Deuteronomy 7-8
Deuteronomy 7
Vs.
1-5 In reading this section you might want to review the post for March 20
where we addressed the issue of God ordering the death of the Midianites in
Numbers 31. Hundreds of years of mercy had been shown these people. Men like
Abraham and Melchizedek had been witnesses among them, yet their cultures
became incurable cesspools of idolatry and sexual perversion. For those who
didn't relocate, God was calling all who stayed in their towns into His
presence. The innocent (children below the age of accountability) would go into
a place of comfort, but those who had been idolaters and not responded to God's
messengers, would be put into punishment. Remember what Abraham said to the
Lord in Genesis 18:25, "Far be it
from thee to do such a thing, to slay the
righteous with the wicked, so
that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from thee!
Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?"
Vs. 3-4 Note
that God speaks of the inhabitants of the land as if they were a danger to
Israel, danger by spiritual / cultural infection. This is the same thing that
the Spirit tells us, not to be conformed to this world. It would be like asking
what the acceptable level of growing cancer should be in your body. Yet all of
us are far more tolerant of sin and hindrances than we should be.
Vs. 6-11 Notice
how often love is mentioned in these verses. Anyone who says that you don't
find love in the Bible until you get to Jesus in the New Testament has never
read the Bible. Even though these verses are written to Israel, there is
something in every disciple that should respond to these words.
Vs. 12-16 In
the last section and here, there are some interesting things going on. The
relationship with God, like any relationship, needs trust and maintenance. In
all times in history, for all people, obeying God meant pleasing Him and
receiving His blessing. Disobeying God meant displeasing Him and, at some
point, receiving punishment. In the last section it mentioned that God was
blessing Israel because of the promises made to their fathers. The promise to
Abraham was unconditional and will be fulfilled completely in the future by
Israel in the Millennial Kingdom. The blessings being promised here are very
conditional. They are a part of the Mosaic covenant, the covenant made at Mt.
Sinai. This covenant, the Old Testament, is built on obedience to the law.
According to Romans 7, the law was given to reveal the sin that is a part of
our nature. The law couldn't get rid of sin and it couldn't save. So, this
covenant with Moses under the law has nothing to do with salvation. Salvation
was always through faith in the promise to Abraham. But obedience to the law
from a heart of faith would bring blessing of such a nature that it would
become a testimony to the world. Any outside nation, witnessing the blessings
described here, would want to come to Israel and "drink from their
well," and receive the same blessings.
Vs. 17-26 Here
again, there is a mixture of the promise to Abraham and the covenant under
Moses. God would drive the nations out before Israel just as God humbled
Pharaoh in Egypt. This was based on His promise to Abraham. Faith in that
promise would enable Israel to boldly worship God only according to the Mosaic
covenant. They would also know, because of their faith in the promise to
Abraham, that God was doing this and that the idols of these nations were trash
to be destroyed. Israel would also have patience to obey and allow God to
slowly give them the land, knowing that God would certainly fulfill His promise
to Abraham.
Deuteronomy 8
If you need
something to underline, look for Lord
your God. Literally this is "Yahweh Elohim," Elohim being in the
possessive; that is, "your Elohim." Elohim means the mighty, all
powerful one. Yahweh is the ever living One, who faithfully loves and keeps
covenant with His people. What a combination. It reminds me of the Lord's
Prayer, Our Father, who art in heaven.
Eternal love and power are combined in one person who cares for us.
Vs. 1-5 Notice
in v. 1, that the commandment is to be obeyed in view of God's grace in
fulfilling the promise to Abraham. Faith would empower them to obey.
God educated
and disciplined the people out of grace and love. Not only did God care for
them, but in v. 3 He humbled them with need and let them hunger so that they
would see that He could take care of them. You may have noticed that v. 3 was
quoted by Jesus in His temptation.
According to
what God has said in the New Testament, this is also how He disciplines and
prunes us.
Vs. 6-10 In
obeying the commandments, God would lavish His blessing on them and in turn
they would praise Him.
Vs. 11-20
Notice how this warning is mixed with God's reminder to them of their
deliverance and salvation. God also reminds them that He is the One who fed and
sustained them for 40 years in the wilderness.
V. 16 Notice
again the reference to the manna. He
used their hunger and need, and the supernatural provision of this food to
humble them. This, too, is why God allows us to "hunger." He needs to
humble us and show us His power and provision.
