Freedom For Today

Take a moment to read the entire chapter of Deuteronomy 21 before reading the devotional below.

Reading the law book of an ancient civilization is an odd thing to do. Yet here we are, reading Deuteronomy and understanding it to be the inspired word of God. Today is a good reminder that the Bible is not like any other book. It is not even like other ancient civilization’s law books (if we even had access to others…). No, the Bible is the way that God has chosen to reveal himself. As such, we need to read it with this question in mind: “What is God trying to tell us about himself?”

If you read today’s passage as you would a regular book, it would probably be off-putting to your modern sensibilities. If you read it asking about the character of God, you get something much deeper: God demands human decency. There are four examples in this chapter — finding a dead body, taking in a prisoner of war, having a firstborn son who’s not your favorite, and having a rebellious son. Interestingly, the first three are offered protection. God makes them honor the dead, the female prisoners of war, and the less-than-favored firstborn son. All of them have rights in God’s book. However, the rebellious son gets stoned to death. Evil requires no protection.

No one is perfect, so receiving God’s protection does not mean you are sinless. However, there are some situations in which you are innocent, such as being a victim of murder, war, or an unloving father. Some of you have been victimized as well, and in that place God is 100% interested in restoring your dignity and worth. The evil you invite into your life, on the other hand, God will not allow to fester. Sin will always take you down and cause you to forfeit the good God has given you. Following God isn’t about being perfect, but it is always in our best interest to stay lined up with God’s ways. We are always protected when we stay near to him.

Take a moment to read Deuteronomy 20 before reading the devotional below.

When I was a young teenager, one of my first chores was mowing the lawn.  One day, when I’d been mowing the lawn for an entire summer, we ran out of gas.  Rather than having to get gas, I decided to use the weed wacker to mow the lawn. When I was done, the lawn was an uneven, jagged mess.  Some areas were cut so low you could see the dirt. Other areas were so long that it looked like they hadn’t been cut at all. When my dad got home, he took one look at the lawn and made me do it again.  This time, I had to get gas and use the lawnmower. “Sometimes you can do the right job in the wrong way,” he said as he sent me on my way.

In Deuteronomy 20, God gives the Israelites instructions on how to do war properly.  He gives three basic rules. First, when going to war, trust in God. He wants to make sure that the Israelites don’t trust in their armies, or their generals.  If they win, they will win because God is on their side. Second, he tells them to try and make peace with any town before they attack it. War is a last resort.  Finally, he tells them that if they do have to go to war with a town, they are to execute all the men in the town. That’s a heavy command, and many people have wondered why God would command such a thing.  Once again, God does not explain. One principle that God often refers to is the obvious fact that any enemy has the potential to be a future temptation. Any enemy town that is left in the middle of Israelite territory might eventually tempt God’s people away from God’s leadership.  God commands his people to go to any lengths necessary to prevent that from happening.  Perhaps that is what God is thinking here.

As surely as he knew that his people would eventually have to go to war, he knows the complications that are coming up in your future.  God’s wisdom is enough to guide you through those difficult times. God’s word offers wise principles that can help you navigate those complicated moments of life.  The challenge is to make sure that we devote ourselves to knowing God’s word before things become difficult, so that when they do we know what God would say to us.

Take a moment to read Deuteronomy 19 before reading the devotional below.

“Tag you’re it!”  began one of my favorite games as a kid.  Unfortunately, there were only two kids in my family: my sister and me.  Tag with two people is always a complicated game of tagging and tagging back.  In elementary school, however, there were giant groups of kids playing tag at recess.  Then the games got interesting, and a new element was introduced. We called it “goo,” though I have no idea why.  Other people called it “base” or “home.” Regardless of what it was called, it was the safe place. It was the one place that you couldn’t get tagged.  

