Day 74: Deuteronomy 11-13

Welcome to 5-Minute Bible, your daily guide for your daily reading. Today's March the 15th and we'll be looking at Deuteronomy 11 -13. Now today we continue listening to Moses' final sermons as Israel prepares to cross the Jordan River.

The wilderness years are behind them and the promised land now lies before them. But before they enter, Moses is going to press into an urgent message for the heart of the people of Israel. Deuteronomy 11 -13 then moves from encouragement to warning.

Remembering God’s Faithfulness Before Entering the Land

Moses reminds Israel of the mighty works of God, the ones that he's done for them time and time again. And then he prepares them for the spiritual battle that is going to await them when they get to the land.

And the central issue in these passages is allegiance. Israel must choose whether they will love the Lord who redeemed them and brought them out of the land of Egypt or whether they will follow the gods of the surrounding nations.

Now, Deuteronomy 11 begins with a call to remember God's past faithfulness. If you'll remember, yesterday was all about remembering as well, which tells us that remembering is quite important. Moses reminds the people of the powerful events that they witnessed during their journey.

The plagues in Egypt, the crossing of the Red Sea, the Lord's provision through the wilderness. These weren't distant historical stories, but they were experiences that shaped the nation's total national identity.

And because of what God has done, Israel is called to love him, to obey his commandments, to teach his word diligently to their children. And then Moses explains that their future in the land will depend upon ongoing loyalty to God.

Obedience is going to bring blessings while disobedience is going to bring judgment. Now, Moses then introduces a dramatic covenant ceremony that's going to take place once Israel enters the land. The nation is going to stand between two mountains, Mount Gerizim and Mount Ebal, where blessings and curses are going to be proclaimed over them.

And this moment will publicly declare that Israel's future depends upon their faithfulness to God. Then Deuteronomy 12 and 13 then warn about the greatest spiritual dangers that are awaiting them in the land of Canaan, which is pagan worship sites.

Rejecting Idolatry and False Worship in Canaan

There on every hill and every valley in Israel must destroy these altars and refuse to imitate the worship practices of the surrounding nations, lest they fall into great and terrible peril. Instead, they must worship the Lord their God in the ways that he commands and only in the ways that he commands.

Deuteronomy 13 then intensifies this warning. Even if a prophet or a family member or an entire city attempt to lead Israel towards another God, the people must refuse and loyalty to Yahweh must be stronger than every other influence.

So as you read today, I want you to ask the following question. What will ultimately determine the direction of our life? Will it be God's word or will it be the voices and the influences that are vying for our attention all around us?

Deuteronomy 11 through 13 shows us that there's a difference between blessing and destruction, and that difference is allegiance. And the central pattern in these chapters is the battle for the heart of the covenant people.

See, Moses understands that Israel's greatest threat is not going to be a military defeat, but spiritual compromise. The cultures surrounding them are saturated with idolatry and sexual immorality and even the sacrificing of children.

And those practices are going to constantly pressure the nation of Israel to abandon God in order to serve these demonic gods. And in that way, the pattern of this passage reveals something universal about the human heart because idolatry rarely begins in open rejection to God.

More often it enters through quiet influence, relationships, gradual compromise, and it keeps going on from there. Moses, therefore, calls the people to guard their heart carefully from the beginning before even a single inch of drift has occurred.

Faithfulness to God in that way cannot coexist with divided loyalties or allegiances. And in that way, these chapters ultimately point forward to Jesus because the call to love God with all of your heart, soul, mind, and strength and to reject all other competing influences and allegiances reaches its fullest expression in the life of Christ because Jesus demonstrates perfect covenant faithfulness and he remains completely devoted to the Father in all purity, sincerity, and truth in every circumstance imaginable.

Christ’s Perfect Covenant Faithfulness and the New Covenant Heart

When Israel repeatedly struggled with divided loyalty, Christ remained unwavering in his obedience to the very end. And he also exposes the false teachers by confronting spiritual deception and he establishes his kingdom on earth which is grounded not only in truth but in loyalty and obedience.

That's why Jesus tells us, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. So throughout his life, death, and resurrection, Christ is actually forming a people around him by the Spirit indwelling inside of them whose allegiance is no longer sustained by the external law of God but by the law of God that is going to be written on their hearts.

So as you read Deuteronomy 11 -13 today, I want you to notice how seriously Moses is going to be treating this issue of worship. The spiritual health of the nation is not a minor concern. It will rise and fall based upon the God in whom they serve.

And tomorrow we're going to see how Moses is going to continue to explain the law that is going to shape Israel's daily life once they finally settle into the promised land. 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.

God bless you.