In Your Heart

Deuteronomy 29: 29

The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but the things revealed belong to us, that we may observe all the words of this Law.

All that we don't know yet, God knows. The things we've been able to know, through God's revealing them to us or through scientific study of this Earth and the Universe it's in, belong to us, to use for our benefit. 

God has given us life that lives through our physical bodies; when this life leaves our bodies, we're dead. That spiritual part of us is what uses our brains to think and have emotions and a will to decide. None of these things are physical. Dead bodies don't think, emote, or choose. They don't do anything. 

So where should we go to learn what we need to know to prosper? I want to prosper in every way--emotionally, physically, relationally, intelligently, and especially spiritually. And even a little financially. 

30: 14 

But the Word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it.

We don't have to travel, or enroll in some University, or get on the internet around the world to know what we need to do to live our lives--our own consciences, if they are trained properly, can lead us, but are they trustworthy? What if they are deceiving us? Our own hearts lie to us (Jeremiah 17:9).

But God can never lie or be mistaken. We can fully trust what He says. And His Word is given to us to guide our hearts and train our consciences. His ways for us are simple, but not easy. When we're thinking properly, they make sense. 

God wants to bless us. He wants us to live our lives in harmony and prosperity. He's told us how to think (Philippians 4:5-8) so we can reason along with Him; He's given us His Love so that we can love Him back and love one another (I Corinthians 13); and this Love underlies all the rules, commandments, and precepts, so we can understand the principles and how to apply the knowledge we have. He's given us freely everything we need to know to do, and the strength and ability to do it. And He's given us all the foods we need naturally in this Earth, so we can nourish our bodies into good health, prospering physically. 

So all we need is already there in our hearts. Now we need to "pay attention" and "be careful" to actually observe these ways, and live them in our daily lives. By practicing these things, we can form new habits, to do what is right instead of our old ways of messing up. Whenever we're not paying attention, we can easily slide back into old, unproductive ways. We have to put forth the effort and persevere in doing what we know is right. 

John wrote, For all that is in the World, the lust of the flesh [sensuality], the lust of the eyes [materialism, accumulating things], and the pride of life [reputation, popularity], is not of the Father, but is of the World (I John 2:16). Any or all three of these things can be idols to us, drawing us away from the pure joys of His ways. 

Whatever we consider first in our thinking and our choices is our god. If I consider my own pleasure before any other consideration, then I am my own god. If I think first of what people will think of me, then pride is my god. If I want more money and things, then I will never have enough money and things, and materialism is my god. None of these will ever satisfy me, they are all just tools, not ends in themselves. I am to use the tools I have, in seeking to do what I perceive to be right. 

I need to pay attention to what God has taught me so far, and be "in the moment" to not slide into any error or mistake that "misses the mark" (sin). And I hope you too, dear reader, will seek His wisdom to know what is right for you to do, so you can prosper in every way, also.

And because God has planned it to work out that way, then He will receive all the credit when it does work out. And we will get the benefits, and He will get the glory.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

God's Reputation And Promises

Deuteronomy 9: 7-29

In Verses 7-24 Moses recounts all the things the people did to anger the Lord while they were in the desert.

And Verses 25-29 tell us that God got angry enough to destroy them, and offered Moses the opportunity to found another Nation! But Moses interceded for them, to remember the Patriarchs and to consider His own reputation.

V. 28 

Otherwise, the land from which Thou dost bring us may say, "Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which He had promised them and because He hated them He has brought them out to slay them in the wilderness."

God will always safeguard His own reputation, and He will always keep His promises. 

Moses knew God, so he knew He would listen to this prayer, and answer.

If I know God and understand His ways, then I'll know what God wants for me, and that He can give me what He wants me to have (an if-then proposition); He will always answer those prayers. 

I don't bargain with God, I don't threaten Him, I don't do any of the manipulative manuvers people try in order to get what they want. I only want what He wants for me, because I know it would be much better for me than anything I would think of. 

Even if it means I will be going through hard times or grief or some other disaster in the mean time, because I trust Him through anything He would allow me to face. He will strengthen me, and carry me through it all. And the Joy of the Lord will be my strength.

I know that God will direct all the affairs of this World to complete all His purposes for this Earth, and He has given me a small role, a bit part, in this great Theatre. 

And He will be praised for all He has done.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Manna And Clothing

Deuteronomy 8: 3-5

He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.