I guess what
speaks to me in all of this is that the glow and joy of our salvation in Christ
needs to be present in all we do and all we are. We live only because of Him.
How can we ignore Him or not follow Him into the harvest? How can we not
surrender everything and take up our cross? How can we withhold the love and
grace we have received and not tell it and share it with those who are lost?
Why did God
choose us to become followers of Christ? Love. If you witness to people, you
understand the miracle of someone who will listen and open their heart. Why?
Because they're smart or sensitive or good? No. Somewhere in there, I believe
there is a molecule of will, so small as to be nearly inconsequential. The rest
is pure grace; God choosing the foolish and the weak and low and despised to
save and make followers of Christ in the harvest. Given this privilege and
calling, we need to keep our love for Christ alive by treasuring our salvation,
as we follow Him in the harvest making disciples, who make disciples.
Luke 7:36-8:3
One of the
things we see in the Gospels is that Jesus was very sensitive to accepting and
responding to the things the Father and Spirit put into His path. For us
disciples, Jesus becomes the model of being a disciple, walking in the Spirit
and abiding in God. One thing I constantly wonder about is that Jesus accepted
so many invitations from Pharisees to dine with them. Holy heartburn! Every one
of them became a conflict, and a divine opportunity to present people with the
truth of God and the person of the Messiah.
Luke 7:36-50
Vs. 36-39
Pharisees, I'm told, often gave dinners and people were invited to stand
against the walls and listen in to the conversations. It seems that this woman
might have already heard Jesus' teaching and was moved by it. The ointment
suggests that she was a well-to-do sinner. This may have some connection to
Luke 8:1-3.
V. 38 This
definitely would have been scandalous for a rabbi to let a known prostitute do
something like this to him.
Vs. 40-43 Either
Simon's body language gave him away, or probably the Spirit revealed his
thoughts to Jesus. Both of these debts were big. Fifty days' wages would be
nothing to sniff at. 500 days' wages would be enormous.
Vs. 44-48 This
comparison and contrast is all based on their perception of Jesus. Simon
invited Jesus out of a feigned respect for Him. In fact, in terms of acts done,
there was no respect shown to Jesus at all. Notice that Jesus acknowledges
Simon's view of the woman, but in an ironic way. Her sins, which were many, were forgiven. The sinful woman, having heard
Jesus and having understood God's forgiveness, lavished Him with respect and
honor. When Jesus pronounced her forgiven, it was in response to her love that
illustrated her faith.
Vs. 49-50 Again,
the Jews (leaders) questioned Jesus' right to say this. Jesus ignored them and
stated the reality of the case. Her faith had saved her. The result of her
faith and salvation was to show Him love, respect and honor.
Just like in
Deuteronomy, we are faced with the response of love again. Love doesn't save
us, but it does and should issue from our faith and the reality of what we have
been saved from. We love because He first loved us. The question for each of us
is, were we really, really, really lost, or sort of on the border? This event
and what it teaches cuts right to our hearts too. Those who follow in the
harvest passionately are those who realize the miracle of their own salvation.
They realize they were desperate, with no way to pay. They were lost, separated
and hopeless. They love much and because of this love they follow their Savior
in His mission, seeking the lost, working with the other redeemed, making disciples,
who make disciples.
What does the
Lord say to you in this story?
Luke 8:1-3
The connection
between the story above and these verses is pretty clear. This woman may have
been one of those who followed Jesus. It is actually suggested that the woman
with the ointment may have been Mary Magdalene. It doesn't say it is. The woman
who anointed Jesus' feet was a sinner, but it doesn't say she had been demon
possessed. Although, obviously, He might have already cured her, and then, you
wonder why Simon wouldn't have had a bigger fit if she had had demons. Who
knows?
What we do know
is that another Mary, the rich one who lived with Martha and Lazarus in
Bethany, heard this story; and, just before Jesus was crucified, humbled
herself and did the same thing for Him that this "sinful" woman did.
(John 12)
At the end of
this passage it mentions other women who became disciples. Why did they follow
Jesus? Why do you follow Jesus? It wasn't just because He healed them. They
followed out of love for the One who set them free.
Psalm 69:1-18
Today we just
have the first half of Psalm 69. As you begin reading it, understand that this
psalm is quoted often in the New Testament. The Spirit designed David's
experience to mirror what Jesus would someday feel. It is pretty interesting
that God can do that with us and our lives, to be an encouragement or lesson or
model for others. And it's funny that He doesn't ask us first. He just does it.
