Week
#4: Remember and Don’t Forget!!!
Deuteronomy 8
Psalm 77:11-15 (ESV)
I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old. I will ponder all your work,
and meditate
on your mighty deeds.
Your way, O God, is holy.
What
god is great like our God?
You are the God who works wonders;
you have made known your might among the peoples.
You with your arm redeemed your
people,
the children of Jacob and Joseph.
Selah
How do you move into Canaan
without becoming a Canaanite?
Last
lesson, we talked about loving God and diligently teaching our children His
Law. These were vital instructions to follow and disciplines to maintain for
the Israelites as they faced the challenge of inhabiting a pagan land with a
pagan culture… We readily saw the application in our own lives as we are
surrounded by a pagan practice and a pagan culture ourselves.
According to the Jewish Study Bible notes for Deuteronomy
(p. 382): “The first issue is that Israel enters an already inhabited land,
whose greater population and worship apparatus it must confront. Thereafter,
successful habitation carries its own risks: complacency and loss of historical memory.”
A
recurring theme throughout the book of Deuteronomy is that of remembering and
not forgetting… The word remember is
mentioned some fourteen times in the
book of Deuteronomy. Over and over again, God says through Moses, “remember.” (In
addition, the words “do not forget” or “be careful lest you forget” occur 10
times.) In the Amplified Bible, the
wording is actually “earnestly remember.”
Deuteronomy 8:2-3 (AMP)
2 And you shall [earnestly] remember all the way which the
Lord your God led you these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and to
prove you, to know what was in your [mind and] heart, whether you would keep
His commandments or not.
3 And He humbled
you and allowed you to hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know
nor did your fathers know, that He might make you recognize and personally know that man does not
live by bread only, but man lives by every word that proceeds out of the mouth
of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 8:17-20 (AMP)
17 And beware lest
you say in your [mind and] heart, My power and the might of my hand have gotten
me this wealth.
18 But you shall [earnestly] remember the Lord your God,
for it is He Who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His
covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.
19 And if you forget
the Lord your God and walk after other gods and serve them and worship them, I
testify against you this day that you shall surely perish.
20 Like the nations
which the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you
would not obey the voice of the Lord your God.
So, if the big deal is to
remember, what are they to remember and how does that apply to you and me???
Initially, in chapter 8 we see a
few things right off the bat.
What are they to remember and not
forget?
Ø The Law, Commandments,
Rules, Statutes.
Ø The Whole Way in
the Wilderness.
Ø The Wondrous Deeds,
Mighty Acts of the LORD God.
However, throughout the book, there are
several things to be remembered that are specifically emphasized.
A. Coming Out
of the Wilderness…
First,
what to remember:
1.
“…you were are slave”
Ø Deuteronomy 5:15 You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord
your God brought you out from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm…
Ø Deuteronomy
15:15 You shall remember
that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you;
therefore I command you this today…
Ø Deuteronomy
16:12 You shall remember
that you were a slave in Egypt; and you shall be careful to observe these
statutes…
Ø Deuteronomy
24:18 but you shall remember
that you were a slave in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you from there;
therefore I command you to do this…
Ø Deuteronomy
24:22 You shall remember
that you were a slave in the land of Egypt; therefore I command you to do this…
Do YOU remember when you were a
slave?
You might say, “I was never a
slave!”
In Hebrews 2, the Bible says that
Christ defeated death and delivered us who were “subject to lifelong slavery.”
In Galatians 5, Paul writes that
Christ has set us free and so we should not “submit again to a yoke of
slavery.”
Even as a “good church girl,” I
realize that I was enslaved. I was enslaved to sin, my flesh, and the world.
The book of Deuteronomy cries out to me as well, don’t forget you WERE a slave.
2.
Do not forget “the
LORD who brought you out of Egypt…”
Ø Deuteronomy
6:12
then take care lest you forget
the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
slavery…
Ø Deuteronomy
8:14
then your heart be lifted up, and you forget
the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house
of slavery…
Ø Deuteronomy
16:3
… Seven days you shall eat it with unleavened bread, the bread of
affliction—for you came out of the land of Egypt in haste—that all the days of
your life you may remember the
day when you came out of the land of Egypt. (This
verse is in the context of celebrating the Passover Feast. Can you even imagine
what it was like at the FIRST Passover???)
These verses
carry a serious warning. In our vernacular, “Don’t get the idea along the way
that somehow you got here on your own, and by your own might you made this all
come together!!!”
