I've written about some desert experiences – deserts of isolation, desperation, want, loneliness, grief, doubt, disobedience and what God might be up to in and through us while we’re there. We have all experienced deserts of one kind or another and they’re not especially FUN! But don’t you LOVE it when everything is going RIGHT?
What would “everything going right” look like to you? Here are some possibilities:
- Your health is good
- There’s enough money to cover all the bills, with a little extra to spare
- The roof doesn’t leak, the toilet works, the cars are all humming along, working well
- Your little ones sleep through the night and your teens actually LIKE you
- Your house is perfect for the size of your family and you’re proud to invite people over to share its coziness
- Your husband remembers your anniversary and volunteers to watch the kids so you can have a day to yourself
· EVERYTHING IS RIGHT WITH THE WORLD AND YOU ARE A HAPPY CAMPER!
In this last blog, that’s exactly where Israel is! Nice change, isn’t it!?
Their 40 years of wandering in the desert are near an end! All those who didn’t trust God to lead them into the land 40 years previously have died off – except Caleb and Joshua. The children of the unbelieving generation are FINALLY about to enter the land of Canaan, which God had promised their fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would be theirs forever.
Moses, who will not be crossing the Jordan and into the land with them because of his own disobedience (Num. 20), has some final words to say to the people as they prepare to move into the land.
What he has to say takes the form of three different addresses recorded in the book of Deuteronomy. In them, Moses reminds Israel of God’s past faithfulness, he gives principles for godly living, and calls them to commitment to God alone.
The last part of the book of Deuteronomy describes the transfer of leadership from Moses to Joshua, and records the death of Moses.
Today’s blog is from his second address, in the 8th chapter of the book of Deuteronomy.
Moses stirs the imagination and anticipation of the people with a glorious description of the land, and the abundant blessings God has for them when they settle there.
Deuteronomy 8:7-13
· For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land:
- With streams and pools of water; springs flowing in the valleys and hills (abundance of water; no more thirst or lack of water for crops)
- V. 8 A land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees; pomegranates; olive oil; honey (land that will produce an abundance of good food)
- V. 9 Land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing (no more hunger or lack)
- Land where the rocks are iron, and you can dig copper out of the hills. (source of wealth)
- V. 10 land where they will eat and be satisfied (full tummies)
- V. 12 build fine houses and settle down in them (luxury and security)
- V. 13 herds and flocks will grow large, silver and gold will increase and all you have is multiplied (financial security)
The people of Israel have longed to live in this land for generations and we can only imagine how excited they are to finally be on the verge of entering it!
BUT, the experiences of being in a desert – this time a figurative one - are not all behind them! With all the blessings of God awaiting them in the Promised Land will come a potentially NEW desert experience – the desert of prosperity!
So, before they enter, Moses issues some warnings of what to watch out for when everything finally seems to be going their way.
Let’s look at Moses’ warnings to Israel as they get ready to enter a period of prosperity like they have never known before and see what we can learn for OUR benefit!
We read a lot of pretty forceful commands repeated in this chapter.
- Be careful – 2 times
- Follow – 2 times
- Remember – 2 times
- Observe – 2 times
- Know
- Don’t forget – 3 times
Let’s look more carefully at them.
v.1Be careful to follow every command. . .WHY? It is the way of blessing!
- so that you may live
- increase
- enter
- and possess the land Lord promised on oath to forefathers (not only just enter the land but take possession, settle down, and make it your home!)
v.2Remember:
· HOW the Lord led you in the desert these 40 yeaars (What were His motives?)
· to HUMBLE YOU,
· to TEST YOU (King James translates this: “prove you”),
· in order to KNOW what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands v. 2
Which of these is easier for you to do: extend a helping hand to others, or receive help when you’re in need?
I think most of us would answer that it’s easier to help others. Why? Because our pride keeps us from admitting and then asking for help. The Lord led Israel into the desert in order to humble them, to help them recognize their need for Him so that they would immediately turn to Him for help.
V.3-4 He humbled you (so that you would depend on Him),
- (BY) CAUSING you to hunger and THEN feeding you with manna, which neither you nor fathers had known; (WHY?)