Jesus quoted this verse in response to Satan's tempting. This manna was not anything this Earth produces. God sent it miraculously to the Hebrews in the Desert (Matthew 4:4). Psalm 78:23-25 tells us that this was "the grain of Heaven; men ate the bread of Angels."

Moses also ate this manna. He tells the people that God sent it to teach them that life comes not from what we eat, but from what comes from the mouth of God, His Word, which is Spirit.

Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.

I'll bet that the people didn't even notice this detail: they wore the same clothes every year, and their sandals didn't wear out for forty years! Same old, same old, never needed replacing. 

Know then in your heart that as a man disciplines his son, so the Lord your God disciplines you.

Feeding them, not letting their clothes wear out; this is discipline? We think of discipline as more or less punishment, but this sounds more like the academic definition, which is, Teaching. 

Observe the commands of the Lord your God, walking in His ways and revering Him.

The conclusion here is for them to learn to apply God's commands in their lives and thinking processes, and to consider only God to be deserving of reverence, adoration, and worship. He alone is God. He alone is our Source. He loves us with a love that is deeper, wider, longer, higher than any other imaginable love. That's why He is the only one who merits our honor and obedience. 

And when we obey His ways, we will receive the effects--the benefits of what He's built into this World system. And he gets all the glory.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Not Because

Deuteronomy 9: 4-6

After the Lord has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, "The Lord has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness." No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is going to drive them out before you. 

It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations the Lord your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. 

Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people. 

God is making very clear to these Hebrews that God is not doing this for them because they deserve it, because they don't; they are a "stiff-necked people." But they are not wicked like the people who live there. 

God wanted them to eradicate those societies that practiced all kinds of disgusting and dangerous rites in worshipping their idols. He didn't want them to learn to do any of these horrible practices. 

Because He loves His people, He wants them to live their lives to be healthy in every way, and prosperous in every way. That's why He gave them His Law.

We have the record of what happened when they followed the Lord and when they didn't. 

We also are "stiff-necked" in our thinking and our lifestyles, we don't deserve God's blessings, either. But God decided to love us, anyway, so He gave us His Word to learn about Him and His ways. And He gave us His own Son to be that Sacrifice that fulfills and completes all the sacrifices listed in the Old Covenant. So we don't slay animals on a stone altar any more.

But we are still vulnerable to the thinking processes of those pagan peoples. We just express them in a different way today. Instead of taking a knife and bleeding out an animal, we send women to a "doctor" to take the life of an innocent child even before they can be born. These are no less sacrifices to demon-idols.

And we also say to ourselves, "By the strength of my hand and the intelligence of my mind I have gotten these things." When we go by His ways, but don't acknowledge Him, we will still reap the results, gaining wealth; but Jesus said, What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? (Mark 8:36-37). 

To get the Whole Picture, we need to seek God and learn His ways in order to order our thinking processes related to our bodies, our relationships, our businesses, every part of our lives: Physically, emotionally, psychologically, relationally.

But first we need to come to God, seek Him, realize we don't deserve any of His blessings, and let Jesus be your Savior, taking your place in death. Then learn His ways, and He will then be able to bless you, in every way. His mercy is not giving us the wrath we deserve, by putting it on Jesus instead. And His grace is giving us all the good that we don't deserve, because we are His children.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

The Ability To Produce Wealth

Deuteronomy 8: 10-18

When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land He has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe His commands....Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large, and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, Who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. ...

You may say to yourself, "My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me." 

But remember the Lord your God, for it is He Who gives you the ability to produce wealth....

When we accumulate wealth and abundance in our lives, we also become vulnerable to thinking that we are "self-made" men. That's when we need to pay attention to what we're thinking, and realize that God really is the One Who gives us our health and our families, and everything we enjoy; we could do nothing for ourselves if He had not given us the ability. 

God is the One Who got the idea to even have a Universe with an Earth in it. He's the One Who planned out how everything would operate, and how it would all work out. He's the One Who is sovereign over everything He made, and our "free will" is only operable within the perameters He sets on us, so there is nothing evil men can do to disrupt or nullify His Plan of the Ages that is working toward its conclusion.

We can profit and get the benefits of cooperating with God in how He designed us. Or we can harm ourselves by refusing to acknowledge Him and go our merry way into destruction. Our choice.

Either way, God will have all the glory, because only He is God, and He has accomplished all His will.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

When They Obey

Deuteronomy 7: 7-8

The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any of the peoples, for you were fewest of all the peoples; but because the Lord loved you and kept the oath which He swore to your forefathers....

