February 10 - Deuteronomy 1-3
Do you ever find it necessary to repeat things for other people or to have people repeat things for you? I know I do. The book of Deuteronomy is a repeat of God's Law for the new generation of Israelites before they entered the Promised Land. Don't let the repetition get you down. Just remember how many times we have to have repetition in our lives. It is a good thing.
Moses begins by reminding the new generation how he had appointed leaders to help him with the task of leading God's people. It is the principle of delegation at work. However, when he sent some of those leaders into the Land, they did not trust God, but turned the people away from taking the Land God had already promised to give them. This grieved Moses and God, so much that even though they soon changed their mind, the damage had been done, the opportunity had been missed, so they wandered for 40 years. Moses was saying, "Don't make that mistake again."
Then, he recounts the final approach to the Land after the old generation had died. God showed them that He had given Lot's descendants a land of their own, so the implication is that God would surely do the same for His people. Then, He gave them two great victories over Sihon and Og before they even crossed the Jordan into Canaan. Those victories were to boost their trust in Him. God did everything He could to encourage His people to trust Him. He does the same thing for us all the time, but we must be watching what He is doing around us.
Finally, Moses asks God to let him go into Canaan, but God tells Him no. He says to stop asking. God had already given Moses His decision, and He was not going to change His mind. Has God ever done that for you? When you come to know God intimately, sometimes He does tell you to stop praying for something in a certain way. We need to listen to Him, because prayer is not about getting our will. It is about following His will for us.
Tomorrow, I plan to read Deuteronomy 4-6.
Moses begins by reminding the new generation how he had appointed leaders to help him with the task of leading God's people. It is the principle of delegation at work. However, when he sent some of those leaders into the Land, they did not trust God, but turned the people away from taking the Land God had already promised to give them. This grieved Moses and God, so much that even though they soon changed their mind, the damage had been done, the opportunity had been missed, so they wandered for 40 years. Moses was saying, "Don't make that mistake again."
Then, he recounts the final approach to the Land after the old generation had died. God showed them that He had given Lot's descendants a land of their own, so the implication is that God would surely do the same for His people. Then, He gave them two great victories over Sihon and Og before they even crossed the Jordan into Canaan. Those victories were to boost their trust in Him. God did everything He could to encourage His people to trust Him. He does the same thing for us all the time, but we must be watching what He is doing around us.
Finally, Moses asks God to let him go into Canaan, but God tells Him no. He says to stop asking. God had already given Moses His decision, and He was not going to change His mind. Has God ever done that for you? When you come to know God intimately, sometimes He does tell you to stop praying for something in a certain way. We need to listen to Him, because prayer is not about getting our will. It is about following His will for us.
Tomorrow, I plan to read Deuteronomy 4-6.