. Future is not ours but God’s. It has his providential care. He knows all about our future. God manifests in our future, He has chosen to manifest His presence in certain locations and at certain times within history. This physical manifestation of God has come to be called the Shekinah.
The Shekinah is at the heart of understanding the meeting of God with man. The communion of man with God in the Garden in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8). The localised presence of God is the Shekinah. The word itself embodies the notion of dwelling or abiding.
By his sovereignty, he will use every aspect of our life events of the future into blessings, enrichment to others, and for the glory to his name. The Lord says, ‘I have a plan for you to prosper and not to harm you.’ (Jeremiah 29:11).
The Word of God, the promises of God, the commandments of God are our strength in times of the fears during the dark future. We have the fear of the uncertain future but God would like to remind his faithfulness to us.
God never expects us to take the task which are beyond our capacity to deal with. Without necessary help, he never embarks into that situations. When we are afraid of the future, immediately we have to think of the Past experiences of God’s faithfulness.
The Land is described in Deuteronomy 1:7 as the hill country of the Amorites: the central mountain range of Palestine. The Negeb: the arid land in southern Palestine. The Lebanon: the mountain range of Phoenicia, north of Palestine. The Amorites and the Canaanites were only two of several different peoples occupying the land. Also in Deuteronomy 1:28, the Anakites are described as a people proverbially notable for height, mentioned in pre-Israelite Egyptian texts, and in the biblical tradition associated with the region of Hebron and the hill country of Judah.
They said, "Our hearts melt" seeing the giants, and people over that Land (Deuteronomy 1:28). “The Israelites refused to enter the Promised Land because ten spies lost sight of the fact that God is bigger than giants. An entire generation of Israelites died in the wilderness because they unquestioningly accepted the demoralizing report of ten men who allowed the stature of their enemies to blind them to the strength of God.” (Go beyond by Omar C. Garcia, 2009).
This is the essence of true faith. God is going to carry us through whatever circumstance we face. God did many wonderful acts for us in the past. God will continue to do for us. Listen to the words of Deuteronomy 1:31 again. “You have seen how the Lord your God carried you, as a man carries his son, all the way that you went until you came to this place.” We have also seen the same in our lives.
Moses told them that the Lord goes before them search of a campsite. A place of good plain, greenery, and springs filled water bodies, land with green grass and fruit nearing trees. He simply expected them to Trust God, Believe in His plans and purposes and leadership on the daily basis as well as on the need based. He is not only the caregiver but also pilot of your life events.
As creator he knows everything in Advance, yet he leads you exactly to that place of blessing without much efforts by you. He will lead you to best house, to best car, to best job, best placement. He will give you the best child, he will give you a best settlement, he will give you best friends, and best life partner he will give you. You don’t plan for it, you don’t search for it. He goes before you.
3. THE LORD GOD WILL REWARD YOU (Deuteronomy 1:34-40)
A wrong decision in a minute can rob the blessings we enjoyed for years. Moses was punished for his attitude before the rebellious people. The Lord told him, "Because you did not trust in me, to show my holiness before the eyes of the Israelites, you will not enter into the Holy Land." (Numbers 20:12).
A lack of trust in God's promise leads Israel to miss the blessings he had in store for us. We know what is right, but are tempted to violate it. By abandoning the plan of God, going against the guidance of the Holy Spirit, by rebelling against the voice of God, the Word of God will certainly lead into worse situations—imminent, utter destruction.
Moses’ actions demonstrate that leaders are chosen for the purpose of decisive commitment, not for blowing in the wind of popularity. It is true that good leaders do listen to others’ opinions. But when a leader knows the best course of action, and has tested that knowledge to the best of his or her ability in the light of the word of God, the leader has a responsibility to do what is best, not what is most popular.
Fear leads to disobedience which leads to severe punishment. "Not one of these - not one of this evil generation - shall see the good land that I swore to give to your ancestors" (Deuteronomy 1:35). The only exceptions were Caleb and Joshua who encouraged the Israelites to obey God's command (Numbers 13:30).
We can either became pioneers of faith, leaders of revival, or become the leaders of destruction. Our words, deeds, actions, instigations, motivations either can build people, build community, build fellowship in the Church or can destroy and bring down the bricks to the rubbles, ruins and rubbish.
We can become like Caleb and Joshua in the sight of God or like the rebellious wicked 10 spies who collapsed the faith of the Community (Numbers 14). It is very clear evidence for us that God knows what we speak in the crowd, against him, against the leaders, against God’s people.
The twelve were equally chosen, equally given the responsibility, equally entrusted with the mission of God, but only two were God-fearing, faith promoters and Godly. The honesty, integrity, and right actions may not be rewarded immediately and may not be appreciated by fellow men rather they be jealous, pick up fights, and may be ill treated but God rewards. He will do at at right time.
God blessed Caleb because he had a different spirit, a different attitude than the rest of the spies and people (Numbers 14:24). Caleb followed wholeheartedly (Numbers 14:24; 32:11-12; Deuteronomy 1:36; Joshua 14:8, 9 and 14.)
Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.” (Numbers 13:30). Joshua 14:7-14 which takes place 45 years after the events in Numbers 13 and 14, yet records his wholehearted commitment to God. Caleb was physically strong, vigorous to old age, and ingenious in dealing with trouble. The events related to Caleb is told in Numbers 13, 14; Joshua 14, 15; Judges 1:12-20; 1 Samuel 30:14; 1 Chronicles 2:9, 18, 24, 42, 50, 4:15, 6:56. Caleb was given Hebron as his heritage.
“Moses shows how near Israelites were to a happy settlement in Canaan. It was not the breach of any of the commands of the law that shut them out of Canaan, no, not the golden calf, but their disbelief of that promise which was typical of gospel grace, to signify that no sin will ruin us but unbelief, which is a sin against the remedy. A sad pass it has come to with us when the God of eternal truth cannot be believed.”(Matthew Henry).
So, “Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Remember, Consider, and Imitate leaders (Hebrews 13:7-8). We will continue to remember the Leaders of the Bible throughout this year. We will imitate their faith, their devotion and zeal for the Lord.
Conclusion: Are you afraid of your future? Remember that The Lord carried you all these years. He cares for you, he goes before you to find the right place to lodge you safely and be with you till the end of your times. He knows what you do individually in a crowd. He will reward you accordingly.
Amen.
