TVCC Students,
Well, we made it home from camp and are now in full swing of summer. Last night Sonny took us through Deuteronomy 4 and the implications of this passage are so relevant to where we are as believers in Jesus. The Lord was warning the people through Moses to be on the alert and "watch" themselves so that they would not be led away from pure devotion to the Lord. What a great reminder for each of us. Here is a recap from last night:
Deuteronomy 4:1-24
~4:1-8: God was giving the commands to Israel so that they would live and be able to take possession of the land that He was wanting to give them. Just as with Israel, God's ways are for our good and His glory. He is the perfect Father, always wanting the best for His children. At times, we, in our finite wisdom, might not understand why He calls us away from certain things, but we must trust that His ways are higher than ours (Isaiah 55:8-9) and that He really does know what is best for us. Verses 1-8 are reminders to Israel of the faithfulness of the Lord and serve to remind them that seeking the Lord is the wisest thing they can do. Satan would use other nations to try and steer them away from the Lord, but nothing would satisfy them and keep them safe unless the Lord was behind it. The same is true for us. Satan tries to use things of this world to deter us from wholehearted devotion to the Lord but nothing other than presence of Christ will satisfy us fully and completely!
Q: Do you notice the ploys of satan to distract you from following the Lord wholeheartedly? What specifically does he use in your life to try and keep you from enjoying the presence of Jesus?
~4:9: After reminding Israel of how wonderful their life is by having a God so near to them, the Lord calls them to action. He calls them to give heed to themselves and keep their souls diligently! He calls them to remember what their eyes have seen and to not let those things depart from their heart. There is such a correlation (for both Israel and us today) between what eyes see and what the heart is led to love and be devoted to. If our eyes are continually focused on the Lord and His greatness, it is much easier for our hearts to stay in worship of Him. When our eyes are constantly on things of the world and the things that satan promises will offer satisfaction, it is so easy for our hearts to turn to those empty things to find fulfillment. God is calling Israel to remember how easy it was for them to be led astray from devotion to Him. The call is the same for us today. Ephesians 5:15-21 calls us believers in Christ to be careful how we walk! God has always been wanting His children to watch themselves carefully to make sure that they are not being led astray!
Q: What have your eyes been focusing on lately? What has your heart been led to worship and meditate on lately? What helps you to keep your heart focused on the Lord? What deters you from steadfast worship of Him?
~4:10-11: God calls Israel to remember the day that He chose them and was calling them to follow Him into the promised land. The same is true for us who believe in Christ. We are called to remember how we were all miserable, wretched, poor, blind, and naked (Rev. 3) and He saved us. We were dead in our trespasses and sins and He made us alive (Eph. 2:5). Our salvation was His doing. By His grace we have been healed. Let us remember this constantly and let this truth lead us to living thankful lives for the Lord, our Redeemer!
Q: Have you pondered lately where you were before Christ came to redeem you? Have you spent time thanking Him lately for His choosing of you?
~4:12-14: After the Lord chose to make a great nation out of Israel, He gave them His Word (ten commandments) that they might know Him and please Him. His Word was supposed to draw them nearer to Him. His Word reveals His heart and character. The same is true for us. The Lord has given us His Word in human form, in Jesus, and when we look to Him, we see the glory of the One who chose us and gave us life. Through the bible, we see who Jesus was/is and we can see what pleases the Lord. Philippians 3 reminds us that the best thing for us is to pursue and know Christ. One of the best ways to do this is through meditation on the Scriptures and asking the Lord to reveal Himself to us through His written word. This will help keep us from being trapped by the schemes of satan.
Q: What does it look like for you to pursue Christ on a daily basis? When you look at your daily life, do you see someone who is diligently pursuing the Lord or is something else captivating your heart?
~4:15-19: After reminding them of His Word given to them, the Lord calls Israel to be careful to not be led astray to worship the empty things that surrounding nations were prone to worship. We will do well to heed this call. So many things are vying for our worship and devotion: money, sex, materialism, pride, success, etc. We have a plethora of idols that are worshipped in our country today and while some of those things are not inherently bad, if we seek to find our complete fulfillment and satisfaction in them, we will be left empty and disappointed. Only Jesus will truly satisfy us. In His presence is fullness of joy (Psalm 16). The things He gives us to enjoy should lead us to worship Him not be objects of worship themselves.
Q: Have you been worshipping the Lord or things lately? What does it look like for you to worship idols in your own life?
~4:20- Just as Israel was the chosen nation of the Lord, so we are His chosen people through faith in the blood of Christ on our behalf. 1 Peter 2:9 is such a precious passage for us to meditate on and for us to cling to when we are faced with temptations. We are His. We have a calling. Our lives are supposed to proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light!! Life is not aimless or purposeless!
Q: Is your life proclaiming His excellencies? What does it look like for your life to proclaim His excellencies? Are there any changes that you feel called to make so that your life can declare His glory?
~4:21-24: The last part in this section is a THIRD reminder for Israel to watch themselves carefully! How quick they were to forget the redemption of the Lord from the slavery of Egypt. How quick we are to forget our redemption from the wrath coming against us because of our rebellious nature! Let us remember His redemption and be led to live lives of thankful worship to the Savior who endured the wrath of God on our behalf so that we could have eternal life!!
Q: Have you meditated lately on what Christ went through for you? What does it look like for you to "watch yourself" and make sure that you are walking in a manner that is pleasing to the Lord?
Dear Students,
We are so thankful for each of you. We love getting to worship Jesus with you on Wednesday evenings and to hear what the Lord is doing in your lives throughout the week. We are excited to go through Passion and Purity with you all on Sunday nights for the rest of the summer. We are praying for you this week- that you would watch yourselves closely and walk near to the Lord through the power of His Spirit. We pray that you will spend time meditating on Him and His greatness and will thus ready to fight off the schemes of the enemy. We love you all!
With hope,
~Sonny and Casi
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