February 17, 2012 - Deuteronomy 9-11

Friday, February 17, 2012
Deuteronomy 9-11

In Deuteronomy 9:4-5, Moses said, "After the Lord your God has
driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, 'The Lord has
brought me here to take possession of this land because of my
righteousness.' No, it is on account of the wickedness of these
nations that the Lord is going to drive them out before you. It is not
because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in
to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of
these nations, the Lord your God will drive them out before you, to
accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob."

In fulfilling His promise to His people, God reminds the
Israelites that they did not do anything to earn the Promise Land. God
did not favor the Israelites because of their own righteousness, for
they were still a disobedient rebellious people. God favored Israel
because of His promise with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God favored
Israel because the nations they were up against were wicked.

I must confess, when I look at my life before knowing God, I would
have to put myself in the "wicked category" of people. I worshipped
money, sex, mind-altering substances, and people. My major focus was
pleasing myself. I didn't even know God, yet I had already rejected
Him. I deserved God's wrath. Even as a believer now, I still deserve
God's wrath because I sin every day. Nevertheless, God saves me from
His own wrath simply because of my belief in His son Jesus Christ.
God's love and forgiveness has created the desire in my heart for
obedience. I have found life in obedience. This was God's plan even
for the Israelites. He wanted them to experience the fulfilling life
that obedience had to offer.

In Deuteronomy 11:8-9, Moses said, "Observe therefore all the
commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to
go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to
possess, and so that you may live long in the land that the Lord swore
to your forefathers to give to them and their descendants, a land
flowing with milk and honey." Like the Israelites, we must aim for
keeping God's commands. We will never be able to maintain anything
like perfect adherence to them, but it's about progress, not
perfection. Jesus was perfect, therefore we don't have to be. We just
have to give God our best. Remember, we deserve death, but God gives
us life anyways through the Holy Spirit that dwells in us. In Romans
8:10-11, the apostle Paul said, "But if Christ is in you, then even
though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives
life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised
Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the
dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit
who lives in you."

You're Blessed,
Anthony