The prophet Moses was coming to the end of his life, his final decades had seen the events leading up to the dramatic exodus of his people from the land of Egypt, the astonishing, life-changing events at Mount Sinai, the thrill of commissioning a magnificent Tabernacle for Yahweh Himself, and forty years of community desert-living. In Deuteronomy, he is looking back over those years, reminiscing about everything that happened, encouraging the nation to go forward and possess all that Yahweh had promised, and urging them to stay faithful to all they had been taught. Chapter 28 outlines the many blessings that will accrue from obedience to Yahweh’s Law, but also details the curses attached to disobedience and neglect. It never fails to make me shudder that whilst fourteen verses are allocated to describing Yahweh’s sure and certain blessings, it takes fifty-four to describe the dreadful consequences of disobedience! Moses described it as a choice between life and death, and when we read the two lists, it’s obvious why!
As Moses was ending this final sermon, he cried, “Choose life so that you and your descendants may live” [Deuteronomy 30:19]! What did he mean by this? How do you ‘choose’ life? Isn’t that something the majority want? The Biblical answer comes swiftly and is simple (though demanding). “Love [Yahweh] your God, obey him, and remain faithful to him,” continued the prophet. “For he is your life” [verse 20, italics added]. We choose life by choosing Yahweh. We choose Yahweh by loving Him, obeying Him and staying faithful to Him.
The benefits and blessings of this are manifold. You’ll find them scattered throughout the pages of His Word as plentifully as autumn leaves in a forest. Yahweh enjoys His children and loves to shower them with goodness. Do I know this because I’ve read it, or because I’ve allowed the knowledge to become a reality in my heart? My father taught me that ‘head knowledge’ was insufficient when it came to the things of Yahweh. “We must know Him for ourselves; we must have heart knowledge,” he said. Let’s cultivate our hearts, for ‘heart knowledge’ is life-changing and will ensure we can ‘choose life’ with great joy.
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You Are The BranchesClick to see the whole passage:
1 timothy 3:16 NIV - Beyond all question, the mystery from - Bible Gateway
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