Thank you to everyone who has been praying for my niece Masen! Her surgery to replace her failed cochlear implant was yesterday – it was scheduled to begin at 1:30pm, but was delayed until 4:00pm due to an emergency surgery ahead of hers.

Praise the Lord!
*The surgery was faster and less intense than expected – Masen’s skull had not formed over the original plate in her head, so the surgeon could just pull it out and insert the new one rather than having to drill. (he said he had never seen another one like this – praise God!)
*The surgeon was able to re-use the suture lines that he had made the first time, which he thinks will reduce the pain she experiences.
*He also said that when he pulled the old one out of her cochlea and slipped the new one it, it went right in without any trouble at all. He said that he only has about 8 minutes to do that part, because once the old one has been removed, the tissue inside the cochlea rapidly fills the void, making it very difficult to get the new one placed. But it went quickly and easily.
*Masen was able to go home late last night to a room full of balloons. :) My sister said she just said, “Wow, that’s a lot of balloons!” when they went into her room and she promptly fell asleep holding all of the strings in her hand!

Keep praying…
*They are hoping to be able to turn her Cochlear implant on in 2 weeks, assuming there are no problems with swelling. Please pray that it works (they were unable to test it after the surgery because the audiologists had gone home for the evening)! The family is also praying that this implant will allow her to hear even better than her first one.
*Continue to pray for her as she recovers – that her pain would be well controlled and that she has no problems with infection.

I’ll update more in coming days…

Chapter five gets into some familiar territory – part of the “hot topics” of recent national conversation!

Deuteronomy 5:6-21 (abbreviated)

“I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
You shall have no other gods before Me.
You shall not make for yourself a carved image…
You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain…
Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you…
Honor your father and your mother…
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife…or anything that is your neighbor’s.”

Yes, the 10 commandments. Now, right off the bat, many people are uncomfortable with the word “commandment.” Sounds restrictive, therefore we don’t like it. I think vague familiarity with the 10 commandments may be why most people have a negative view of the Old Testament – it’s just a bunch of rules and regulations. Not so! Guess what? Even the 10 commandments are based on God’s personal relationship with His people!

Let’s think about it this way: God’s relationship with Israel is often, in His own wording, compared with a marriage. So, look at the first four commandments with this in mind: how would these be reworded to apply to a marriage?

You shall have no other gods before Me.
No other men/ women should infringe on our relationship!

You shall not make for yourself a carved image…
Get rid of your ex-girlfriend/boyfriend’s pictures; “oh be careful little eyes what you see!”

You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain…
Don’t talk bad about me! Treat me with respect!

Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy, as the Lord your God commanded you…
Set time aside to spend with me – make our relationship a priority!

I think it’s fairly obvious that if a man or woman would not abide by the previous “restrictions” for marriage, they should not get married! In the same way, these are very basic, relationship-based commands for God’s covenant with Israel. God is not being harsh and controlling – He is forming a relationship with them.

Along with that, let’s touch on a phrase found in Deut. 5:9 – “For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God…” This is not jealousy in an improper context. Just like I, as a wife in a covenant relationship with my husband, should take issue with other women who might infringe on my relationship with my husband [wouldn't it be odd to say, "Go ahead, honey. Have an affair - I love you that much."], God is completely in the right to demand His people’s singular allegiance! He is the Lord! He created them, chose them, redeemed them, formed them into a nation, made a covenant with them… He is the only true God! To say, “Serve me and only me” is utterly appropriate. The fact that we rebel against that is a statement about sinful human nature, not about a blemish in the character of our God.

The rest of the commands go hand in hand with what we discussed in “Be Holy as I am Holy” – they are moral commands based on the character and nature of God. If He truly is their God, if they believe Him and are set apart for Him, it is logical that they would act like Him.

Just in case you think this is all a little fishy, take a look at the rest of the chapter and ask yourself: is this a vengeful, controlling God looking to restrict His people, or is this a God who loves His people and wants them to obey in order that they would prosper in a healthy relationship with Him?

