Day 78: Deuteronomy 24-27

Welcome to five minute Bible your daily guide for your daily reading today's March the 19th, and we'll be looking at Deuteronomy 24 through 27

Now today we continue Moses's covenant instructions to Israel as the nation prepares to enter the promised land

Deuteronomy 24 through 27 contains a wide range of laws that are governing things like family life and economic justice and covenant faithfulness

These chapters show that obedience to God is not confined to religious rituals

But it extends into the ordinary details of everyday life

Deuteronomy 24 begins with laws that regulate marriage and protect workers and defend the vulnerable and Moses even commands

Israel Not to take advantage of the poor the foreigner the widow or the orphan

Instead they are to remember their own history of slaves in Egypt and respond with compassion towards those in need even

Agricultural practices are shaped by generosity when harvesting crops the people are instructed to leave portions behind So that even the poor can come and gather food then

Deuteronomy 25 Continues with laws designed to maintain fairness and dignity within the community these

Commands address justice and legal disputes and business honesty and family

Responsibilities and the chapter concludes with a reminder of Israel's ancient enemy Amalek and the call to remember what they did to God's people in the wilderness

Then in Deuteronomy 26 we shift forward to a moment of worship when Israel settles in the land they are instructed to bring the first fruits of their harvest before the

Lord and to Publicly recount the story of God's deliverance From the suffering in Egypt to the gift of the promised land and then finally in Deuteronomy 27

Israel is prepared for covenant renewal Once they enter the land the law will be written on stones and the people will publicly affirm both the blessings of obedience

And the curses that follow disobedience and those will be laid out in vivid detail in Chapter 28, which we'll talk about tomorrow.

But as you read today, I want you to ask the following question How should people who have received

God's mercy? treat other people who are also in the community and Deuteronomy 24 through 27 shows us that gratitude for God's grace must overflow into justice and generosity towards others and the dominant theme in these chapters is remembered

Redemption produces righteous living Moses Repeatedly reminds the people that their behavior towards others should be shaped by their own history by their memory of what happened to them when they were once enslaved and Egypt and God delivered them and that memory is meant to guard their hearts against becoming oppressors and slave owners themselves and that pattern intersects directly with our life today because Gratitude for God's grace should reshape how we treat other people

Forgetting grace and forgetting where we came from in our sin leads us to pride and self -righteousness and exploitation but remembering grace produces humility and Compassion knowing that we too were forgiven of much great sin and in that way

Deuteronomy 24 through 27 ultimately points forward to Jesus because the Presentation of the firstfruits anticipates a greater offering that would one day come through the work of Christ Who's the first fruit of a new creation in the

New Testament? Jesus is described as the firstfruits guaranteeing a future Resurrection and restoration of his people of which he was the first to enter in and then these chapters also emphasize the public

Acknowledgement of God's saving acts Israel was instructed to retell the story of their redemption over and over and over again as they brought their offerings and the gospel fulfills this pattern as believers continually proclaim the greater

Deliverance accomplished through Christ and his rescue not merely from physical slavery

But from sin and death and we rehearse this same gospel week after week after week

Being a gospel people being a Memoring people being the people who remind ourselves of what

Jesus has done Continually so that we never forget So as you read Deuteronomy 24 through 27 today

I want you to notice how Moses calls the people to remember and to rehearse what

God has done memory protects future faithfulness and tomorrow We're gonna see how

Moses is gonna pronounce the blessings and the curses that are ultimately gonna define

Israel's future in the land and beyond and with that read your Bible carefully

Devotionally and joyfully and may the Lord use his word to sanctify you completely and we will continue our journey tomorrow