Agere Sequitur Esse

Deuteronomy

Book of Deuteronomy

Notes.. .

. ..Introduction. By Moses and Joshua to a new generation of Israelites to remind them of what God had done and encourage them to rededicate their lives to God.
. ..Themes. History, Laws, Love, Choices, and Teaching.
. ..Outline. “How do a people of God respond when God fulfills His promise? We must remember now that God is dealing with the new generation that is to face a new stage of God’s history with His people. The people who had wandered in the wilderness for 38 years because of their sin of unbelief. God raised up a new generation and had them poised to enter the promised land, but they had to enter without their leader, Moses.” (William Seay 2019, L3 33:13–33:58).
. ..Application. “Deuteronomy draws us to a deeper understanding of our relationship to God and His Word. We learn what God is like, what He has done for His people, and what He requires of His servants. Deuteronomy shows us eight important facts. (Seay 2019, L4 00:10–00:32).
. ..Timeline. Moses preached three sermons in 1410.

Introduction. 29:35 – The purpose of this book was to remind the people of what God has done and encourage them to rededicate their lives to Him. Except for the final portion or summary which was probably written by Joshua, the author was Moses. It was written to Israel; especially the new generation of Israelites which was about the enter into the promise land. The key people are Moses and Joshua. The key place is the Valley of Arabah in Moab.

Themes. 30:42 – There are five major theological themes. (i) History. Moses reviewed the mighty act of God whereby He liberated Israel from slavery in Egypt. He recounted how God had helped them and how the people had disobeyed. (ii) Laws. God reviewed His laws for the people. The legal contact between God and His people had to be renewed by the new generation which was about the enter into the promised land. (iii) Love. God’s faithfulness in the face of love is portrayed more often than His punishment. God shows His love by being faithful to His people and His promises. In response, God desires love from the heart and not merely legalistically keeping the law. (iv) Choices. God reminded the people that in order to ratify His agreement, they must choose the path of obedience. A personal decision to obey will bring benefits to their lives where rebellion would bring severe calamity. (v) Teaching. God commanded the Israelites to teach their children His ways. They were to use ritual, instruction, and memorization to make sure their children understood God’s principles which were to be passed onto the next generation. “The central theme of Deuteronomy is a loyal love of God for His people” (37:25 – 37:32).

Outline. 33:00 – How do a people of God respond when God fulfills His promise? We must remember now that God is dealing with the new generation that is to face a new stage of God’s history with His people. The people who had wandered in the wilderness for 38 years because of their sin of unbelief. God raised up a new generation and had them poised to enter the promised land, but they had to enter without their leader, Moses. What would God do with them? How should they respond? What did it mean to be a people of God’s covenant in the land of Canaan? Was life with God there different than when it was in the wilderness?

Moses performed one last task. He preached three sermons to answer the peoples’ questions. (i) The first sermon (Deut. 1:6–4:43), Moses recounted the wondrous acts of the Lord and how God performed on behalf of His people. (ii) In the second sermon (Deut. 4:44–26:68), he reiterated and expanded on the Law of Yahweh. (iii) In the third sermon (Deut. 29:1–30:20), Moses led the new generation to renew the covenant which had been previously enacted. The covenant was that former agreement that reflected the intimate relationship between God and His people. This covenant relationship was a vital for a people entering a new land as it was for a nation wandering in the wilderness. What Deuteronomy does is define that covenant relationship between God and His people.

In Deuteronomy, the major issue facing the people of God are addressed by Moses. In light of the recent history of idolatry, would the people continue to rebel against God and His appointed leaders? Would they trust Yahweh as the one true God? The people of God could have remained in the plains of Moab and been assimilated into the existing culture. Did they have faith to follow God’s new leader and to depend on God’s promise to give them a new land? If and when the people moved toward the land of promise, would they cower against their enemies? Would they be conquered by them? Would they become like the Canaanites and engage in the decadent worship practices of the land? Or, would they recognize the greatness of God and exodus and conquest and be faithful to him? The people could renew their relationship to the Lord. Appropriate the gifts of the land by faith and live in the land in a way that God originally intended. Would they accept the teachings of Deuteronomy as God’s gracious gift as a guide to life and land under God?

The central theme of Deuteronomy is a loyal love of God for His people. God’s love and personal direction of history for His people is one of the unique aspects of Israelite religion. The most startling aspect of Israel’s religion appears in the creed (Deut. 6:4 ). God is unique. The sole God of the universe. All the gods of the nations are fakes. Only Yahweh, the God of Israel is God. The one true invisible God does not allow physical representations to be made of Him. He demands the total devotion of His people. They should have no other gods before Him. God’s holiness and righteousness are reflected in the moral order set forth in the law; God’s law. God’s grace is seen in His choosing Israel as His own. As His elect people, Israel was to reflect His character. God elected His people by establishing the covenant relationship, which He initiated out of His love. Election, the gift of the land, and the response of the people are the major elements of the covenant. God is the sovereign Lord of the covenant and the people are His servants. He will not share His sovereignty with any other god, creature, or person. A human ruler may be called sovereign, but such earthly sovereignty in no way compare to or imitate God’s sovereign Kingship.

Human response to the covenant is summed up in Deuteronomy 6:5–9, which in essence says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength” (Matt 22:37). Devotion to God is to be total and unequivocal. This is based on the prior demonstration of God’s love for His people. Love for God comes from a heart response, which is evidenced by the hearing and doing of His Word. God’s way of life should be taught to family and to neighbors and should be characterized by and individual’s lifestyle. The extensive range of the covenant’s regulation show that no area of human living stands outside the perspective of God’s concern. God expects the highest ethical and moral standards from His people. No distinction between the religious and secular is made. All of life comes under the sphere of a personal relationship to God. Obedience to God’s way of life is necessary for the community of God to maintain unity, purity, and effectual witness. Disobedience disrupts the relationship to God, to the community of faith, and to the world. God realizes the human tendency towards unfaithfulness though sin in Deuteronomy was set against the background of the covenant. Obedience to the Lord would result in covenant blessing for His people. Disobedience would lead to cursing. The gift of the land, which the people we about to enter could be taken away by Yahweh if the people continued to sin. The ultimate sin was the worship of other gods. The penalty for idolatry was severe. It was death. The nation would pay a very severe penalty. Apostasy would breech the relationship between God and His people. The history of the people showed that God carried out the covenant curse. The peoples’ apostasy led to exile under Assyria and Babylon. God fairly gave His people a choice between allegiance and apostasy and they reaped the result of their choice.

Application. Deuteronomy draws us to a deeper understanding of our relationship to God and His Word. We learn what God is like, what He has done for His people, and what He requires of His servants. Deuteronomy shows us eight important facts. (i) It shows that God is a sovereign Lord over history, nature, and our lives. We must not place anything, instruction, or person in a position to compare or imitate His Lordship. (ii) God loves us enough to show us how to enter into a relationship with Him by faith. (iii) God gives abundantly to provide for the needs of His people. (iv) God wants and requires His people to be solely and totally devoted to Him. Nothing should hinder the relationship between God and us. Anything that does is idolatry. (v) We should love God with the totality of our being and share that love with others, family, and neighbors. (vi) God has chosen us by His grace to be a special and unique people who are to reflect His nature to the world. (vii) God has given us guidance, which is His Word how to fulfill the purpose of being witnesses of His character. (viii) God blesses those who obey Him and judges those who rebel against Him.

Timeline. 2:25 – Moses preached three sermons in c. 1410 BC.

Ref.

Seay, William. 2019. Old Testament Theology [MP3]. Andersonville Theological Seminary (ATS). Camilla, GA: ATS