This week, the Bible reading plan is as follows:
*Sunday: Deuteronomy 4:1-49; Luke 6:39-7:10; Psalm 68:1-18; Proverbs 11:28
*Monday: Deuteronomy 5:1-6:25; Luke 7:11-35; Psalm 68:19-35; Proverbs 11:29-31
*Tuesday: Deuteronomy 7:1-8:20; Luke 7:36-8:3; Psalm 69:1-18; Proverbs 12:1
*Wednesday: Deuteronomy 9:1-10:22; Luke 8:4-21; Psalm 69:19-36; Proverbs 12:2-3
*Thursday: Deuteronomy 11:1-12:32; Luke 8:22-39; Psalm 70:1-5; Proverbs 12:4
*Friday: Deuteronomy 13:1-15:23; Luke 8:40-9:6; Psalm 71:1-24; Proverbs 12:5-7
*Saturday: Deuteronomy 16:1-17:20; Luke 9:7-27; Psalm 72:1-20; Proverbs 12:8-9
Scripture: Deuteronomy 8:2,5-6
2 Remember how the LORD your God led you through the wilderness for forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would really obey his commands.
5 So you should realize that just as a parent disciplines a child, the LORD your God disciplines you to help you. 6 "So obey the commands of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and fearing him.
Observation:
The book of Deuteronomy is an interesting book. The word Deuteronomy itself means "repetition of the law". In a sense, Moses repeats most of the law to the people of Israel, right before his death. He wants to make sure they really get it. Moses was like a father figure for these people. He loved them, guided them, but also disciplined them.
Verses 2, 5 and 6 of Deuteronomy 8 stood out to me. In verse 2, Moses says that the 40 years wandering in the desert was more than a brute punishment. Yes, the LORD was humbling them for their actions, but He was also testing them to prove their character and find out whether they would really obey Him.
I get the impression that "obeying God" is almost synonymous with "loving God". In verses 5 and 6, we see that God disciplines his people, like a Father disciplines a child only to help them. And then it says... so obey the commands... You can almost translate that as: "So love the LORD your God by walking in his ways and fearing him."
We see that Jesus says the same thing in this week's reading in Luke 6:46-49:
46 "So why do you call me 'Lord,' when you won't obey me? 47 I will show you what it's like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then obeys me. 48 It is like a person who builds a house on a strong foundation laid upon the underlying rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against the house, it stands firm because it is well built. 49 But anyone who listens and doesn't obey is like a person who builds a house without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it will crumble into a heap of ruins."
He too is saying that listening to Him, coming to Him, in effect loving Him, is synonymous with obeying Him. And that obedience is the rock upon which that person's faith is built.
Application:
I can say I love God (and I do), but a very tangible way to show my love is by obeying His commandments. Practically, this means things like showing love to someone in need, being honest, observing a day of rest in my weekly schedule, honoring God's name, showing the love of Christ to people who don't know him, and so on.
At times it may seem that obeying God's commandments is a burden, something we have to do out of obligation and out of fear for punishment. If we obey God out of those motives (and I have!), we're missing the connection that obedience has with love. We obey God's commandments not because we have to, but because we want to. Because He loves us so much, like a Father his children, He gave us these simple instructions that help us. When we obey and follow them, we show deep respect and love for our Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus Christ.
Prayer:
Dear Heavenly Father, thank you so much for your commandments that bring life for those who live by them. I want to follow and obey them, my Lord. Not out of guilt, but because I love you deeply. Please forgive me when I fall short, which I do. And thank you for picking me up and dusting me off when I do fall. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Have a blessed week.
Dick
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Dear Carrie,
ReplyDeleteYou wrote:
"Thank you for the great SOAP on Deuteronomy. Viewing and living by God's commandments out of love, not guilt or obligation makes them easier to understand and follow.
"I did have a question on a verse in Luke from this weeks' reading. In Luke 8, we read the story of Jesus bringing Jairus' daughter back from the dead. It perplexes me in verse 56 that Jesus orders the girl's parents not to tell anyone what had happened. It seems that this is the time in Jesus' ministry that he is out teaching of God's love and performing miracles to show that he is the Messiah, yet he tells them to keep this amazing miracle a secret. Any insight as to why that is in this case?"
Here is a good answer from the IVP New Testament Commentary series:
"Jairus's invitation to Jesus to heal, an act of faith, had revealed that Jesus had power over death. Jesus urges silence, even though what he has done was obvious. His goal is not to become a traveling Palestinian miracle show. His ministry is not about such displays of power, but about what they represent. He knows that miracles would become the major interest, not new life and the basic issue of who it is who can heal a woman and raise a young girl."
I hope this helps. You can access this at http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/Luke/Call-Faith-Christology
Faithfully,
Chuck
I like that explanation, Chuck. Interestingly enough, Matthew doesn't record this instruction of Jesus (Marc does, which is a little odd, since it is generally assumed that Matthew and Luke used Marc's writings). Instead, Matthew records: "News of this spread through all that region." [Matt.9:26]. Perhaps Matthew thought: "Jesus might have instructed not to tell, but it happened anyway...".
ReplyDeleteThank you for that link, Chuck.
ReplyDeleteI love how God peaks your interest with a certain Scripture and that leads you on other paths. Comparining the variances in the Gospels on details like the one Dick points out above is fascinating.
Thank you both for your time!