“‘Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!’…
You shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess.”
(Deuteronomy 5:29,33)

Now, I want to briefly touch on the debate in the US courts regarding the 10 commandments. Two questions for you: 1 -What are people ultimately upset about? 2- What should this compel us (as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ) to do?

1- What are people ultimately upset about?
I, like many others, find it ironic that the courts will rule to take the 10 commandments out of the schools and then simultaneously be upset about murder, sexual promiscuity, stealing and cheating, lying, etc. So, why are people so adamant to get rid of them?

The 10 commandments inherently imply that there is a God who has authority to make such rules. We wouldn’t want to step on anyone’s toes by saying that they should obey them – they might not believe in God! I think most believers are probably aware of the worldview issues that make this a hot topic.

I want to tilt the discussion slightly, however, with my 2nd question.

2- What should this compel us to do?
For a while now, the Christian community has responded en mass by wanting everyone to protest, write their senators, hire lobbyists, etc. Thankfully, we live in a country where we have the freedom to do this. It’s not wrong to address the issue from this side, so knock yourself out.

However, I don’t think it’s going to work, and it’s not surprising to me that by and large, it hasn’t.

If we’re only looking at this politically, we have completely missed the point. I could care less if the 10 commandments are hanging in my local courthouse if no one inside gives a rip about God and His authority. Hanging a plaque on the wall with Deuteronomy 5:17 is not going to make a serial killer or abortion provider reconsider their actions.

Remember the precept, principle, person of God discussion? (also from the “Be Holy as I am Holy” post) We live in a culture that has no understanding of the character of God anymore. All we’re doing is standing along the side screaming precepts at them, and it doesn’t make sense to them anymore! “The Bible says not to kill/lie/have an affair” is just not an effective argument to someone who A- doesn’t know who God is, B- doesn’t know a thing about the Bible, and C- sees no problem with murder/lying/adultery and finds that it has benefited them in some superficial way.

So, what do we do?

Remember back to Exodus 5:1-2,

Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.’” And Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, nor will I let Israel go.”

Pharaoh found God’s command completely uncompelling because he did not know Yahweh. Why should he obey Him? (It brings to mind a kid yelling to their babysitter, “you’re not my mom…” – under whose authority can you tell me what to do?) How did God respond to this? (you can review “King of kings and Lord of lords.”) He introduced Himself. In a big way! He showed Himself to be the One true God, the Lord of all, Yahweh.

Here is my proposal. Stop getting so hot under the collar that the courts don’t want the 10 commandments in public, and fall on your face before Him. We have an entire culture that has forgotten who He is. How would they bow the knee to a God they don’t know? Stop protesting and start sharing Truth with the people around you.

I recently had a discussion about this with one of the pastors at our church. What would happen if each and every follower of Christ had even one authentic relationship with a non-Christian? What if each one of us invested the time to share with them not only the “Romans Road,” but went past that – what if we taught them WHO GOD IS?

I’m not against the Romans Road. But looking someone in the eye and saying, “Jesus died for your sins” just doesn’t make sense if they don’t believe that there is a sovereign God who created the world and has a universal standard of what is true and right. What is “sin?” Who are you to say that I’m a “sinner?” Why on earth does it matter that Jesus died if there was nothing He needed to die for?

Just a note for further study: I love the contrast in Acts 17 between how Paul shares the gospel with Jews and how he shares it with the pagan philosophers. In 17:3, he shares with the Jews by starting with the Scriptures and prophecies of Jesus (17:3 …explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, ‘This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Christ.’) However, when addressing the philosophers he starts from their own culture, and then goes back to creation! (17:24 “God, who made the world and everything in it…”) Why? God’s Word has no authority and Jesus’ death and resurrection have no meaning if God is not the Sovereign Creator and Lord of everything.

We’re not talking to a synagogue anymore, folks. We’re in a pagan culture. We have to start with who God is before the 10 commandments will make a lick of sense. Remember: the 10 commandments were all about relationship! We obey them because of relationship!! Without a relationship, they make no sense. Are they still true? Absolutely. Are they compelling to a person without an authentic relationship with God? Not at all. And ultimately, if I love that person I’m sharing the Truth with, I should be more concerned with if they really know the one True God rather than if they are really good and can follow the 10 commandments.