- TO TEACH you that man does not live by bread alone but on every word that comes from mouth of the Lord v. 3
- Your clothes didn’t wear out and your feet didn’t swell during these 40 years v. 4
God Himself caused Israel’s hunger and then provided the cure with manna so that they would learn that His Word was the true bread that was the cure for the hunger of their souls.
V.5 KNOW THEN in your heart
- that as a man disciplines his son, so Lord disciplines you v. 5
- The King James translation uses the word “chastens” in place of "disciplines" – the Hebrew meaning includes the negative concepts of chastening and punishing, as well as the positive concepts of correcting, teaching, and instructing.
In the New Testament book of Hebrews, chapter 12, verses 5-11, it says this:
“Do not make light of the Lord’s discipline (chastisement, correction, instruction, teaching), and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father. . . .our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness.
No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those WHO HAVE BEEN TRAINED BY IT.”
We don’t like discipline (or chastisement, punishment, correction, instruction or teaching) any more than our kids do! It’s not pleasant! Sometimes it’s downright painful! (Remember time outs? Or spankings? Or a week of grounding? Or losing allowance or a privilege because of disobedience?).
But the author of Hebrews tells us that the Lord's discipline is PROOF that He actually loves us because He is treating us like one of His own children!
But the author of Hebrews tells us that the Lord's discipline is PROOF that He actually loves us because He is treating us like one of His own children!
And His discipline is accomplishing a good purpose – WHEN we allow ourselves to be TRAINED BY IT!
That good purpose is a harvest of righteousness and peace in us!
Knowing that God's discipline is a sign of His love and that His discipline has a good purpose, makes the discipline easier to bear, doesn’t it?
v.6 Observe the commands of the Lord your God,
- walking in his ways ( this word has the meaning of a journey – not a short stroll, but a life long, long distance walk)
- revering him (the King James translation renders this word as “fearing” )
WHY keep on walking in God’s ways and fearing Him?
For the Lord your God is bringing you into that good land He promised you! (v. 7-9)
And that’s what He wanted them to continue doing once they got there!
Now the warning of the potential desert prosperity can cause!
v.10 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land he has given you
V.11 Be careful that you don’t forget the Lord your God,
- failing to observe his commands, laws and decrees that I am giving you this day
V.12-14 Otherwise,
- when you eat and are satisfied,
- when you build fine houses and settle down;
- when your herds and flocks grow large;
- your silver and gold increase; and all you have is multiplied,
THEN your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery
V.15-16 He led you through a vast and dreadful desert, that thirsty and waterless land, with venomous snakes and scorpions;
- He brought you water out of hard rock
- He gave you manna to eat in desert
- to humble you and to test you so that in the end it might go well with you
v.17 You may say to yourself (IN PRIDE)
- ‘MY power and the strength of MY hands have produced this wealth for me’
v.18 But remember the Lord your God
- for it is HE who gives you the ability to produce wealth and
- so confirms his covenant (in blessing), which he swore to your forefathers, as it is today
v.19-20 If you EVER forget the Lord your God
- And follow other gods and worship or bow down to them,
- I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed, like the nations the Lord destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying Lord
In times of prosperity, we need to be alert to the danger of forgetting God.
There are a number of examples of this danger that play out on the pages of the Bible:
One is from the life of King David. David was about 50 years old when the majority of his enemies had been conquered and the land of Israel was united in the land of promise.
- 2 Sam. 11:1 “In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab. . . David remained in Jerusalem.” David and the land of Israel were experiencing a time of success. With no major wars to fight, instead of going out with his army, perhaps it was a bored David who saw Bathsheba bathing on her roof, committed adultery with her and then arranged for her husband to be killed to cover his sin when she became pregnant by him.
Then there was David’s son, Solomon. There were no major wars during his reign . He had the blessing of using the materials his father collected to build the temple in Jerusalem. He also spent 13 years building a lavish palace for himself.
When Solomon was about to be king, the Lord asked him what he wanted and Solomon asked for wisdom to rule well. Pleased with his request, God granted Solomon a wisdom that was renown in the world of his day. But during his prosperous and peaceful reign – Solomon forgot God’s Word – which warned kings not to have too many wives or they would lead him astray.
