SAY "AMEN!"

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Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then Moses and the priests, who are Levites, said to all Israel, "Be silent, O Israel, and listen! You have now become the people of the Lord your God. Obey the Lord your God and follow His commands and decrees that I give you today."

On the same day Moses commanded the people:

“When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin. And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to pronounce curses: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali.”

“The Levites shall recite to all the people of Israel in a loud voice:

‘Cursed is the man who carves an image or casts an idol—a thing detestable to the Lord, the work of the craftsman's hands—and sets it up in secret.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who dishonors his father or his mother.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who moves his neighbor's boundary stone.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who leads the blind astray on the road.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who withholds justice from the alien, the fatherless, or the widow.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who sleeps with his father's wife, for he dishonors his father's bed.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who has sexual relations with any animal.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

"Cursed is the man who sleeps with his sister, the daughter of his father or the daughter of his mother." Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who sleeps with his mother-in-law.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who kills his neighbor secretly.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who accepts a bribe to kill an innocent person.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

‘Cursed is the man who does not uphold the words of this law by carrying them out.’

Then all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

Deuteronomy 27:9-26

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

We find the Bible using the word “curse” quite often and as you can see, it is central to this passage from the closing verses of Deuteronomy, chapter 27. A quick look into the dictionary renders this meaning for the word:

1. A cause of great harm or misfortune.

2. Evil or misfortune that comes as retribution.

We also find the word “Amen” proclaimed in response to every statement regarding the accursed. Going back to our trusty dictionary, we find this concerning the word:

Used to express solemn ratification (as of an expression of faith) or hearty approval (as of an assertion).

With these two definitions in hand, we can now move into looking at our text for today. There we find Moses telling the Israelites that they were to divide up into two groups, each consisting of six tribes. This was to happen after they “crossed the Jordan” and we read where the tribes of Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph, and Benjamin were to “stand on Mount Gerizim” while the tribes of “Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan, and Naphtali” were to “stand on Mount Ebal”.

The scriptures also let us know that each group was given specific responsibilities as they stood on their respective mountains. The tribes on Mount Gerizim were told to “bless the people” while those on Mount Ebal were to “pronounce curses”.

With the tribes in place, we see where the Levites then began to declare a series of curses. Note that these curses were delivered well after God had given His people commands through Moses. Those commands made it clear that His disfavor and judgment, or in other words…a curse, would fall on anyone who disobediently violated His demands. These demands included:

- No worshipping of idols.

- No dishonoring of parents.

- Not cheating others.

- Not allowing injustice to fall on the underprivileged.

- No sexual immorality.

- No murder.

These weren’t mere suggestions. God expected complete compliance with no deviation. To do so otherwise would bring His curse on the offender and the Israelites were well aware of what could happen if the Lord decided to unleash His punishment upon them. They only needed to remember the accounts passed down from their ancestors when God sent not just one but ten curses on the Pharaoh of Egypt and his nation. Indeed, there was no question regarding the powerful penalties God could bring to bear.

So that covers the first part of each of these verses, the judgment that would be upon anyone who broke God’s directives. He expected His Word to be followed to the tee.

Now, let’s turn our attention to the second half of all these verses which involved the response of all of God’s people as the Levites proclaimed curses on sinful offenders of the Law. We see in the scriptures that after every curse was announced, all the people were to say “Amen!” In other words, they were essentially conveying that they understood the punishment that would come for each transgression and were in agreement that it was appropriate.

In other words, through collectively saying the word, “Amen!”, God’s people acknowledged that they concurred with the idea that “great harm or misfortune” should fall on anyone who would disobey or break any of the pronounced commandments. They agreed with God…as they should have.

So what do we gain from this scripture today?

I would offer you the following three takeaways:

1. God expects our complete obedience. He demands that we be knowledgeable and mindful of His word, totally adhering to it in everything we do in life.

