December 31, 2001

Explore the Bible Series for Jan. 6, 2002

EXPLORE THE BIBLE:
Remember God
____Deuteronomy 7:7-9, 17-18; 8:2-3, 7-10
___By Dr. Pete Freeman
___First Baptist Church, The Woodlands
___You can see almost anything on television today; everything from respectable porno to popular religion. Either of these should bother any believer with any kind of biblical ethic and integrity at all. For both are violations of the dignity for which God originally created them. The former is viewed as being especially perverted and is obvious to the most liberal of observers. The latter is viewed as mildly perverted and is less obvious to most observers. This is especially true of the "health, wealth, and prosperity" perversions of the gospel. They have led many to view faith as a guarantee from God that their lives will be filled only with goodness and success in life. They imply that whenever a Christian has sickness or financial difficulties they are lacking in sufficient faith or lacking in a righteousness that impresses God. Nothing could be farther from the biblical truth!
___Moses wanted his people and we today to understand that God is faithful and can be trusted to help and bless His people regardless of circumstances. The goodness of God toward His people is primarily based on His love for them. When we place Deuteronomy 7:7-9 in the context of the first six verses of chapter seven, we might see a contradiction of thought. In those verses, God seems to be portrayed as an unloving God. The people are instructed to "show no mercy" to captured people and to "adopt an isolationist stance toward outsiders." The Disciple Study Bible comments on these verses, "God had to first establish His uniqueness in the minds and hearts of His people before He could clarify the basic nature of the loving, unique God."
___This leads the writer to conclude that the "choice of the Jews" was not based on some kind of quality or virtue Israel possessed, but upon the nature of God’s love (7:9a). Furthermore, he refers to His relationship with them as a "covenant of love." Such love is expressed in a reciprocal relationship that will endure many generations to come (7:9b).
___Note that the Lord is not asking that His people be without sin or close to perfection in order to be blessed. He is simply asking that they maintain a loving relationship with Him (7:9c). Possessing a loving relationship with God means that our individual intent is to do our best in being faithful to that relationship. And because we know He loves us and we love Him, we don’t spend our ever-wakening moments in fear of "making a mistake" or of being afraid "He will quit loving us."
___My wife, Gloria, and I will be married 37 years in January. We pledged our love for each other without ever giving any consideration that it would ever be any different. And it hasn’t been. Now, she could write a voluminous book me and entitle it "Everything You Wanted To Know About How Stupid A Husband Can Be" and make a lot of money. But, in spite of my failures and our tough times together, she still loves me. As a matter of fact, the other day she told me she was crazy about me.
___Such love is expressed in confidence that God will always come through for us. Moses reminds his people in verse 18 to remember "well what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt." Therefore, verses 13-15 should not be taken as a personal "health, wealth, and prosperity" promise but as a promise to the nation of Israel. Before we claim a personal promise from God, we must make sure the promise applies to our particular situation. Remember that the Lord was raising up a covenant people who were to be a redemptive blessing to all nations.
___Once again we must address the issue of the kingdom of God. We live in the environment of egocentric Christianity in America. That is why the "health and wealth" gospel is so popular. We need to be reminded the kingdom is not about us; it is about God! Jesus’ example of servant hood and suffering is to be our model, not that of pop theology. Therefore, we have confidence that no matter what our circumstances in life, God will come through on our behalf in accordance with His kingdom purpose (II Corinthians 4:7-9).
___Within the context of God’s love and blessings, we find a lesson about "discipline" (8:2-3). The discipline of God is to be understood as a blessing, not a punishment. Discipline accordingly was designed to help the Israelites "understand the importance of hearing and heeding the Lord’s commands." The implication is that such discipline might result in the Lord’s allowing His people to endure hardships and difficult times. If properly understood, discipline can be a time of tremendous growth in faith. Like a father who disciplines his son, our God disciplines us in a way that magnifies His love for us.
___One of my grandsons, Harrison, asked me why I constantly reminded him to say "yes sir and no sir." I responded, "Well, it’s good for both you and the person you’re saying it to. It shows respect." Furthermore, I said, "the reason I constantly remind you about it is help you not to forget it."
___Moses uses the law of repetition in verse ten. He reminds them to "praise the Lord your God for the land He has given you." This wasn’t the first or the last time he would remind them of the importance of "giving God he credit for their blessings."

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