Lessons

Deut. 8:17-18

Beware lest you say in your heart, My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth. 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.

 

Does God have a reason for all He does? Most certainly, and I think the 'why' of any situation is an often asked question. Most people want to know why God has done what He has done in their lives. It is as if knowing why validates what has happened. In Deut 8, Moses does give some reasons why.

 

To know what is in your heart 

In v. 2 it says, 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.  For Israel testing provided an excellent proving ground. God used this walk to see if they would follow and obey His commands. Sadly, they did not. The original group did not go into the promised land. They did not pass the test, but rebelled against all the words of the Lord, testing Him and loving idols.. However, their children were the ones who would listen to God and obey His commands. For us, if all is rosy and no pressure is applied, our character and resolve are weak or even sadly missing. In fact that is even true in a worldly setting. Adversity builds strength. In the life of a Christian trials come. Often they are hard and difficult to endure, and knowing why seems to be illusive. But here is an answer. In the times of long trials, even a wilderness walk, God is wanting to know what is in our hearts. Will we obey even in this? When push comes to shove will His words and our relationship to Him still be the most important thing in our lives?

 

To live by the Word

In v. 3 it says, 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. This long, extended trial was so they could see if they valued the word the Lord. For us today, when things get hard in food, shelter, possessions, prestige, etc., do we get discouraged, or do we realize the most important thing is the word of God. God humbled Israel, and He does so with us as well. Unless we are humbled we think all we have is our own doing, but when all is gone, we can clearly see that God's hand is behind all we do or think.

 

Discipline

 

In v. 4 it says, Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. Know than in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the Lord your God disciplines you.

 

To teach Israel the right way, he disciplined them, The same goes for us. He wants us to listen to His words and obey them. So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord you God by walking in His ways and by fearing Him. Amazingly, in all these years, it hasn't changed. We need to obey His word, walk in His way, and fear Him. When we do that, then we are taking care not to claim the credit for how God has blessed our lives. My life is not fueled by my power and the might of my hand. If there is wealth, He gave it. If there is an blessing, it is all because of Him.

 

Father,

Thank You for these reasons and these lessons. Help and strengthen me to walk in Your way, obeying all Your words. Show me how to live by Your words alone.

In Jesus name,

Amen