This is huge for
you and me as well. Many times in our self-righteousness and self-sufficiency,
we get to thinking we’ve achieved these great and glorious feats because of our
goodness, our discernment, our might, etc… The truth is: we are NOTHING and
NOBODY to NOONE apart from the Sovereignty of Almighty God and the precious
blood of Jesus Christ. In contrast, our position IN Christ makes us valuable,
places us in royalty, and in right-standing with our Creator.
May we never
forget WHO brought us out of slavery, out of Egypt.
3.
”Remember the Commandments, the Covenant, the Law”
Ø Deuteronomy
4:23
Take care, lest you forget the
covenant of the Lord your God, which he made with you, and make a carved image,
the form of anything that the Lord your God has forbidden you.
Ø Deuteronomy
8:1
[Remember the Lord Your God] “The whole
commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may
live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the Lord swore to give
to your fathers.
Ø Deuteronomy
8:11
“Take care lest you forget the
Lord your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes,
which I command you today,
God made a
promise to Abraham, a covenant. He keeps His promises. This generation is
reaping the tangible benefits of that promise.
Under the New
Covenant, His promises are in Christ, and God the Father proves over and over
that He keeps His Word.
(Somebody shout hallelujah!!!)
2 Corinthians 1:20 (ESV)
For all the promises of God find their Yes in him.
That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.
4.
Remember the Wonders of the LORD God, His Mighty Deeds
Ø Deuteronomy
4:9
“Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the
things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all
the days of your life. Make them known to your
children and your children's children…
Ø Deuteronomy
7:18
you shall not be afraid of them but you shall remember what the Lord your God
did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt,
Ø Deuteronomy
8:2
And you shall remember the whole
way that the Lord your God has led you
these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to
know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.
Ø Deuteronomy
8:18
You shall remember the Lord your
God, for it is he who gives you power to get
wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as
it is this day.
God has led you.
God has provided for you. God grants me the power to ….do anything that is
good, have anything good, for anything to ever go right…
Memo to Self:
Don’t forget.
5.
Remember your History, your Past, your Heritage
Ø Deuteronomy
9:6-8 Know, therefore, that the Lord your God is not giving you this good
land to possess because of your righteousness, for you are a stubborn people.
Remember and do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the
wilderness. From the day you came out of the land of Egypt until you came to
this place, you have been rebellious against the Lord. Even at Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, and the Lord was so
angry with you that he was ready to destroy you.
Ø Deuteronomy
24:9
Remember what the Lord your God did to Miriam on the way as you came out of
Egypt.
Ø Deuteronomy
32:7
Remember the days of old; consider the years of many generations; ask your
father, and he will show you, your elders, and they will tell you…
God through Moses
doesn’t sugar coat a single item. He reminds them of their shortcomings, of
their errors; and of His judgment and discipline upon them. Then he says,
“Remember the days of old…ask your father, your elders…” Due diligence to
remember what happened before you came along…in the process, find out what your
responsibility is as you carry out your role in this family…!!!
Secondly: Why is it important to
NOT forget?
Then…how are they
– are we – to NOT
forget!!!
· If/When we
forget…we tend to downplay the miracles and provision of God.
· Thereby, we
diminish the glory of God and end up questioning why we believe Him, obey Him,
and worship Him.
· When we forget
God, His Promises and His Law, we forget our position without Him; ultimately
we will disobey and will be destroyed.
This reality
sends chills up my spine as it so vividly relates to our own modern culture and
current social philosophies. Our land is NOT the promised land nor are we as a
nation “God’s Chosen People,” however, the foundation of our government, the
intention of our forefathers was to worship God and God alone. How far we have
slipped…
And if you forget the Lord your God and
go after other gods and serve
them and worship them,
I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish.
B. Living In the Promised Land…
Productivity:
The Difference in the Promised Land.
There is work to be
done in the Promised Land.
ü
Diligence
ü
Discipline
ü
Determination
|
v
|
Reality Check for the Israelites
coming out of the Wilderness, going into the Promised Land…things would be
different:
o
The manna will not longer just appear outside their front
door every morning in the Promised Land.
o
The quail will not come out of nowhere in droves to be
captured and eaten in the Promised Land.
o
Their clothes and shoes, that did not wear out in the
desert, are going to need to be replaced.
o
Why???
Deuteronomy 8:3-4 (ESV)
And he humbled you and let you
hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers
know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but
man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Your clothing did
not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years.
There is
work to be done, gardens to tend.
There is
work to do.
There is
wheat to grind, vines to tend to, and olives to press.
Productivity.
Deuteronomy
8:7-10 (ESV)
For the Lord your God is bringing
you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs,
flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat
and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates,
a land of olive trees and honey, a land in
which you will eat bread without scarcity,
in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord
your God for the good land he has given you.