- 1 Kings 11:1 King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharoah’s daughter – Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians & Hittites. They were from nations about which the Lord had told the Israelites. “You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your heart after their gods. Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had 700 wives & 300 concubines" and they did lead him astray!
After Solomon’s death, the kingdom of Israel was divided by civil war and eventually the 10 tribes of Israel that lived in the north were carried away into idolatry, and then exile, and were never reunited with the two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin.
Then there is the example Jesus gave in the parable recorded in Luke 12:15-21.
The man was so prosperous in his harvest that he couldn’t even store all he produced in his current barn, so he decided to build a bigger one. But while he was busy amassing his wealth, he had forgotten all about God. On that very day, he died, and someone else inherited his possessions because he cared more about his earthly wealth at the expense of his soul.
IN TIMES OF PROSPERITY, WE NEED TO BE ALERT TO THE DANGER OF FORGETTING GOD.
Are you living in a time of prosperity, where everything is going RIGHT? Then praise the Lord for it, and then answer the following question:
· What can you do to remember God’s faithfulness, keep His commands, consistently walk in His ways and revere Him so that your time of prosperity doesn’t become a DESERT?
I LOVE studying the Old Testament, but not everyone sees the value in studying it. I once taught a Bible study on the life of King David and someone had decided not to come because she thought studying the Old Testament was a waste of time. Oh, what she was missing! The Old Testament is FULL of very practical lessons, encouragement, exhortation, and challenge – because we share similar desert experiences with the people of Israel, including the DESERT OF PROSPERITY!
The work the Lord was doing in and through Israel’s desert experiences, He’s still doing today in OUR desert experiences!
It’s also important to study the Old Testament because GOD says so!
The Apostle Paul actually affirms that Israel’s example is worth studying because their example is actually recorded specifically FOR US!
· I Corinthians 10:6-11
o “Now these things (in Israel’s history), occurred as examples to keep US from setting OUR hearts on evil things as they did.
o Do not be idolaters, as some of them were; as it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in pagan revelry’. (speaking of the worshiping of the golden calf at the foot of Mt. Sinai)
o We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did – and in one day 23,000 of them died (Numbers, chapter 25).
o We should not test the Lord, as some of them did –and were killed by snakes.
o And do not grumble, as some of them did. . .
o These things happened to them AS EXAMPLES
o AND WERE WRITTEN DOWN AS WARNINGS FOR US, ON WHOM THE FULFILLMENT OF THE AGES HAS COME!”
So, we DARE not take Israel’s bad examples lightly! What they did could easily happen to us as well – IF we forget the Lord – as THEY forgot the Lord!
So here is a summary of some of the lessons we’ve looked at in these 3 blogs:
- Desert experiences are designed by God to foster our dependence on Him.
- Desert experiences are designed by God to PROVE (test) the faith we say is in our hearts, whether we will obey Him or not.
- Desert experiences are designed by God for our good, as a form of discipline.
- God’s discipline is proof that He loves us
- Desert experiences can be negative, including things like loneliness, loss, and need; but they can also come about in times of prosperity and blessing where pride is the greatest temptation.
- Desert experiences test whether or not we will faithfully walk in God’s ways and revere Him, even when we don’t know what He’s doing.
What desert experience are you going through now? Prosperity? Loneliness? Doubt? Disobedience? Fear? Loss? Insecurity?
Which one lesson God was teaching Israel through her desert might He want YOU to learn in yours?
- Could it be that He wants you to depend more on HIM and less on your own abilities and natural strength?
- Could it be that there is an area where you know you need to obey but have been dragging your feet?
- Could it be that He wants you to walk more faithfully in His ways in some area of your life?
- Could it be that He wants you to live by every word that proceeds out of His mouth – and let Him take care of providing all you need daily?
Heb. 12:11 “No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those WHO HAVE BEEN TRAINED BY IT.”
When we are in a desert, the question always is, WILL WE ALLOW THE LORD TO USE IT TO TRAIN US IN THE WAY HE HAS IN MIND, so that His discipline produces a harvest of righteousness and peace?
Desert experiences are no fun, but they can be times of great spiritual growth, if we continue to seek the Lord and allow Him to train us through them. Who wouldn't want their lives to produce a harvest of righteousness and peace?
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