Chapter 11
Deuteronomy 11:1 Therefore thou shalt love the LORD thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway.
There’s that word alway again. It’s not all ways. It’s all the way. Jesus said I am the way. There’s not a bunch of ways to keep God’s statutes, judgements, and commandments. There’s one way. And that is God’s way. Like wise, Jesus did not promise that he’d be with us all ways. He did however promise that he’d be with us all the way. God promised to be with us in his way, not our ways. He said except ye abide in the vine ye cannot bear fruit.
Deuteronomy 11:12 A land which the LORD thy God careth for: the eyes of the LORD thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.
I think it’s amazing how God takes care of the land, or in this day the economy, our business, our livelihood. It’s certainly not our great business sense or sales tactics. It’s just the grace of God customers keep walking in the door. Amen!
Stopped here Sunday Morning. Jeremy preached on this verse this morning. Spooky.
Deuteronomy 11:16 Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them;
Why do we act like this ain’t possible. This is the one thing that God was extremely concerned about with the children of Israel, but now we act like this ain’t possible. We give it lip service regarding idolatry.
Deuteronomy 11:20 And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates:
I’d really like to try this.
Deuteronomy 11:26 Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse;
God gives us a choice in this life. A or B. 0 or 1. Yes or No. Good or Bad.
Deuteronomy 11:30 Are they not on the other side Jordan, by the way where the sun goeth down, in the land of the Canaanites, which dwell in the champaign over against Gilgal, beside the plains of Moreh?
Champaign? Champagne? I thought maybe there might be a New Year’s Message here.
In the Arabah? open level countryside
Actually verse 29 is pretty interesting. Put the blessing upon mount Gerizim, and the curse upon mount Ebal? Put the blessing. Put the curse? Huh?
Chapter 12
Deuteronomy 12:3 And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place.
Overthrow, break, burn, hew down, destroy! That’s a list huh?
Here’s another one: Altars, pillars, groves, graven images, names.
Deuteronomy 12:6 And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks:
Burnt offerings, sacrifices, tithes, heave offerings, vows, freewill offerings, firstlings.
Your vows. That’s a New Years things right there.
Deuteronomy 12:12 And ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God, ye, and your sons, and your daughters, and your menservants, and your maidservants, and the Levite that is within your gates; forasmuch as he hath no part nor inheritance with you.
Do you have a Levite within your gate? Could this be a picture of Jesus your intercessor or Holy Ghost your intercessor. In your gate. What’s in your gate? You better make sure you have a Levite in there somewhere. Without that Levite, no sacrifice, no holy things.
Deuteronomy 12:15 Notwithstanding thou mayest kill and eat flesh in all thy gates, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee: the unclean and the clean may eat thereof, as of the roebuck, and as of the hart.
Deuteronomy 12:22 Even as the roebuck and the hart is eaten, so thou shalt eat them: the unclean and the clean shall eat of them alike.
When I first read these, I thought that God was saying they could eat unclean animals. But no, He’s saying that clean and unclean people can eat. Reminds me of the question about the Passover. There was a question earlier about whether or not unclean can celebrate Passover. Well, they could. Passover trumps unclean.
Deuteronomy 12:30 Take heed to thyself that thou be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before thee; and that thou enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
This is much like Deut 11:16. Nobody does this today. (sarcasm) We’re not guilty of this. No everybody is just holy (Korah) and loves God and is faithful to God. No idolaters here.
Chapter 13
Deuteronomy 13:3 Thou shalt not hearken unto the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams: for the LORD your God proveth you, to know whether ye love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
There’s a time for a prophet. (The prophets) There’s a time for a dreamer of dreams. (Joseph and Pentecost)
Deuteronomy 13:6 If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers;
Mark 10:29 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s,
Sometimes family just doesn’t want to come along. Don’t wait for them.
Chapter 14
Deuteronomy 14:1 Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead.
I’ve told my wife several times not to cut the hear between my eyebrows when she’s giving me a haircut. Now I have a scripture to back me up. I told her about it and she said, “It says for the dead!”
Deuteronomy 14:24-26 And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: (25) Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: (26) And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,
I’m too sick to think of this right now.
Chapter 15
Deuteronomy 15:6 For the LORD thy God blesseth thee, as he promised thee: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow; and thou shalt reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over thee.
Lend and don’t borrow. Good advice. Good sign of God’s blessings.
Deuteronomy 15:7-8 If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates in thy land which the LORD thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thine heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother: (8) But thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth.
The poor and the stranger. God is very considerate of them. Are we? Of course we’re not. Lend him sufficient for his need. Is $2.00 sufficient? Of course it’s not.
Deuteronomy 15:9 Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him nought; and he cry unto the LORD against thee, and it be sin unto thee.
Sad. This is exactly what I thought when I read about the release of the 7th year. I thought, nobody is going to lend money on the 6th year.
Deuteronomy 15:20 Thou shalt eat it before the LORD thy God year by year in the place which the LORD shall choose, thou and thy household.
Passover. Year after year.