“…so that they should seek the Lord,
in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him,
though He is not far from each one of us;
for in Him we live and move and have our being…”
Acts 17:27-28

*Picture from http://www.biblepicturegallery.com

As mentioned in the “Suzerain/Vassal” discussion, the first four chapters of Deuteronomy summarize the history of the nation. The first three chapters are a summary of the 40 years in the desert.

What I would like to focus on today is chapter four. As mentioned before, Deuteronomy is a whole lot more than a list of rules. Chapter four is a great look at God’s heart – there are three repeated themes that I want to highlight. Moses emphasizes obedience – watch yourselves and be careful to obey! Don’t fall into idolatry!

Deuteronomy 4:6
“Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’”

Deuteronomy 4:14-19
“And the Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that you might observe them in the land which you cross over to possess.
“Take careful heed to yourselves, for you saw no form when the Lord spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, lest you act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of any figure… And take heed, lest you lift your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun, the moon, and the stars, all the host of heaven, you feel driven to worship them and serve them, which the Lord your God has given to all the peoples under the whole heaven as a heritage.”

Secondly, throughout this beginning section of Deuteronomy he emphasizes that they must be careful not to forget. Teach your children! Rehearse what God has done and what He requires of you!

Deuteronomy 4:9-10
“Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren, especially concerning the day you stood before the Lord your God in Horeb, when the Lord said to me, ‘Gather the people to Me, and I will let them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children.’

Deuteronomy 4:23
“Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the Lord your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image in the form of anything which the Lord your God has forbidden you.”

Thirdly, he looks at their unique relationship with God. Yahweh is utterly unique, and His relationship with His people is unparalleled!

Deuteronomy 4:7-8
“For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day?”

Deuteronomy 4:20
“But the Lord has taken you and brought you out of the iron furnace, out of Egypt, to be His people, an inheritance, as you are this day.”

Deuteronomy 4:25-26, 29-40 [this is long, I know... but it's good!]

“When you beget children and grandchildren and have grown old in the land, and act corruptly and make a carved image in the form of anything, and do evil in the sight of the Lord your God to provoke Him to anger, I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess; you will not prolong your days in it, but will be utterly destroyed… But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you are in distress, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, when you turn to the Lord your God and obey His voice (for the Lord your God is a merciful God), He will not forsake you nor destroy you, nor forget the covenant of your fathers which He swore to them.
For ask now concerning the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether any great thing like this has happened, or anything like it has been heard. Did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live?
Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?
To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord Himself is God; there is none other besides Him.
Out of heaven He let you hear His voice, that He might instruct you; on earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire.
And because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their descendants after them; and He brought you out of Egypt with His Presence, with His mighty power, driving out from before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land as an inheritance, as it is this day. Therefore know this day, and consider it in your heart, that the Lord Himself is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other. You shall therefore keep His statutes and His commandments which I command you today, that it may go well with you and with your children after you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which the Lord your God is giving you for all time.”

I am always moved by the repetition of God’s call to His people to not forget. It’s easy to look back at Israel and think, “Come on, guys, get it together.” The nation had been supernaturally created, given amazing promises, and guided directly to a land that God hand picked for them. God had revealed Himself in amazing miraculous ways! How could they forget? How could they turn to idolatry?

I am convinced that a key part of this is the command to teach their children. Back in Genesis, we looked at this some in “Memory Loss.” When parents fail to train the next generation, in very short order the entire society will turn away from God. In Judges 2:10, the Scripture states, “When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel.” Thus began a shocking downward spiral that ends with some incredibly debase, shocking, sickening accounts.

Here is my challenge to the parents and grandparents out there: we must teach our children the Truth! Assuming they will “absorb” it somehow in Sunday school (or Christian school) or from our family culture is not enough. Be intentional! I’m sure that all of these generations grew up going to the tabernacle, celebrating feasts, etc. However, their parents apparently failed to instill in them a deep understanding of God’s character, His ways, and His Word.