2. God can and will bring judgment or curses on anyone who decides they want to blatantly disobey His commands. There is no question that He expects us to respect and honor Him by following His Word. Will, and way.

3. God expects us to affirm His Word, will, and way for us. He wants us to not just say the word, “Amen!”, when we read what He desires and mean it when we say it.

Friends, every day we should intentionally grade ourselves on the obedience scale. When we do this, nothing but full honesty will do because we need to remember that God can see everything. We may be able to conceal our lives from others but not one thing we do is out of the sight and knowledge of our Lord and we need to remember that He has the authority to qualify us for a curse or a blessing, depending on what we deserve.

If we take this seriously, then we see how we have the ultimate accountability partner in our God, an accountability partner who only wants the best for us in life and that means showing others that we were created in His very image as we go through each day.

Let’s all recommit ourselves to ensure we are a blessing to our Lord so we might continue to experience His abundant blessings as we move toward the eternal Kingdom He has prepared for us.

My prayer is that all the people will say, “Amen!”, to that.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

THE FOUNDATION OF WORSHIP

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people: ‘Keep all these commands that I give you today. When you have crossed the Jordan into the land the Lord your God is giving you, set up some large stones and coat them with plaster. Write on them all the words of this law when you have crossed over to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, promised you. And when you have crossed the Jordan, set up these stones on Mount Ebal, as I command you today, and coat them with plaster. Build there an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. Do not use any iron tool upon them. Build the altar of the Lord your God with fieldstones and offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God. Sacrifice fellowship offerings there, eating them, and rejoicing in the presence of the Lord your God. And you shall write very clearly all the words of this law on these stones you have set up.’"

Deuteronomy 27:1-8

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Up to this point in the Book of Deuteronomy, we have seen Moses providing God’s instructions to the Israelites but as chapter 27 opens, we find him joined by the “elders of Israel”. Together, we read where they gave the people of Israel the following command:

“When you have crossed the Jordan into the land the Lord your God is giving you, set up some large stones and coat them with plaster. Write on them all the words of this law when you have crossed over to enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, promised you. And when you have crossed the Jordan, set up these stones on Mount Ebal, as I command you today, and coat them with plaster. Build there an altar to the Lord your God, an altar of stones. Do not use any iron tool upon them. Build the altar of the Lord your God with fieldstones and offer burnt offerings on it to the Lord your God. Sacrifice fellowship offerings there, eating them, and rejoicing in the presence of the Lord your God. And you shall write very clearly all the words of this law on these stones you have set up."

Here, we can see where the law-inscribed stones would be used to construct the altar on which the Israelites would bring offerings to the Lord once they entered Canaan. In other words, they would form the foundation for Israel’s worship.

These mere eight verses convey to us that there was a premium placed on putting the Word of God at the base of His people’s adoration and reverence towards Him. It was the firm ground upon which the Israelite’s work within the Promised Land would be built on as they offered up their time, talent, and treasure in obedience to His will and way. This included acknowledging and fulfilling all He had commanded.

Today, God’s expectations haven’t changed any. He still expects us to use His Word as the underpinning of our worship but it goes even beyond that. He expects us to use His Word as our starting point for all things in life…and He expects us to do this in obedience with a sense of respect and admiration toward Him.

Friends, let us never miss a chance to take God’s word, write it our hearts, and then worship upon that solid foundation…a foundation that allows us to stand on solid spiritual ground, not sinking sand. And if you need some validation on this, remember these words from Jesus, our Savior…and Solid Rock:

“I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears My words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears My words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete." Luke 6:47-49

As I close today, just a thought provoking question:

How firm is your spiritual foundation?

If it’s built on the Word, then be thankful for you are on solid ground.

