majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him in Deuteronomy 1:29-31,
"Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them [the Amorites and
Anakites]. The Lord your God, who is going before you, will fight for
you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes, and in the
desert. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you, as a father
carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
In the opening chapter of Deuteronomy, Moses begins his recount of
historical events for this second generation of freed Israelites at
the end of their forty year sojourn in the desert. This takes place
just prior to their crossing the Jordan to take possession of the land
the Lord had promised the patriarchs.
In these verses Moses speaks of the time Israel refused to enter the
promised land just after their exodus from Egypt, an event that
exposed the unfaithfulness of the hearts of the Israelites. It was
Israel's unfaithfulness at this point that earned their forty year
wandering in the wilderness as God's judgment. This unbelieving and
faithless generation would not be allowed into enter into the land
flowing with milk and honey. Only Joshua, Moses' assistant, and Caleb,
who "followed the Lord wholeheartedly" and the children of the
Israelites.
In the midst of their unfaithfulness, Moses, pleading with them,
reminded this first generation of freed Israelites of what the Lord
had done for them. They should have learned by now that the Lord was
with them, it was the Lord who had freed them from Egypt, provided for
them and protected them, "as a father carries his son". Their lack of
faith earned the Lord's judgment against them.
The story of faith has long now been highlighted in the pages of
Scripture up to this point in human history. Beginning in Genesis the
Lord had been communicating that mankind's destiny with him lay in the
crucial, all-important currency of faith. It is faith that will bring
fulfillment of God's blessings and promises to the individual. We read
in Genesis 15:6, "Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him
as righteousness." This one verse is the vital focus and theme of
Paul's letter we call Romans. There Paul says, "Against all hope,
Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations,
just as it had been said to him, 'So shall your offspring be.' Without
weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as
dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah's womb was
also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise
of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being
fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is
why 'it was credited to him as righteousness'. The words 'it was
credited to him' were written not for him alone, but also for us, to
whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who
raised Jesus our Lord from the dead."
As we see, the faith the Lord looks for that brings his promises and
blessing results in choices in the things people do. The things people
do will not bring his blessing, but the faith the Lord requires does
result in lifestyle choices people make. This kind of faith results in
the things people think, do and say.
Faith is what brings us a right standing with God. It is this
requirement of faith, and not the requirement of performance that
God's grace is demonstrated to us. In Romans 4:16, Paul says,
"Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and
may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring—not only to those who are
of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham."
Performance is a result of faith, not the other way around.
Performance reveals the presence of faith. If my salvation depended on
my performance, I never would have made it into God's family. How
wonderful that God chose to give us a right standing before him on the
basis of faith!
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd
love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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