Today is the 36th day that we have been counting the omer.
Since God knows the end from the beginning, He tells Moses that after he dies, the children of Israel will turn their backs on God. God commissions Moses to write a song. In fact, God tells Moses to teach it to the people and have them learn it by heart, “so that this song can be a witness for Me against the people of Israel.” (Deuteronomy 31:19) Deuteronomy 32 records the song for us. The words are probably unlike words of any other song that we have ever heard. I encourage you to go read the words, for the Song of Moses is a picture of Israel’s history and exile.
He starts off by bragging on the greatness of Yehovah. “For I will proclaim the name of Yehovah. Come, declare the greatness of our God!” Then Moses says, “He (Yehovah) is not corrupt; the defect is in His children, a crooked and perverted generation.” (v 5 CJB) That is a sad commentary about a people who had been chosen by God to be His very own. He had taken them from nothing, guarded them “like the pupil of His eye”, and carried them around even as an eagle carries her young when she flies. Moses went on in his song to tell how they would totally turn their backs on God and would be brought to ruin. But Moses did not stop there for Yehovah is the God of redemption. He revealed that God will take vengeance on those who destroyed the nation and will avenge the blood of His servants. In fact, God will even make atonement for the land of His people.
But the most pointed thing that Moses told the people was this. “Take to heart all the words of warning I have given you today. Pass them on as a command to your children so they will obey every word of these instructions. These instructions are not empty words – they are your life!” (vs 46-47, NLT)
I think God, through the book of Deuteronomy, would tell us, the ones who have been adopted into the family of God, that we must guard ourselves and our children. We must teach in the strongest manner possible the truths of God. We must not get lax or we will fall just as Israel fell. Even worse, our children will fall. The devil will destroy them by dragging them through the deepest and most devastating pits he can find. I think God is telling us very bluntly that He is not playing games. He is a gracious and merciful God, but He does not play games. I believe God would tell us the very same thing He told Israel – Listen up! Take these truths to heart and make sure your children obey every word. For this is NOT A TRIVIAL MATTER for you – these are not EMPTY WORDS; they are YOUR LIFE!
May God give us ears to hear and eyes to see His truths.
Pastor Ann
May 17, 2020