If not, it’s time to rebuild your life on the firm foundation of the scriptures which leads you to the Solid Rock, the One who is the Rock of Ages, now and forevermore.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

DECLARATION DAY

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul. You have declared this day that the Lord is your God and that you will walk in His ways, that you will keep His decrees, commands, and laws, and that you will obey Him. And the Lord has declared this day that you are His people, His treasured possession as He promised, and that you are to keep all His commands. He has declared that He will set you in praise, fame, and honor high above all the nations He has made and that you will be a people holy to the Lord your God, as He promised.

Deuteronomy 26:16-19

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Before he died and as the Israelites were about to enter the Promised Land, Moses had passed on many commands and expectations to them from God. This was to ensure that God’s chosen people would live as He wanted in the land that was flowing with milk and honey, the land of Canaan that He was giving them. We find this sealed within our passage today as Moses says the following:

“The Lord your God commands you this day to follow these decrees and laws; carefully observe them with all your heart and with all your soul.”

Did you catch those key words?

With all your heart and with all your soul.

The people of God were to follow His commands so to fulfill all His expectations with every fiber of their being, fully committed in their obedience to Him and Him alone.

To do this requires intentional dedication and devotion…for when one has surrendered all their heart and soul to the Lord, they have essentially surrendered their will for His. They have moved over to the passenger side and allowed God to take the wheel, allowing Him to drive them through life to the places where He wants them to be so to do what He wants them to do.

As we see in our passage today, the people of Israel proclaim that they’re ready to make this kind of sacrifice. For we read where they have a declaration day…a day when they vowed “that the Lord (was their) God…that (they would) walk in his ways…that (they would) keep his decrees, commands and laws…and that (they would) obey him.” In other words, they vowed to keep their hearts and souls grounded in the Lord.

We also see how God made it His declaration day as well, vowing that the Israelites were “His people, His treasured possession”. He also promised to “set (Israel) in praise, fame, and honor high above all the nations…and that (they would) be a people holy” to Him.

Yes, all seemed to be well as the Israelites were ready to cross the Jordan River and enter Canaan…and it was. But don’t think for a moment that it will stay that way for we will see how God’s people will stop following Him with their heart and soul, forgetting their special declaration day and losing the Lord’s favor as a result.

So how about us today?

In most cases, we have had our own respective declaration days before our Lord, no more evident as when we go through the sacrament of baptism. There, we affirm that we are dying to our former selves before Christ to become a new creation in and through Him (2 Corinthians 5:17).

If we have done this, then the following questions come into play:

How we fulfilled the commitment we made, surrendering our hearts and souls to Christ so to become like Him in every way with every ounce of our being?

Or have we gone back to our prior sinful ways, allowing Satan and sin to steal away what we vowed to give God?

Friends, if we have lost our bearing...if we have wandered off of the narrow path of righteousness that God wants us to walk, forsaking His way for the ways of the world, then it’s time for us to get back on track. It’s time for us to recommit…to repent and return to the ways of the Lord.

In other words, it’s time for a new declaration day…a renewal of our commitment to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit…not just with a part of us but with every bit of our hearts and souls for nothing short of that will do.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

OUR SACRED PORTION

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“When you have finished setting aside a tenth of all your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe, you shall give it to the Levite, the alien, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. Then say to the Lord your God: ‘I have removed from my house the sacred portion and have given it to the Levite, the alien, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all You commanded. I have not turned aside from Your commands nor have I forgotten any of them. I have not eaten any of the sacred portion while I was in mourning, nor have I removed any of it while I was unclean, nor have I offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the Lord my God; I have done everything You commanded me. Look down from Heaven, Your holy dwelling place, and bless Your people Israel and the land You have given us as You promised on oath to our forefathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.’"

Deuteronomy 26:12-15

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

When something is considered sacred in biblical terms, it refers to something set apart to serve or honor a deity which in this case is the Lord God Almighty.

