Hey Everyone.
In my studies of Deuteronomy, I am in chapter 3. To understand what is going on here we have to back up to Numbers 32. If you were to read that chapter, you would see that after conquering Sihon the Amorite and Og of Bashan, three Israelite groups, wanted that land, rather than the a piece of the Promised Land on the other side of the Jordan. These were the tribes of Reuben and Gad and half of the tribe of Manasseh. The tribes had large herds of livestock and it was a land very suitable for grazing, so they asked for that land to be their inheritance rather than some other piece of land on the other side of the Jordan River.
Initially, Moses accused them of discourage the people and of trying to get out of the military service that would be necessary for the conquest of the Promised Land. (Num. 32:6-15). He even called them a "brood of sinners." (v.14). But they responded that they would build fortifications for their wives, children and livestock and then go off to battle with the rest of the Israelites to help in the conquest of the Promised Land.
This brings us to Deut. 3:12-20, where these three tribes receive their allotment from God, then the able-bodied men set off with the rest of Israel to do battle, not knowing how long it will take. Now, I have to give these men credit. My mind would be filled with questions and concerns, like: "If all of the able-bodied men are gone, including myself, who is going to watch out for my wife,my children, my house, my livestock?" or "What about the Edomites, Ammonites or Moabites,won't our families and belongings be easy prey for them?" or "What will happen to my family if I am killed in battle?" Honestly, the only answer that you can give to these questions is, "God is going to look out for my family and belongings, and God will protect me in battle." This idea is easy to think and say, but in practical reality, knowing that non-able-bodied men and teenage boys and women would be the only visible protection against the armies of other nations would give me second thoughts. But the men of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh had a great faith because, not only did they go, it was their idea.
They return home in Joshua 22, after seven years of helping their brothers fight for the Promised Land. They return to their homes, wives, children and livestock, having kept their word and having pleased the Lord. In their absence, God protected what was theirs. Likewise, we can trust God, in every situation, and act on that faith, like the men of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh.
Tom
Friday, June 30, 2017
Saturday, June 24, 2017
Patience
Hello everyone.
Love is patient. That is what the Bible says in I Cor. 13:4. I think we probably all understand the truth of this statement, that when are showing patience, we are truly being loving, because patience is hard. I have yet to meet a person that has said, "Oh, patience is really easy for me." So for me, the question that comes into my mind is, "OK, how patient am I required to be?" I ask that question because there are people in my life that test the limits of my patience quite often. Those people are the ones I refer to as "family." Maybe you can relate.
So, as I have continued to study the book of Deuteronomy, I have received my answer in Deuteronomy 2 and 3. In those chapters, the Israelites are commanded to destroy Sihon, king of Heshbon and take the land. They are to destroy Og, king of Bashan, and take his land. These two kings were Amorites and in no way related to the Israelites. However, there were three groups that the Israelites were told to leave alone, and that God would not give Israel any of their land, not even enough to put a foot on (Deut. 2:5). These three groups were the Edomites, Moabites and Ammonites. Who were these people, and why were they under God's protection? Deut. 2:1-8 talks about the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, Israel's (Jacob's) brother. Now, even though this was about 400 years after the time of Jacob and Esau, God considered them family. The Edomites are called "relatives" twice, (v. 4and 8). Then, God tells the Israelites that they are not to harass the Moabites (Deut. 2:9-18) or the Ammonites (Duet. 2:19-23) either. Well, who are Moab and Ammon? they are the sons that Lot had through incestuous relations with his daughters (Gen. 19:30-38). Ok, you can sort of understand the relationship between Israel and Edom, since their originators were brothers, but Moab and Ammon were Israel's grandfather's nephew's sons. So it is a stretch to say that they were second cousins of Israel. So why treat them as family? I don't know. Never-the-less, God had driven other nations out of this land and given these three nations their territories, and Israel could not have it.