How do we do that? [I would love some experienced parents out there to post their thoughts, by the way.] Joshua 3 and 4 records the momentous crossing of the Jordan river. God was fulfilling His promises! They were entering the land! Joshua commands them to do something very interesting:

“‘Take for yourselves twelve stones from here, out of the midst of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm. You shall carry them over with you and leave them in the lodging place where you lodge tonight…that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.”
Joshua 4:2-3, 6-7

I love this picture of setting up memorial stones. They purposely put them in a place where the people would frequently pass them, setting up an opportunity for conversation with their children about God’s great faithfulness.

All of us who have walked with the Lord for any length of time have stories to tell about God’s faithfulness, answered prayer, miraculous intervention, clear leading, etc. How are you memorializing God’s faithfulness?

Several years ago my husband and I went through a very difficult time – he had lost his job, I was a stay-at-home mother, and God was stretching us in a variety of ways! During this time my dad sent us a letter. He called it his “pile of rocks,” referring to this custom of memorial stones, and in it he shared major times of my parents’ marriage when God taught them, provided for them, led them. Many of these stories sounded familiar – I grew up hearing them during family devotions and over the dinner table. Having them written down during that time was very encouraging and solidifying for us! I am so grateful for parents who recognize God’s working and purposely share it with their children!

Ironically, although I love to write, I have never been able to consistently journal. One thing that has meant a lot to me for the past 10-12 years or so is a little wooden box packed away in a drawer upstairs. It is filled (actually, I need a bigger one because I’ve run out of room!) with small items from times in my life when God has taught me meaningful things. It would look like a box of junk to anyone else, but I know the story behind each trinket. [You can read more about my box here.]

There are the small cloth straps I’ve had since I was 15 (writing this still brings tears to my eyes). I was on a missions trip to Haiti. We were miraculously able to get paperwork pushed through to enable us to take some malnourished and dying children out of the “Abandoned Children’s Ward” in the Port au Prince general hospital and move them to a Christian orphanage. In the hospital these children are not fed, held, comforted. They are left to die. Those cloth straps were tied around the wrists and ankles of a little 2 or 3 year old girl we affectionately named “Jump” (she had a lot of energy!) – as I physically untied her from a bed where she surely would have taken her last breath and carried her into the sunlight to life and freedom, God impressed on me the deep meaning of “…then you will know the Truth and the Truth will set you free.” I, too, had been imprisoned and dying in the dark of sin – I was utterly helpless to save myself. Only God in His mercy could save me. It was not by works, but by grace that I had been saved.

Also in that box is a hospital bracelet from my dad’s hospitalization from a heart attack while I was in college. It was then that I faced head on the question, “Is God still good if He chooses to take my Dad? Will I still trust Him no matter what?”

There are programs from funerals I’ve attended and sat wrestling with why God allows innocent babies and children to suffer and die, or why He didn’t answer fervent prayers for a faithful believer’s healing.

There is a sticker from the front of an alarm clock my grandmother sent me while I was a camp counselor. I woke up one morning and my alarm clock was broken. It was a small, annoying problem (I had a cabin of 12 campers with me 24 hours a day and no way to get a new alarm clock until the weekend) that I didn’t even mention to anyone. Later that same day, I checked the mail counter and was surprised to see a box from my grandmother. She is a Jehovah’s Witness, and since they don’t celebrate birthdays or Christmas, getting a card, let alone a gift, from her has not been a common occurrence in my life. Imagine my surprise when I opened it to find an alarm clock, complete with batteries! I shook and cried and laughed as I held that weird gift, knowing that my amazing, faithful, personal Jehovah Jireh had so orchestrated the details of that day to provide for my insignificant need in a very personal and meaningful way.

That is my pile of rocks. I have been able to pull that box out at various times in my life to share about the goodness of my God, or remind myself that nothing is out of His hands. I am looking forward to sharing those stories with my children, just as my parents shared with us.