As we continue to look at Deuteronomy, chapter 26, we see God speaking through Moses to His people regarding the matter of firstfruits and tithing. In our passage for today, we see where the Israelites were to set aside “a tenth of all…produce in the third year”, a year known as “the year of the tithe”. This tenth was to be given to the “Levite, the alien, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they (could) eat…and be satisfied”. This order becomes one of many that convey how the Lord expected the underprivileged in society to be cared for.

We should also note that there was a special name for the tenth of produce set aside. It was called the “sacred portion”.

Why was this portion called sacred?

Consider the following:

1. It was sacred because it came first from God.

Israel’s God was the God of all creation, the Maker and Master of all created things. Everything that the Israelites had belonged to God first because He made everything. He was the Origin and it was because of this that everything was divine in nature…or sacred. Israel was expected to provide a part of what God had provided to the less fortunate, a sacred portion of His goodness and providence.

2. It was sacred because Israel set it apart for God’s service.

God commanded Israel to set aside a tenth of the produce for those in need but Israel still needed to make the choice to obey what He commanded. Their obedience toward fulfilling the Lord’s expectations resulted in the donated portion being sacred as it was provided in service to Him.

So how does this apply to us today?

The same God of Israel is our God today and He provides for us abundantly according to His will for our lives. With this is an underlying expectation that we be good stewards of what He has given and this includes giving our own “sacred portion” to those who are less fortunate.

In the end translation, God is the One who is the sole Provider of every good and perfect gift (James 1:17) and we are to honor Him by giving Him a return on His investment, whether it is time, talent, or treasure.

As we enter this weekend with a new week ahead, how can we set aside what He has given us for sacred purposes, actively looking to make a difference in the lives of those in need.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

REJOICE IN ALL THE GOOD GOD HAS DONE

Can I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

** Become a Follower of The Christian Walk at http://the-christian-walk.blogspot.com

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“When you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance and have taken possession of it and settled in it, take some of the firstfruits of all that you produce from the soil of the land the Lord your God is giving you and put them in a basket. Then go to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name and say to the priest in office at the time, ‘I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the land the Lord swore to our forefathers to give us.’ The priest shall take the basket from your hands and set it down in front of the altar of the Lord your God. Then you shall declare before the Lord your God: ‘My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down into Egypt with a few people and lived there and became a great nation, powerful and numerous. But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer, putting us to hard labor. Then we cried out to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our misery, toil and oppression. So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror and with miraculous signs and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey; and now I bring the firstfruits of the soil that You, O Lord, have given me.””

“Place the basket before the Lord your God and bow down before Him. And you and the Levites and the aliens among you shall rejoice in all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household.”

Deuteronomy 26:1-11

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we approach the end of Book of Deuteronomy, we find the Israelites on the brink of crossing the Jordan River into the land God had promised them, the land that was “flowing with milk and honey”, the land which would provide an abundance in blessings to His people. In regard to their part, all they had to do was remain obedient to God’s commands and expectations, keeping their trust firmly in Him and Him alone.

Now, we have read in other Old Testament passages prior to this one how God expected the Israelites to bring Him their firstfruits. The main point has consistently been that He (God) always provides His best to His people and so they should give their finest back to Him in return.

In today’s passage from Deuteronomy, chapter 26, we not only read where the Lord demands that the Israelites bring “some of the firstfruits of all…produce from the soil of the land the Lord your God is giving you” but He tells them how He wants them to bring it. Note that they were to place the firstfruits in a basket and “go to the place the Lord would choose “as a dwelling for his Name”. Once there, they were to say this to the priest:

“I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the land the Lord swore to our forefathers to give us”.

The priest would then take the basket and “set it down in front of the altar of the Lord”. The person presenting the offering was then to recite the following:

“When you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance and have taken possession of it and settled in it, take some of the firstfruits of all that you produce from the soil of the land the Lord your God is giving you and put them in a basket. Then go to the place the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his Name and say to the priest in office at the time, ‘I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the land the Lord swore to our forefathers to give us.’ The priest shall take the basket from your hands and set it down in front of the altar of the Lord your God. Then you shall declare before the Lord your God: ‘My father was a wandering Aramean, and he went down into Egypt with a few people and lived there and became a great nation, powerful and numerous. But the Egyptians mistreated us and made us suffer, putting us to hard labor. Then we cried out to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our misery, toil and oppression. So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror and with miraculous signs and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey; and now I bring the firstfruits of the soil that You, O Lord, have given me.’”