Deuteronomy explores issues of justice that contain an intriguing parallel to “goo.”  They were called “cities of refuge.” The idea was that if someone accidentally commits murder, then there should be some way of being safe from vengeance or justice.  So God instituted the “cities of refuge.” In essence, they were a safe place that accidental criminals could flee to for mercy. They were a place that stood for all the virtues that are higher than and greater than justice, like grace.  God wanted his people to know that if you run in the right direction, you can always find the mercy and grace that you need.

Those cities of refuge played another role for God’s people. They stood as a living symbol of what God was ultimately going to offer his people in Jesus.  Jesus would be the one person to whom any human being could run for mercy at any time and in any place. There is nothing that you have done that Jesus mercy can’t cover.  There’s nothing in your past that Jesus’ grace can’t overcome. The only question is: will you run in the right direction? Will you run away from Jesus or will you run towards him?

Take a moment to read Deuteronomy 18 before reading the devotional below.

“Pastor, I wanted to talk to you..” I have had people say this to me over the phone, via facebook messenger and in a text.  Unbeknownst to me, they have often been working up to it. They are preparing themselves to share something deeply personal or to seek counsel in an area of life that is incredibly sensitive.  That’s why I often find myself turning the text or message into a meeting. I want to sit down, listen to the whole story, and then be able to ask a lot of questions. Each time I hear that opening comment, I am reminded of the power and influence that religious leaders have.  I am also reminded of the responsibility those same leaders have.

In Deuteronomy 18 God is using Moses to continue to teach the Israelites about godly leadership.  In this case, most of the chapter is focused on priests and prophets. The priests, or Levites, were the only people in the nation who had not received an inheritance of land.  The inheritance of land was intended to ensure that God’s people never fell into poverty – they could always grow their own food. The Levites, however, were a family unit or tribe that had not been given land.  Instead they were given the special privilege of receiving the sacrificial animals from the rest of the nation. So when an Israelite sacrificed a sheep or cow to God, the Levite was given food from that. What’s the point?  Religious leaders have practical needs, and God always wants those need provided for. Second, God talks about prophets. Simply put, God reminds his people that he has exceptionally high standards for leaders who claim to represent God.   

In this chapter God shows his love for the leaders and the followers among his people. He creates systems and structures that provide for and protect both.  As a follower of Jesus you can be confident that all his plans are in your best interests. He doesn’t see any conflict between what is best for you and what is best for another one of his followers.  He is so wise that he can come up with a perfect plan that is perfectly beneficial for all his followers at the same time.

Take a moment to read Deuteronomy 17 before reading the devotional below.

In elementary school, gym class meant doing group exercises like dodgeball or Simon Says.  I always loved dodgeball, but Simon Says was always a frustrating game. I was always great at following what the leader did.  If she put her hands over her head, so did I. If he jumped on one foot, so did I. But then you had to add another layer of obedience: only copying the leader’s actions if she said “Simon says…”  I was always one of the first people to be out. I quickly followed the leader’s actions, but I frequently forgot to listen for the key phrase. Despite my failures, this was nevertheless one of my earliest experiences of learning about leadership.  

Deuteronomy 17 (really the section begins in 16:18) begins to offer a series of standards for Israelite leaders.  First, God’s people should never follow leaders who lead them away from God (17:2-7). Second, while leaders should exercise their God-given leadership with confidence, they should always have the humility to admit when they need help (17:8-13).  Finally, leaders should always see their leadership as a way of serving God so they shouldn’t take advantage of their positions (17:14-20). What is the main idea here? Leaders are God’s appointed representatives who should seek to influence accordingly.

It may be that your influence comes from your role as a family-member or a friend.  It may be the role you play at work (regardless of your official title) or the role you play in your neighborhood.  In some arena of life, God has appointed you to be a person of influence. As you grow closer to God, he will continually invite you into greater and greater levels of influence.  You can take great confidence in the fact that you have been appointed by God to the influence that you have. You can find great leverage in having the humility to align your leadership with God’s own leadership.  Combine confidence and humility in your leadership and you will eventually find leverage.