God chose the Nation of Israel when He chose individual men: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So they weren't even a Nation when God decided to love them and chose them to be His own.

This shows us that God doesn't choose us for anything He sees in us, but only because He has decided to love us and make us His own. Period.

7: 12-14

When they obey, then the Lord God will pour out His lovingkindness and love you and bless you, and multiply you and your fertile ground for your grain and wine and oil, and your herds and flocks. Blessed above all other peoples, with no one barren among people or animals.

If only they would have obeyed and followed all the stipulations, then God would have blessed them more than any other Nation anywhere in the World, so much that the peoples of the other Nations would have wanted to also know and worship their God, the God over all the World. 

V. 15

And the Lord will remove from you all sickness; and He will not put on you any of the harmful diseases of Egypt which you have seen there; but He will lay them on all who hate you.

This shows that following all the rules and regulations and precepts and laws that God gave them would also be very healthy for them, in having robust good health in not getting sick or miscarrying or having any kind of illness or disease. They didn't know about germs, or the necessity of fully cooking the meats, but if they followed the Lord's commandments, they would be protected from all these unseen dangers.

God is our Maker; He is our Parent, our Father/Mother; He is our Lover, our Spouse, Who loves us passionately as a newlywed husband is enamored with his new bride. 

He gave His Law to Israel, to follow every detail in every part of their lives, to live a godly lifestyle. Unlike the others around them, who worshiped their gods with aberrant sexual acts and disgusting sacrifices to eat. Both of which are unhealthy and damaging to our bodies and psyches. 

Today our sciences have provided extensive discoveries and knowledge of all kinds of lifestyle choices and foods and practices to keep us healthy. But with all this, we still have sicknesses and diseases and physical conditions that are far from ideal. 

Now we are told to think God's thoughts (Philippians 4:5-8), cultivate the fruit of His Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), and do everything we do in love (I Corinthians 13). When we live our lives like this, in accordance with the ways we learn from Scripture, then we can expect to have long, healthy, productive, and prosperous lives. 

And we will give Him all the credit, all the glory, for having planned it all to work this way.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Be Careful

Deuteronomy 6: 3-12

Listen and be careful to do ... that it may go well with you ... and mutiply greatly, in a land flowing with milk and honey.

God wants us to listen to what He actually says, not our own ideas or what we want Him to say. And to be careful to do all that He commands. This is for our own good! When God can give us all the good things in life, it's a testimony to the other peoples of how good our God is and they will be drawn to Him.

Verses 10-12 tell us all the good things God is giving them to enjoy: Cities, houses full of good things, cisterns of good water, vineyards, olive groves, plenty to eat, drink, and enjoy.

Then Verse 12 says, Then watch yourself lest you forget the Lord.... 

When everything is going great, don't forget that it is the Lord God's blessings that have prospered us, we didn't do it ourselves! This is when we are vulnerable and really need to be careful.

The whole book of Judges tells us how Israel worshipped God and He blessed them. Then when things got going well for them, they got arrogant, and thought they'd gotten it all themselves, and started to honor the local gods. So God had their enemies gain control over them. So they cried out to God, and He raised up a judge, a military leader, to throw off the tyranny, and they worshipped God again. 

This cycle repeated over and over. This is what happens when we're not careful. Our own flesh draws us away from the Lord and His ways. So we need to make the constant effort to remember God's ways, because we will never "slide" into righteousness; when we're on automatic we will slide into sin. It takes effort to stay on the righteous path. That's why God says over and over to "Be careful" to actually do what we know is right. Think about every choice, deliberate over every decision; consult with our Father on every thought, word, and action.

God has given us His own Holy Spirit to live inside each of us who are His, so we have no excuse. I have to train myself to constantly be aware of His presence, and commune with Him continually; like Brother Andrew learned to "practice the presence of God" in everything he did. 

God made this Earth for us, and designed how the World would work, and it was all based on Love. God is Love. Everything He does comes from His Love. So when we tune our thinking processes to align with how He made everything, and think His thoughts instead of our own, then He will direct our ways to be prosperous, as He designed this World. He put an abundance of everything we need right here, and when we realize that, then we won't find a need to be greedy or to hoard; we are free to love one another and be generous with what we have, knowing there is always more out there.

It is our enemy who wants to destroy us that tells us there isn't enough. 

God's plans for us according to His ways are for us to think His positive thoughts, say His encouraging words, and do His good works to benefit one another, always recognizing that He is the One Who did it all. And we get the benefits and He receives all the glory.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!