In sum, the person presenting the offering was to attest to how the Israelites had been in a place of need during their oppressive enslavement in Egypt before being rescued by God who delivered them from bondage and out of love, gave them promise and hope for their future as He made good on His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Of course, this promise was that he would make Israel a great nation and so He did (and still does).

With all this, the offering of the firstfruits was a representation of God’s goodness unto them, a portion of the firstfruits of the harvest that He had blessed them with. These offerings of thanksgiving allowed each donor the chance to rejoice in all the good things the Lord had given to them and their household.

This leads to a question for all Christ followers and God-believers today.

For how often do we dedicate a portion of our firstfruits before the Lord, giving thanks and rejoicing for how He has delivered and blessed each?

Friends, one of our most important spiritual disciplines should be to just pause at the start of each day and turn our eyes toward the Lord with thanks. For He allowed us to wake up this morning and we’re breathing in and out with a heart that’s beating. Both need to happen just so our lives can be sustained.

Too often, we take these things for granted, failing to acknowledge and honor God for giving us these things. For not only does he give us lungs that breathe the oxygen He creates and hearts that beat to pump blood through our bodies, He gives us every bare essential we need in order to serve Him ad carry out His purposes.

The bottom line is that we have a real tendency to not celebrate the basic essentials the Lord provides and while we may exist in different cultures and socioeconomic statuses, we all get the gift of time from God, each receiving twenty-four hours a day. If you want to break that down a little further, He gives every person 1,440 minutes which further translates to a whopping 86,400 seconds. Indeed, every second of every minute is a blessing in its own right.

There’s an older contemporary Christian song that was written and performed by Chris Rice. It carries the following title, “Life Means So Much”, and in the second stanza of the song, we find these words, followed by the chorus:

Every day is a bank account

And time is our currency

So no one’s rich, nobody’s poor

We get twenty-four hours each

So how are you gonna spend?

Will you invest or squander?

Try to get ahead

Or help someone who’s under

Teach us to count the days

Teach us to make the days count

Lead us in better ways

Somehow our souls forgot

Life means so much

Life means so much

Life means so much

The Lord speaks to us all through this song and asks us to answer some probing questions:

What do we do with the time the Lord blesses us with each day?

Do we give Him our firstfruits? (and this means not giving Him our time leftovers but rather prime time)

How do we use the time He gives? Do we honor Him with it, investing our time in the work He purposes us to carry out every day? Or do we engage in consistent time wasting?

Do we only look out for ourselves, squandering our time to get ahead or do we use it to selflessly invest in others in need?

I pray we’ll all be honest with ourselves in fielding these questions and even if we’re not, we need to remember that the Lord sees everything we do. Nothing is hidden from His sight and He’s fully aware in regard to whether you give Him your best daily or not.

My hope is that this scripture passage and the message associated with it will cause us all to pause and see how well we are using what God has given for His glory while having a constant appreciation for all He provides, no matter how small it might be. Like the Israelites of old, let us rejoice in all the things God has done, is doing, and is yet to do in our lives.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

ARE YOU IN THE BOOK?

an I pray for you in any way?

Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.

In Christ, Mark

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Follow The Christian Walk on Twitter @ThChristianWalk

** Like posts and send friend requests to the author of The Christian Walk, Mark Cummings on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mark.cummings.733?ref=tn_tnmn

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

“When men have a dispute, they are to take it to court and the judges will decide the case, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty. If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make him lie down and have him flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime deserves, but he must not give him more than forty lashes. If he is flogged more than that, your brother will be degraded in your eyes.”

“Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.”

“If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband's brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel. However, if a man does not want to marry his brother's wife, she shall go to the elders at the town gate and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to carry on his brother's name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me.’ Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, ‘I do not want to marry her,’ his brother's widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face and say, ‘This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother's family line.’ That man's line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.”

“If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.”

“Do not have two differing weights in your bag - one heavy, one light. Do not have two differing measures in your house - one large, one small. You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. For the Lord your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.”

“Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and cut off all who were lagging behind; they had no fear of God. When the Lord your God gives you rest from all the enemies around you in the land he is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!”

Deuteronomy 25

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Like chapters 23 and 24 of the Book of Deuteronomy, chapter 25 is a collection of various laws and commands that the Israelites were to follow as they entered Canaan. As we read these laws, it’s important to remember that they were being given to an entirely new generation. Their ancestors had been given most of these instructions before but you’ll remember that God ensured they all would die in the wilderness after sinfully showing no faith in Him when attempting to enter the Promised Land the first time. Now, Moses was educating their children before they would cross the Jordan under the leadership of Joshua.

As we have in the last two messages, let’s look at each of these commands:

1. “When men have a dispute, they are to take it to court and the judges will decide the case, acquitting the innocent and condemning the guilty. If the guilty man deserves to be beaten, the judge shall make him lie down and have him flogged in his presence with the number of lashes his crime deserves, but he must not give him more than forty lashes. If he is flogged more than that, your brother will be degraded in your eyes.”

In Old Testament times, disputes weren’t to be handled between individuals but in the courts where judges were appointed to hear cases and render the appropriate verdicts, always ensuring that justice was served. We need to note that when the penalty of lashing was imposed, there was a limit. No one was to receive more than forty lashes and anything beyond that would be considered inhumane in God’s sight.

2. “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.”

Here, we see that human beings weren’t the only ones allotted humane treatment.

Oxen were used to tread on stalks of grain thrown on the threshing floor. As they walked on the stalks, the grain kernels would be separated for collection. If the ox was muzzled, then it would be unable to eat some of the grain when hungry and this would be cruel, depriving them of their need for food. This is the reason for this command from God.

3. “If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband's brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel. However, if a man does not want to marry his brother's wife, she shall go to the elders at the town gate and say, ‘My husband's brother refuses to carry on his brother's name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me.’ Then the elders of his town shall summon him and talk to him. If he persists in saying, ‘I do not want to marry her,’ his brother's widow shall go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face and say, ‘This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother's family line.’ That man's line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.”

As we have seen prior in the Old Testament, it was very important for a son to be born into any family. This is because society was very patriarchal and so any son would be able to carry on the family name, inheriting any position their father might hold.

But what if a man dies before he has a chance to have a son?

In those cases, the brother of the deceased was to marry the widowed sister-in-law so she could bear a son who would “carry on the name of the dead brother” so that “his name (would) not be blotted out from Israel”.

Now, this was what God commanded but there was no guarantee that the dead man’s brother would agree to marry the widow. If this happened, we read where the refusal would be met with great scorn and disapproval. For in this scenario, the widow was to take the matter “to the elders at the town gate and say:

“My husband's brother refuses to carry on his brother's name in Israel. He will not fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to me.”

In response to this, the elders would “summon (the brother) and talk to him. If he persisted in saying, “I do not want to marry her,” then he faced the following consequences:

“His brother's widow (would) go up to him in the presence of the elders, take off one of his sandals, spit in his face, and say, ‘This is what is done to the man who will not build up his brother's family line.’ That man's line shall be known in Israel as The Family of the Unsandaled.”

In other words, the brother would be released from his duty to provide a son for his dead brother’s widow but that liberation would come through a ceremony of shame, a ceremony that would tarnish his reputation that point on in the community where it would be well known how he intentionally disrespected his dead brother and widowed sister-in-law.

