LifeWay Explore the Bible Series for February 19: Be repentant

As I was meditating on our passage this week, I considered that Deuteronomy often can read like the instructions on the back of household products—products like spray paint.

There are passages that tell about the proper application and use the product: Clean the surface; deploy at the right distance; use in a well-ventilated area; paint with long, quick strokes for even coverage.

Then there are warning passages about what not to do: do not inhale; not for human consumption; do not spray in eyes or mouth.

Finally, there are instructions for what to do when you have done what you should not have done. These instructions are listed under “first aid.” These are guidelines from the manufacturer to those who do what they have been told not to do. The manufacturers provides these first-aid instructions because they know accidents happen, and because they know someone somewhere will wonder what paint tastes like.
    
Deuteronomy 30 is a first-aid kind of passage. Verse 1 implies that at some point in the future, the nation will have experienced not only the blessings of obedience but also the curses of disobedience. God anticipates they will forsake the faith and remove themselves from divine protection. They will do what God told them not to do, and they will experience the consequences. Now what? Can there still be hope for those who have stumbled and fallen?
    
The Divine Manufacturer says, “Yes.” There is still hope for the fallen. They should read this first-aid passage and take the message to heart. Hope begins with a return. Verse 2 begins, “when you and your children return to the Lord your God.” This is the first step in the healing process. It is often the hardest.
    
The difficulty in the first step does not lie with God or God’s ability to forgive or restore. Instead, the difficulty lies with us.

Two primary issues trip us up. First is the issue of pride. We think we should be able to make ourselves better without any help. Most of us have drunk deeply from the American culture of self-sufficiency. But this problem is beyond us. It is a covenant problem. It is a relational problem. In order for the relationship to be restored, we must turn back to the One to whom we are relating. It will do us no good to turn to ourselves thinking we can restore our relationship with God.

That would be like me trying to improve communication with my wife by talking more and more to myself. We must set aside our pride and return to the true object of our relationship.

The other issue that may hinder our return is guilt. We may have a keen appreciation for our failure. It may be so keen, in fact, that we cannot see how our failure can be overcome. The problem is too large for us. The mistake too great. The hurt too deep. We do not see how or why God can forgive and restore us.

Here again, though, we are seeing the situation wrongly. We may not be able to see the solution to our problem. We may not be able to grasp the how and why of forgiveness, but these are not ours to grasp. It is enough that God sees the solution. It is enough that God has reasons and ability enough to do what he promises. Our responsibility is not to map out the path of restoration. God only asks us to return—to turn again to the life-giving, love-giving God who wishes to bless us beyond our ability to comprehend.

The proof of our return is our obedience. The second half of verse 2 says, “and obey him with all your heart and with all your soul.” As in the familiar New Testament passage: “faith, by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead” (James 2:17), God is instructing Israel that their return must be more than intellectual assent. God is interested in more than their minds. Their relationship with him should seep into every part of their lives. Every word should be flavored by the relationship. Every action sustained by it. Every other relationship, pursuit, endeavor and goal guided by it. This is the mark of return.
    
No doubt many in your class will easily relate to the passage this week. They once lived vibrant, faith-fueled lives, but they have drifted away. Some did so willingly. Some did so accidentally. However it happened, they have found themselves in places that are dry and distant from God. They know they have made a mistake. They desire to know: now what?

This is a passage of hope for them. The same God who anticipated the rebellion of Israel and made provision for their return has made provision for our return as well. It begins with our turning back to the God who loves us. It is marked by obedience to God’s commands. God tells us that this plan of restoration is “not too difficult” for us (Deuteronomy 30:11).

It all begins with a choice, and today is a good day to make that choice. “This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life” (Deuteronomy 30:19).