Sometimes, we get the idea that…
·
“the problem is that I’m just in a wilderness…” And the
rest of us are looking at you thinking, “a wilderness that is lasting
forever…???”
·
Then, we get to thinking that we “just need to get to the
Promised Land.” We think that it will all come together, and life can be easy
or just less painful…not so hard.
·
Truth of the matter, there’s work to do in the Promised
Land.
Truth is, God never intended for the
Israelites
to stay in the wilderness forever
just so He could say,
“I brought you out of slavery!
Isn’t that enough?”
It’s obvious that to keep them in
the desert was not His supreme goal because He kept pursuing them, teaching
them, giving them rules and guidelines, instructions and laws. Had He been finished
once they crossed the Red Sea, why would He have cared to do anything else, say
anything else…?
He
brought them out to take them in.
Deuteronomy
6:23 (ESV)
And he
brought us out from there, that he might
bring us in and give us the land that he swore to give to our fathers.
Application to us:
As we live out our Christian life,
our calling, our place in The Body;
we must be working diligently,
being productive;
and not just satisfied to be “out
of Egypt” or “out of the wilderness.”
Jesus said, The Truth will set you
free. (John 8)
You’re free from slavery.
You’re free from Egypt.
You’re free from the
wilderness…why you still wandering around???
· Before going any farther, I want to be
clear about something… As believers, we will indeed go through wilderness
seasons in our walk with Christ. I’ve experienced these times. Please know I
understand if you are facing an insurmountable obstacle, a wilderness beyond
your control…I pray the Lord God Almighty will make His Presence known to you
in a very tangible way. Be assured, this is NOT the type of wilderness I’m
speaking of…
·
Some
times in our lives, we seem to “seek” the wilderness; wanting a pity party more
than obedience to God’s instructions for our lives and sometimes, we have made
our own wilderness…if you get what I’m saying. THESE are the types of
wildernesses I speak of…
What’s to be done in the Promised Land of
our calling and our place in the Body of Christ, our ministry…???
2
Peter 3:9-14 (ESV)
The Lord is not slow to fulfill
his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that
any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief,
and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will
be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it
will be exposed. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to
be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and
hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be
set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But
according to his promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in
which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you are waiting for these, be diligent to be
found by him without spot or blemish, and at peace.
2
Peter 1:3-8 (ESV)
His
divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the
knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has
granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you
may become partakers of the divine nature,
having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful
desire. For this very reason, make every effort to supplement
your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with
self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with
godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with
love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge
of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Hebrews
6:10-12 (ESV)
For
God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for
his name in serving the saints, as you still do. And we desire each one of
you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of
hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of
those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Hebrews
6:10-12 (AMP)
For God is not unrighteous to forget or overlook your labor and the love which you
have shown for His name’s sake in ministering to the needs of the saints (His
own consecrated people), as you still do. But we do [strongly and earnestly]
desire for each of you to show the same
diligence and sincerity
[all the way through] in realizing and
enjoying the full assurance and
development of [your] hope until the end,
In order that you may not grow disinterested and become [spiritual] sluggards, but imitators, behaving as do those who
through faith (by their leaning of the entire personality on God in Christ in
absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness) and by
practice of patient endurance and
waiting are [now] inheriting the promises.
To conclude, the challenge for the
children of Israel as they entered the Promised Land was to not forget from
where they came; to not forget who they were; to remember the faithful promises
of the Faithful Most High God; and to be productive in that place…
Sounds pretty clear and applicable to you
and me in our lives, where we are…
Homework this week:
1.
In
Philippians 4:13-16, the Apostle Paul challenges us to forget what is behind us
and strive for what lies ahead. How does this passage agree with the Deuteronomy
theme of remembering the past and not forgetting our history? Is the Bible
conflicted here? (Hint: No, the Bible is not conflicted.)
2.
In
Galatians 5:1, the Apostle Paul talks about how Christ has set us free. Then,
he says, “do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” Can you see how the children
of Israel struggled time and time again to not put on that Egyptian yoke of
slavery? Explain your thought process.
3.
In
Joshua 4, the children of Israel are about to face the walls of Jericho. First,
they must cross the Jordan River. As they do this, they take up twelve stones
to build a memorial of this event and their previous history. Why does God
through Joshua’s leadership have them to build this memorial out of the stones?
Do you have a memorial that you can point to?
Be blessed. I am sincerely grateful that you’re even here…!!!
Who’d have thought it feasible!!!???
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