These three nations that God was protecting were not particularly righteous, either. It was Moab that called Balaam to curse Israel (Num 22). Moabite women had seduced Israelite men and led them into immorality and sacrificing to others gods in Numbers 25. Moab, with the aid of Ammon, subjugated Israel in Judges 3, until Ehud rescued Israel. In I Samuel 14:47, all three nations are mentioned as enemies that King Saul had to fight. David had to fight them too. So for generations these nations harassed Israel, yet God had protected them. Why? I think I find the answer in Isa. 15:5. God says, "My heart cries out over Moab." Then in Isa. 16:11, "My heart laments for Moab." Even after all those years, God still loved Moab, and had been very patient with the nation, giving them every opportunity to repent. But they had not. Isaiah goes on to prophecy that the time of the Moabites was nearly over (Isa. 16:13-14). The Kingdom of Moab lasted about a thousand years. The Kingdom of Ammon lasted about 700 years. The Kingdom of Edom lasted about 1200 years. (Interestingly, Obadiah prophesied Edom's destruction, for rejoicing over the destruction of his brother Israel, Obad. 11-12. So even by the time of Obadiah, written several centuries after Moses, God still considered them family.)
So this brings me back to my initial question, "How patient am I required to be?" What does that mean for me, when some family member is getting on my nerves? Well, God has set an example of being patient with groups of unrighteous people for generations, even centuries. I suppose that I can be patient with my loved ones as long as I need to be.
Tom
Love is patient. That is what the Bible says in I Cor. 13:4. I think we probably all understand the truth of this statement, that when are showing patience, we are truly being loving, because patience is hard. I have yet to meet a person that has said, "Oh, patience is really easy for me." So for me, the question that comes into my mind is, "OK, how patient am I required to be?" I ask that question because there are people in my life that test the limits of my patience quite often. Those people are the ones I refer to as "family." Maybe you can relate.
So, as I have continued to study the book of Deuteronomy, I have received my answer in Deuteronomy 2 and 3. In those chapters, the Israelites are commanded to destroy Sihon, king of Heshbon and take the land. They are to destroy Og, king of Bashan, and take his land. These two kings were Amorites and in no way related to the Israelites. However, there were three groups that the Israelites were told to leave alone, and that God would not give Israel any of their land, not even enough to put a foot on (Deut. 2:5). These three groups were the Edomites, Moabites and Ammonites. Who were these people, and why were they under God's protection? Deut. 2:1-8 talks about the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, Israel's (Jacob's) brother. Now, even though this was about 400 years after the time of Jacob and Esau, God considered them family. The Edomites are called "relatives" twice, (v. 4and 8). Then, God tells the Israelites that they are not to harass the Moabites (Deut. 2:9-18) or the Ammonites (Duet. 2:19-23) either. Well, who are Moab and Ammon? they are the sons that Lot had through incestuous relations with his daughters (Gen. 19:30-38). Ok, you can sort of understand the relationship between Israel and Edom, since their originators were brothers, but Moab and Ammon were Israel's grandfather's nephew's sons. So it is a stretch to say that they were second cousins of Israel. So why treat them as family? I don't know. Never-the-less, God had driven other nations out of this land and given these three nations their territories, and Israel could not have it.
These three nations that God was protecting were not particularly righteous, either. It was Moab that called Balaam to curse Israel (Num 22). Moabite women had seduced Israelite men and led them into immorality and sacrificing to others gods in Numbers 25. Moab, with the aid of Ammon, subjugated Israel in Judges 3, until Ehud rescued Israel. In I Samuel 14:47, all three nations are mentioned as enemies that King Saul had to fight. David had to fight them too. So for generations these nations harassed Israel, yet God had protected them. Why? I think I find the answer in Isa. 15:5. God says, "My heart cries out over Moab." Then in Isa. 16:11, "My heart laments for Moab." Even after all those years, God still loved Moab, and had been very patient with the nation, giving them every opportunity to repent. But they had not. Isaiah goes on to prophecy that the time of the Moabites was nearly over (Isa. 16:13-14). The Kingdom of Moab lasted about a thousand years. The Kingdom of Ammon lasted about 700 years. The Kingdom of Edom lasted about 1200 years. (Interestingly, Obadiah prophesied Edom's destruction, for rejoicing over the destruction of his brother Israel, Obad. 11-12. So even by the time of Obadiah, written several centuries after Moses, God still considered them family.)
So this brings me back to my initial question, "How patient am I required to be?" What does that mean for me, when some family member is getting on my nerves? Well, God has set an example of being patient with groups of unrighteous people for generations, even centuries. I suppose that I can be patient with my loved ones as long as I need to be.
Tom
Saturday, June 3, 2017
The Father Carries the Son
Hello everyone.
