Deuteronomy 1:30 – “The Lord your God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he did for you in Egypt before your eyes.”
Deuteronomy is the fifth book of Moses. It is a record of what Moses said to the Israelites to prepare them for life in the country, which God had promised their ancestors. God brought the Israelites out of Egypt 40 years before. Now Moses and the Israelites had to go over the River Jordan to occupy Canaan. Canaan was a region of a many small city-states with the same culture and the same false religions. Moses knew that he would die soon. His purpose was to prepare the people for their future in Canaan. Moses had given God’s law to the people when they were at Mount Sinai. But all the men who were alive then, except Caleb and Joshua, had since died. These Israelites may have been children then or born in the desert. Therefore, it was necessary to teach them the law that Moses had given to their parents at Sinai. Moses prepared Joshua to become the new leader of the Israelites to lead the people across the River Jordan.
Deuteronomy has 5 main parts:
- Moses reminded the Israelites about what God had done for them.
- Moses reminded them about the Covenant God had given them at Sinai.
- Moses told the Israelites how God wants them to behave.
- Moses spoke about the blessings if the Israelites obeyed God and curses if they didn’t obey.
- Moses told the Israelites how they should store a record of this covenant. He also gave final instructions and he handed on his job to Joshua.
Moses did his best to encourage the people. He asked them to specifically remember God’s past faithfulness and consider that He was able to give them victory in the land of Canaan. Just like the Israelites, we easily forget what God has done for us in our lives. Satan loves to make us forget our past victories and miracles of God. Satan also likes to make us remember what we should forget – our past sin and self-serving life. It was not sin that kept Israelites out of the Promised Land, but unbelief. Israelites doubt of God’s love for them made them unable to trust God. We often think that it is really some sin that hinders us from growing in the Lord. Unbelief and lack of trust is the real enemy. Our Lord does want to deal with sin and get it out of the way, but for that to happens we ought to deepen the relationship of love and trust in the Lord. Deuteronomy shows us how to show our love for God and for people. Moses told the Israelites to do things because God had given them grace and love. We must do the same; don’t exist but choose to live in the way that God wants us to live.
