 “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.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. 3 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. 4 Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. 5 Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the Lord your God disciplines you. 6 So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. 7 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, 8 a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, 9 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. 10 And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.
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, 12 lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13 and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 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, 15 who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, 16 who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 17 Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ 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. 19 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. 20 Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God. Meditation God’s sovereign grace shepherds His people in every step of life, even in the wilderness. He shepherds in every wandering, wondering where life is taking us, wishing we were somewhere else, and in want for basic needs. God’s love is molding our soul so we find satisfaction in Him alone. Moses is motivated to remind Israel of wilderness lessons before entering the promised land: Remember God’s grace, obey God’s ways, and be fruitful and multiply (1). Remembering God’s grace humbles hearts to find soul satisfaction in Him, even in a land of blessing. The lessons Israel (should have) learned are simple to hear but difficult to live: Humility, heart health, and hungering for only God and His word (2-3). God has been faithful (4-6). God will be faithful (5-10). And Israel will be tempted to forget the Lord’s covenant faithfulness, hungering for the cultural gods and giving their hearts to them, in pride rejecting the Lord (11-20). The lessons the Lord teaches His people in the wilderness are to protect them in times of blessings. Jesus fends off the devil in His own wilderness days (using 8:3 in Matthew 4:1-4). “Man does not live on bread alone, but every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” God, His word, and His work are enough! Jesus models humility in having His heart molded in wilderness wandering before going to the cross to pay the penalty for those of us who do not. We must respond to His grace by embracing the lessons the Lord wants to teach us in the wilderness of life. Richly Dwelling -What stands out to you about the lessons of the wilderness (1-10) and the temptation to forget the Lord’s grace and provision, satisfying our souls in other places (11-20)? -When do you forget God’s grace and allow your heart to feast on things of this world, fueling pride and rejecting God and His word? -How does God’s grace compel you to not only learn wilderness lessons but also seek to find soul satisfaction only in God, His word, and His work? Key Verse 3 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. Comments are closed.
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