I have recently started a new study of the book of Deuteronomy. I hope to share with you some of the things I am learning along the way in this study. In Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people of all that had happened over the years since leaving Egypt, as he prepares them for the upcoming conquest of the Promised Land.
Today, I will be looking in Deut. 1:19-46. Moses retells the story from Numbers 13 and 14, where Moses sends twelve spies to explore the Promised Land. After their report, only Joshua and Caleb stand up and say, "we can take this land." The other ten give a discouraging report that the people buy into, and rebel against God, refusing to go up and take the Promised Land that God had given them. God punishes them for their lack of faith and their disobedience by making them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until that generation, save Joshua and Caleb, have died off.
Here is what I want to focus on. After the negative report of the ten spies, Israel responded like this, "The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt with fear. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky.'" Deut. 1:27-28) The Israelites looked at the situation, rather than God, and concluded that God must hate them. In verses 29 -31, Moses stands up for God and remind the nation of all that He had done for them, saying, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt before your very eyes and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
So, God is carrying them as a father carries his son, but they are saying to God, "You hate me." Maybe, your children have, at some difficult moment, perhaps when you are making them do something difficult, said that "You must hate me." It has happened to me. If it has happened to you, then you understand that nothing could be further from the truth. I don't hate my boys at all, I love them and want what is best for them. As parents, we are always looking out for their best interests, but that is not always the easy road that they would like it to be. In the heat of the moment our children can forget everything good we have ever done for them and focus on this one difficult moment and conclude, "You hate me!"
We can be the same way, We may look at our particular circumstances and be tempted to think, "God hates me," or "God is punishing me." But just like we care about our children deeply, God cares about us. The Israelites had forgotten very quickly all that God had done for them to bring them to the edge of the Promised Land. We must make sure that we don't forget all that God has done for us to bring us to the point that we are now. He has carried us this far, like a father carries a son, and He will continue to carry us into the Promised Land. What we view as punishment may be God's disciplining hand, but we can know for certain that God's loving concern is ever present and we have yet another opportunity for God to carry us through a difficult situation.
Tom
I have recently started a new study of the book of Deuteronomy. I hope to share with you some of the things I am learning along the way in this study. In Deuteronomy, Moses reminds the people of all that had happened over the years since leaving Egypt, as he prepares them for the upcoming conquest of the Promised Land.
Today, I will be looking in Deut. 1:19-46. Moses retells the story from Numbers 13 and 14, where Moses sends twelve spies to explore the Promised Land. After their report, only Joshua and Caleb stand up and say, "we can take this land." The other ten give a discouraging report that the people buy into, and rebel against God, refusing to go up and take the Promised Land that God had given them. God punishes them for their lack of faith and their disobedience by making them wander in the wilderness for forty years, until that generation, save Joshua and Caleb, have died off.
Here is what I want to focus on. After the negative report of the ten spies, Israel responded like this, "The Lord hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us. Where can we go? Our brothers have made our hearts melt with fear. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky.'" Deut. 1:27-28) The Israelites looked at the situation, rather than God, and concluded that God must hate them. In verses 29 -31, Moses stands up for God and remind the nation of all that He had done for them, saying, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt before your very eyes and in the wilderness. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
So, God is carrying them as a father carries his son, but they are saying to God, "You hate me." Maybe, your children have, at some difficult moment, perhaps when you are making them do something difficult, said that "You must hate me." It has happened to me. If it has happened to you, then you understand that nothing could be further from the truth. I don't hate my boys at all, I love them and want what is best for them. As parents, we are always looking out for their best interests, but that is not always the easy road that they would like it to be. In the heat of the moment our children can forget everything good we have ever done for them and focus on this one difficult moment and conclude, "You hate me!"
We can be the same way, We may look at our particular circumstances and be tempted to think, "God hates me," or "God is punishing me." But just like we care about our children deeply, God cares about us. The Israelites had forgotten very quickly all that God had done for them to bring them to the edge of the Promised Land. We must make sure that we don't forget all that God has done for us to bring us to the point that we are now. He has carried us this far, like a father carries a son, and He will continue to carry us into the Promised Land. What we view as punishment may be God's disciplining hand, but we can know for certain that God's loving concern is ever present and we have yet another opportunity for God to carry us through a difficult situation.
Tom
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