And since we know He loves us, and we love Him and know that we would have been
dead without Him, we rejoice in His use of our lives, knowing that, in everything God works for good with
those who love him, who are called according to his purpose. (Rom. 8:28, RSV) Read this psalm in terms of Jesus' suffering
on the cross.
Vs. 1-3
Imagine, both David and Jesus felt this.
Vs. 4-5 Jesus
quotes v. 4 in John 15:25. I'm sure v. 5 didn't apply to Jesus. David's
accusers lied about him to make the people believe that King Saul's desire to
kill David was justified. The Jewish leaders did the same to justify their
killing of Jesus.
Vs. 6-8 Somehow
I feel these verses. David was followed by men and their families who now
shared the same reproach that David did. They were wanted men. Think of this
too in terms of those who followed Jesus.
David had been
anointed by God and told he would be king as a young teen. He was simply
honoring God. Saul's jealousy wasn't David’s fault. In the same way, Jesus’
honoring of His Father became His reproach among the Jews.
V.
8 For not even his brothers believed in
him. (John 7:5)
Vs. 9-12 His disciples remembered that it was
written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.” (John 2:17) Isn't it
interesting that David had a deep desire and zeal for seeking God at the
tabernacle and that David was the guy who wanted to build Yahweh a temple in
Jerusalem. So much of what we read in The Psalms shows David's desire to live
in God's presence and be hidden in His sanctuary. David was zealous for God's
house and was accordingly called an idiot by everyone who didn't share his view
of God. I imagine that in Jesus' day, there were those who told "Jesus
jokes" and that there were a couple bar-room songs dedicated to Him.
Vs. 13-18 This
certainly was David's daily prayer as He ran from Saul for possibly a decade.
This may also have been Jesus' prayer or feelings during His trials from His
enemies. It may very well have been what Jesus felt on the cross.
More tomorrow.
By the way,
just like Israel will be honored for God using them as an illustration to
mankind, David will also receive great future rewards for God using him to
teach us waiting, praying and the suffering of our Lord. In the days to come,
both Israel and David will be humbled that God used them like this for the
salvation of mankind.
Proverbs 12:1
There's that
"L" word again. When you look at Psalm 69 and understand this is
God's idea of discipline or "pruning," I'm not so sure any of us
would willingly enroll in that course. However, when we first learn to love God
through our Lord and His love, this isn't something that scares us because we
know Him. This kind of discipline is what Romans 5:1-8 is all about.
If you’re reading along and don’t have a One
Year Bible, click on this link http://oneyearbibleonline.com/weekly-one-year-readings/?version=47&startmmdd=0101. This version is set to the ESV but you can reset this to a different
version or different language.I'm writing these comments to and for those who are following a One Year Bible and interested in growing deeper as a disciple, following Jesus in the harvest. My hope is to see the growth of a discipleship culture in the church. Groups of 3-4 disciples, meeting weekly, encouraging each other to follow Christ and work to reach out and make disciples who make disciples. The Bible itself is the most universal manual we have and key to our growth and service in Christ. Nothing keeps us more focused on why we are here or what we are to be doing. My comments are only meant to provide some explanation of the events or to show the flow of God's plan of redemption. My comments are in no way exhaustive, but are designed to keep us focused on Christ and our role in His harvest. My hope is that the people in these groups will grow in Christ and be willing, after a year, to find 3 others to meet with and encourage in their growth as disciples, disciples making disciples in the harvest.
If you would like a complete description of this model of being and making disciples you can find it in my book: Simply Disciples*Making Disciples. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B011WJIDQA?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
If you would like a more descriptive commentary that is still readable and concise, I'd recommend the Bible Knowledge Commentary. It's keyed to the NIV, so the result is the commentators are constantly telling you what the Greek or Hebrew is. That never hurts.
I am not endorsing any particular One Year Bible; in fact, I read something you don't, die revidierte Lutherbibel 1984.
Anyone reading along with us is welcome to do so and is encouraged to take their own notes and make their own observations. If the comments made do not agree with your particular tradition or understanding, that's OK. Nothing I've written is meant to criticize any point of view, but only to express the truth of what God has written to us, as I understand it. Send comments or feedback to dgkachikis@gmail.com.
If you would like documents containing an entire month of the Reading Notes, go to https://sites.google.com/site/dlkachikis/reading-notes. You can download these to use on your computer or to print.
No comments:
Post a Comment