Of special interest here is the matter of being unsandaled. Remember that Jesus, providing instructions on how they were to go out and evangelize, said that if a town refused to receive them and the Gospel message they shared, then they were to leave the town and shake the dust from their sandals (Matthew 10:11-15). The unsandaling action in the New Testament was meant to heap shame on the rejecting town and its people. It was an extension of what we see here in Deuteronomy, chapter 25.

4. “If two men are fighting and the wife of one of them comes to rescue her husband from his assailant, and she reaches out and seizes him by his private parts, you shall cut off her hand. Show her no pity.”

We have seen other places in the scriptures that speak about decency in dealing with sexual situations as well as parts of the body used for sex and reproduction. Here, we find the Law is given so to serve as a deterrent for anyone who might seek to severely injure a person (in this case a man) by grabbing him by his private parts.

How serious was the offense?

So much so that the woman’s hand was to be cut off.We shouldn’t read this as being that a woman was prevented to come to the aid of her husband. Rather, it placed a limit as to how she acted if she did.

5. “Remember what the Amalekites did to you along the way when you came out of Egypt. When you were weary and worn out, they met you on your journey and cut off all who were lagging behind; they had no fear of God. When the Lord your God gives you rest from all the enemies around you in the land he is giving you to possess as an inheritance, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!”

You’ll recall that when God delivered His people from their captivity in Egypt, they embarked on an exodus across the Sinai Peninsula toward Mount Sinai where the Lord would give Moses instruction to pass onto the Israelites. This included what we know as the Ten Commandments.

Well, the journey to Mount Sinai was far from easy and the people of God found themselves “weary and worn out”. In this state of lowered readiness, we saw where the Amalekites, the descendants of Esau, attacked Israel. In that battle, God delivered the Israelites into victory, something He didn’t want them to forget because He definitely hadn’t.

For as we see in this command, God ordered the Israelites to “blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven”. In other words, God was going to hand Amelek over to Israel for utter annihilation.

6. “Do not have two differing weights in your bag - one heavy, one light. Do not have two differing measures in your house - one large, one small. You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. For the Lord your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly.”

In biblical times, commerce was often done by using weights and measures. One of the ways to determine the cost of a purchase was to weigh it against a known standard weight to determine the weight of what was being bought and subsequently the cost of that purchase.

Unfortunately, like today, people figured out how to do unscrupulous, sinful things in order to profit financially. In the context of this command, differing weights and measures were often used to dishonestly weigh and measure items in the broker’s favor. Completely lacking in integrity, it was a common practice that ripped off a lot of people.

Then, as it is now, God expects people to conduct their business matters honestly and above board.

Okay, that covers the commands in Deuteronomy 25 and for the purpose of this message, I would like to focus on an aspect of the sixth and final one. For as we deal with others on a day-by-day basis, isn’t integrity one of the most important things we covet from those serving us? I think I can say with absolute certainty that no one likes to be deceived, especially when that deceit comes from someone you are placing your trust in.

Well, it doesn’t take too much time reading around the Bible to know that God hates dishonesty. And just as we have seen harsh penalties for other sins in today’s passage, none of them are as severe as what we find in the Book of Revelation in regard to those who swindle or mislead others. Look at these verses from the 21st chapter:

“I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life.” Revelation 21:22-27

Note here how deceitfulness is a disqualifier because it makes a person impure and the scriptures clearly state that “nothing impure will enter” through the gates of the New Jerusalem. Only the “glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it” and this includes those whose “names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life”.

Now, I don’t know about you but I want my name to be found in Jesus’ book and this comes by believing and accepting Jesus as Savior. For it’s only in and through Him, committing ourselves to live as He lived, that we can ensure that we will live a life free from shameful, deceitful behavior. Doing so will earn us a place with Him for all eternity and save us from the alternative, the everlasting suffering and torment of Hell.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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