You have a unique story to tell because you serve a God like no other. Obey Him. Trust Him. And remember what He has done.

We have established that Deuteronomy is an important book. But, you may still be wondering why Deuteronomy was necessary – most of it seems to be a repeat of the law!

If you think about a timeline of what has happened, when Deuteronomy is given it has been 40 years (at least) since the Exodus. 40 years since they formed this unique covenant relationship with God. 40 years of wandering in a desert, eating manna for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, sacrifices, coming to God at the tabernacle, and waiting for the unbelieving generation to die off. It’s been a long 40 years.

On top of that, this is a different generation! They did not see the Red Sea part or the miracles in Egypt (or they were very young), understanding first hand the uniqueness, sovereignty, and supremacy of Yahweh – the One who remembered them and kept His promises. They are not the ones who had that blood sprinkled on them at the base of the mountain and understood the solemnity of the covenant they were forming with a holy God.

So, Moses gathers them together – they must understand their contract with God. They must understand their history, God’s faithfulness to them, and the requirements associated with being a nation set apart unto Him. Deuteronomy is their “complete constitution” – the most concise statement of who they were and what made their nation unique.

This book follows the format of a “Suzerain/Vassal treaty.” (Pull that out at your next Bible study – you’ll sound so smart.) This was the kind of treaty that two nations in the ancient world would make when one (the suzerain) conquered the other (the vassal).

They would write down:
the history of what got them to that point [Deuteronomy 1:1-4:43],
general and specific rules for the conquered nation [4:44-26:19],
consequences (both good and bad) which would come from keeping or breaking the conditions of the treaty [27:1-29:68],
record the witnesses present [29:1-30:20],
and provide a way of safekeeping for the treaty document [31:9].

Now, you are probably asking, “Kristi, why do I care about a Suzerain/Vassal Treaty?” Honestly, you probably don’t! But, this was a format that was very familiar to the people at the time – this was how international foreign policy was handled! And because they were familiar with the format, God was giving them a very clear picture of their relationship: I am your Supreme commander. You owe me your life. You have conditions in this relationship that you must keep. If you do, I will bless you abundantly. If you do not, I will bring negative consequences in order to bring you back into submission.

Obviously we have a different relationship with God than ancient Israel did – we are not in a theocracy, we aren’t under the law. However, we know that there are many things that we are commanded to do or not to do. [review "Be Holy for I am Holy" if you're rusty on how the OT law ties in with us...]

In our human nature, we tend to chafe at God’s authority. We feel restricted, resentful, rebellious. Why must I bow the knee?

Guess what, friends? God is our Supreme commander.
He created us. Period.
He, not our feelings or experiences, sets the standard for what is right and what is wrong.
We violated His character, earned death and separation from Him, and yet He redeemed us out of our sin and formed a relationship with us.

I owe Him my all. What I have earned, what I deserve, is hell. In his grace, I was given life in Him. If that doesn’t resonate deep in our souls and compel us to obey, I think we must examine the authenticity of our relationship with Him.

I believe that many, many people in our churches today are somewhat like the Israelites at the end of the 40 year desert experience. Back the line in their families, there were people who had an authentic relationship with God – they believed Him, they saw Him work firsthand. Everything sounds familiar to them – it’s been part of their family culture. Going through the motions of church, following rules, being “good.”

It’s all well and good until someone starts to step on their toes with the Bible. “Now wait a minute. If God is love…” “If God is good…” and then they start questioning why God, in His goodness, would want to restrict them or make them unhappy in some way.

He is the creator, the holy one, the sovereign God of the universe. Even if you do not fully understand Him and His ways, not bowing the knee is not an option. And one day, all will be set right – whether people want to admit it or not, He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

Just like the Israelites reviewing their history and their covenant relationship with God, we all need to take a serious look at our lives and make sure our faith is genuine and personal, rather than cultural. Do I really believe, or am I riding on the coattails of those before me? Have I personally bowed the knee to my Creator and Lord?

…that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth,
and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Philippians 2:10-11