reminded them of God’s blessings if they obeyed Him and of His punishments if they chose to disobey Him. Moses told the people not to be afraid of their enemies in the new land. He said, “ Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” After Moses1had finished his fare well message, God took him to the top of a mountain, showed him the Promised Land, then caused him to die. The Lord buried Moses somewhere on the moun tain. God’s Word says, “ There arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face.” Moses’ life had sin in it just as yours does, for “ All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Moses had been a faithful leader for God of the children of Israel. Frequently he had reminded them of God’s laws and helped them to walk in God’s ways. Always he was reminded that the Lord would never fail him nor forsake him. His farewell did not ask the people to sympathize with him because of all of his difficul ties; he wanted his last words to remind them of their God and His constant faithfulness. Do your words to others cause them to remember you or your Lord and His wonderful blessings to you?
“What shall we say then to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Rom. 8:31). And so in these con cluding words of our lesson Moses in effect congratulates Israel on their pe culiar happiness and privilege in hav ing Jehovah for their God and protec tor. “ The eternal God is thy refuge . . . Happy art thou, 0 Israel.” In New Testament words Paul expresses it thusly: “ Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice” (Phil. 4:4). Memory Verse: “The Lord thy God . . . will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Deut. 31:6). Have you ever had to say “ Good-bye” to a dear friend or to a member of your family who was going away for a long time, perhaps forever? After your friend has gone, you frequently think of his last words to you. Moses, the faithful leader of the chil dren of Israel was one hundred and twenty years old. Soon God was going to take him to be with Himself. Joshua had been chosen to lead God’s people into the Promised Land. God allowed Moses to see the land from the top of a mountain, but Moses could not enter because of his sin. Moses’ good-bye mes sage to his people reminded them of all that their God had done fftr them. He Helps for the Children Moses’ Call To Courage Deuteronomy 30, 31
in view of the fact that a new genera tion which had grown up in the wilder ness since the giving of the law at Sinai and since the demonstration of unbelief at Kadesh-barnea was about to enter the Promised Land. Moses was soon to die on Mount Nebo. Joshua was about to take his place. The characteristic word of Moses in his farewell addresses in this book is remember. God’s people needed then as now to remember God’s mercies, His promises, and His warn ings. In the particular section assigned for our study, Moses reminds his people of their obligations and of God’s readiness to sustain them, and challenges them to a new dedication to God. The Hour of Decision 30:15-20 In this section Moses pleads for obed ience on the part of the children of Israel as they proceeded to enter the Promised Land. Obedience is one of the keynotes of this entire book. The em phasis is upon the importance of heed ing God’s will if they expect God’s blessing as they become situated in the new land. “ See I have set before thee this day, life and death” (v. 15). Moses pleads with Israel to “ choose life” (v. 19), In other words, Moses had set be fore Israel the alternative of a good and hapjy life or a life of disobedience and mis; 'y. He showed that love of God and compliance with His will is the only way to blessing and avoidance of the evils he had described. The choice was left to Israel. In the same way this is the hour of decision for many today. Moses’ Swan Song 31:1-3 Very calmly Moses accepted the re fusal of God to let him cross the Jor dan. He had sinned against the Lord as recorded in Numbers 20:7-12. There fore he was deprived of the privilege of leading the hosts of God into the Promised Land. Joshua was to have that privilege. Doubtless this was a great disappointment to Moses, yet he did not pout over it. He did what he could to get the people ready for their new ex perience. He declared the whole counsel of God to them (v. 1). He submitted to God’s will in being forced to remain behind (v. 2). Furthermore, he encour aged the people with the glorious fact of God’s presence with them in their venture under the leadership of Joshua (v. 3). Thus Moses to the very end showed himself to be a man after God’s own heart. A Message of Assurance 33:27-29a What did Israel have to fear? Noth ing, since God was to be with them in all their experiences in the new land. Giants would fall and walled cities would be leveled by His power. No enemy is strong enough to bring defeat to the one who puts his trust in Jehovah. It reminds us of what the Apostle Paul said one time when contemplating the enemies that seek to overcome the soul:
Teacher Training Association. But now E ditorial Caribe’s cramped facilities in Costa Rica are no longer adequate to do the job. Expansion needs demand more housing, more equipment, more funds and, most important of all, more prayer partners. E d it o r ia l C a r ib e can provide the forcefu l, B ible-based ammunition needed for a more powerful missionary attack. If you would like a part in this th rilling and challenging ministry, write today for more information to: American Tract Society, Inter-Varsity Follnwchin and Evangelical
Sad, but true — Communism, atheism, and other non-Christian ideologies are working overtime in Latin America today, and winning thousands of con verts. The all-important message of salvation must reach them before it is too late! E ditorial Caribe — new and effective gospel ambassador to Latin America s 21 Spanish-speaking countries,— is pub lishing large quantities of life-giving books and tracts to meet the need. Thoroughly dependable and evangeli cal, from the beginning this ministry has enjoyed the enthusiastic backing of Moody Colportage, Gospel Light Press,
Publishers of Gospel Literature for Latin America c/o Dept. D , Latin Am e rica M ission Inc. 161 Park Street, Ridgefield Park, New Jersey
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