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Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
“When all these blessings and curses I have set before you come upon you and you take them to heart wherever the Lord your God disperses you among the nations, and when you and your children return to the Lord your God and obey Him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you and gather you again from all the nations where He scattered you.”
“Even if you have been banished to the most distant land under the heavens, from there the Lord your God will gather you and bring you back. He will bring you to the land that belonged to your fathers, and you will take possession of it. He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love Him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live. The Lord your God will put all these curses on your enemies who hate and persecute you. You will again obey the Lord and follow all His commands I am giving you today. Then the Lord your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your land. The Lord will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as He delighted in your fathers, if you obey the Lord your God and keep His commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Deuteronomy 30:1-10
This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
We have seen over the last few chapters how God vowed to punish the people of Israel if they decided to become disobedient and not follow His commandments. It was no secret that bad things would come if they chose to turn away from Him.
As we read through His warnings, we might find ourselves wondering about the presence of the side of God that is perfectly loving, merciful, forgiving, and compassionate. Today’s passage shows us the balance found within Him for we see that while our Lord does expect obedience and will discipline anyone who chooses sin over the righteousness He desires, we also see how He will gladly receive back those who realize the wrongs of their ways and choose to run back into His arms. He affirms this in our scripture passage as we look at the opening verses of Deuteronomy, chapter 30. There we find the formula for resolving any relationship that had been broken with Him
Here’s how it would look:
After receiving God’s judgment for their transgressions, which largely involves the worship of false gods and idols, a judgment that would lead the Lord to disperse His people “among the nations”, He would be willing to reconcile with them. For this to happen, they (the Israelites and their children) would need to turn away from their sinfulness and recommit themselves to obeying all He had commanded with all their heart and soul.
When that happened, then the Lord promised to restore their fortunes and have compassion on them and gather them again from all the nations where they had been scattered. In other words, He would restore them to a nation again, bringing them back to the land that belonged to their fathers and making them more prosperous and numerous than before.
In the course of their restoration, God would do more than just restore them as a nation and make them more prosperous. He would also circumcise their hearts and the hearts of their descendants. With this, we should keep in mind that physical circumcision of men was performed because the Lord commanded it. It was to serve as a sign of the covenant He made with man. In relating this to a heart, a person who allowed God to spiritually circumcise it would lead to them being devoted to Him and His covenant promise. They would become a person who was obedient and loving, one that would be holy, righteous, and reverent.
Friends, this matter of having a heart circumcised by our Lord is just as important today as it was some 3,400 years ago for it is the only way to ensure we are loving God properly with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength. In turn, this will result in us living the kind of life He wants us to live.
This message should lead us to ask some self reflective questions such as:
Where am I at in my walk with God?
Have I fallen into a disobedient lifestyle that has led me to turn away from God?
Am I am in the midst of some form of punishment for my sinfulness that I desperately need God to deliver me from?
I think if we’re honest, we have probably been in a place like this, a place where we strayed from the narrow path to life Jesus talks about and found ourselves going the wrong direction, walking the road that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14).
Likewise, I think many of us could also attest to experiencing the Lord’s mercy, grace, and forgiveness when we chose to repent and turn away from our sinful ways, doing a u-turn in life and returning to Him. In those times, we found that our Heavenly Father never hesitated to allow His once wayward child to return, providing restoration while circumcising the heart so it would love Him completely and respectfully live fully for Him in obedience and reverence.
My brothers and sisters in Christ, is this not supremely good news for us today and every day after?
For while we serve a God who indeed corrects sinners, He also readily provides pardon, receiving us back to Him while blessing us more than He did before. May we ever give all of our thanks and praise to our Lord, for He and He alone is worthy of it, now and forever.
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.
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