Tag: inherit

Deuteronomy: The Second Giving Of The Law (X)

Why Israel Was Inheriting The Land (9:1-29)

Neal Pollard

The challenge was formidable! The inhabitants still included giants and their fortifications were still high and impregnable (1-2). How would they do it? More to the point, why should they anticipate that it would happen? 

The power and promise of God (3-4a,5). He builds on something he has just said,  “But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day” (8:18). God would be a consuming fire destroying, subduing and driving the natives out of the land (3-4). They could believe this because God had sworn it with an oath to their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (5; Gen. 12:7). The ark of the Lord would go ahead of them as they invaded Canaan (Josh. 3:11). Consider the prayer the weeping prophet would pray, thinking back to this moment in history, when his people faced a self-induced crisis (read Jeremiah 32:17-22). 

The wickedness of the Canaanites (4-5). God makes a point of it to say that the conquest was not a matter of Israel’s meritorious goodness. He warned against such self-righteousness. He corrects the mindset, stating, “It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you” (5). Genesis 15:16 had predicted this day would come. Now it was time. Even today, we are saved “not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5). This should humble us and combat any self-righteousness on our part. 

The righteousness of God (6). This is implied by Moses’ three-fold use of “righteousness” (4,5,6), when the people are told it was not because of their righteousness. The word means “the state of doing what is required according to a standard, the state or condition of fairly deciding what is right in a legal case, without prejudice, and the state of not having any sin or its associated guilt, according to a standard” (Swanson, DBL, np). This does not describe man at his best, much less the conduct of Israel from the moment they left Egypt. Instead, God’s faithful character was bringing this conquest about. They needed to never forget that. Through Christ, we are made the righteousness of God through Him (2 Cor. 5:21). We have no basis to establish our own righteousness (Rom. 10:1ff). Isaiah would describe our righteous deeds, at best, as “filthy garments” (64:6). 

The intercession of Moses (7-29). What a powerful illustration we have in the bulk of this chapter. Moses reviews how they provoked the Lord to wrath, from Mount Sinai through these 40 years in the wilderness (7-8). They were rebellious against God (7,24). They acted corruptly and turned aside (12). They were stubborn and fit for destruction (13-14). They sinned against God (16). They were wicked (27). They needed to clearly understand this to grasp why they were alive to hear this impassioned sermon. In addition to the character of God already mentioned, there was the righteous intercession of their godly, earthly leader. Moses pleaded with God on their behalf. What did he do?

  • He fell down before the Lord (18).
  • He fasted for 40 days and nights (18).
  • He prayed for Aaron and the people (19-20,26).
  • He destroyed what offended God (21). 
  • He appealed to God’s goodness and promises (27-29).

Consider how wonderful it is to know that godly people are praying for us. Many times throughout the years, I have bowed my head in meetings with elders where they prayed earnestly on behalf of their sheep who struggled physically, financially, emotionally, and spiritually. This is in addition to their private petitions. What about the godly women, older and younger, whose ministry includes intercessory prayer? How much have we been spared and what floodgates of blessings have been opened to us because of the righteous prayers of others on our behalf (Jas. 5:16)? Thank God for godly Christians who steadfastly pray for their brethren, for you and me (1 Th. 5:17). May we be people who do that for others, too! 

Proud Of My Father 

Dale Pollard

I was cleaning out the basement and found a box of old photos. You know the kind of photos I’m talking about. Cheesy, dated, and awkward family photos. There was a reason we had them hidden in the darkest corner of our house. They weren’t worthy to be put on display, but they were also too precious to merely throw away. As I flipped through them, I stumbled across some ancient photos of my dad. In one picture he had an afro and this corny smile on his face. In another picture, my dad was standing by an old pickup truck wearing a long and baggy cut-off T- shirt. He had 80’s frame glasses on with large lenses, and a truckers hat that barely sat on his head.

To most people, those were embarrassing pictures. To most people, those were things that I should hang my head in shame over. But you know, all I felt was pride. I was so proud of who I came from, and as weird as he looked, I sat there defending his fashion choices in my mind. I’m proud to be the grandson of a preacher and the son of a preacher. But, there is nothing that fills me with more pride than the fact that I am a child of God.

There are so many reasons that I’m proud of that fact, but here is the main reason… because He loves me more than I deserve. Our sins put Christ on the cross. It was my sin problem that made Jesus cry out in agony, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46). When we commit sin, we are participating in the very thing that Christ came to die for. And yet, despite all of that, my God loves me. My Father has still taken me in. He has shown unconditional love, a love stronger than any mortal could show. My Heavenly Father has offered salvation, the forgiveness of sins, and a hope of eternal glory.

I’m proud to be a child of God.

Dale is the associate minister of the Forrest Park church of Christ in Valdosta, Georgia. 

12994291_1083102885061776_4387252032365377566_n1910258_48188995921_7802_n10509496_10152319491430922_7847742518867276869_n