Deuteronomy 4:1-9, as we saw, was a powerful expression of not merely the nation’s special status but of its missionary calling, as well. Woven all through those verses is the idea that they need to obey, to follow, to do what the Lord commanded them to do.

Read again Deuteronomy 4:6. What specifically does the Lord say is their “wisdom” and “understanding” in the eyes of these nations?

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At first glance it might seem as if the statutes and judgments themselves were what contained the wisdom and understanding. But that’s not what the text says. The Lord had taught them statutes and judgments, yes; but their wisdom and understanding came from their keeping them, from their obeying them. Their obedience — that was their wisdom and understanding.

Israel could have had the most wonderful system of law and rules and regulations the world had ever seen (in fact, it did), but what good would it all be if Israel didn’t follow it? Instead, their wisdom, their understanding, came from the real-time manifestation of God’s laws in their lives. They were to live out the truths that the Lord had given them, and they could do that only by obeying them. All the light and all the truth wasn’t going to do them or the pagans around them any good if Israel didn’t live out that truth. Hence, over and over again they are called to obey, because their obedience to the statutes and judgments, not the statutes and judgments themselves, was what mattered, in terms of being a witness to the world.

“Their obedience to the law of God would make them marvels of prosperity before the nations of the world. He who could give them wisdom and skill in all cunning work would continue to be their teacher, and would ennoble and elevate them through obedience to His laws. If obedient, they would be preserved from the diseases that afflicted other nations and would be blessed with vigor of intellect. The glory of God, His majesty and power, were to be revealed in all their prosperity. They were to be a kingdom of priests and princes. God furnished them with every facility for becoming the greatest nation on the earth.” — Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 288.

Read Matthew 5:13-16. In these verses, what is Jesus saying to us that reflects the same thing He had said to ancient Israel? How, especially, should this apply to us as Seventh-day Adventists?

<–Wednesday Friday–>

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This video is produced by the South Pacific Division Discipleship team.

Week 6_ For What Nation is There so Great?_ study this lesson for Nov 6 from SPD Discipleship on Vimeo.

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You can view an in-depth discussion of For What Nation is there so Great? in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. Click on the image to view:

With thanks to Hope Channel – Television that will change your life.

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What follows in the next few verses after Deuteronomy 4:4 are some of the most profound and beautiful texts in all Scripture (the Hebrew is magnificent!). One could argue that, in essence, the message of Deuteronomy is found right here, and everything else is commentary. As you read these texts, think about various ways the principle here could be applied to us today, as well.

Read Deuteronomy 4:5-9. Why would the Lord through Moses have said what He did here to Israel?

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The Lord wants the people to realize that they have been called, chosen, for a special reason. They are a “great” nation, just as God had told Abram right from the first call out of the Chaldees that, “I will make you a great nation” (Genesis 12:2; see also Genesis 18:18).

But the purpose of making them great was that they could be a “blessing” ( Genesis 12.2-3). And though the ultimate blessing would be that Jesus, the Messiah, would come through their bloodline, until then they were to be the light of the world. “I will also give You as a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6). Not that salvation was found in them, but that, through them, the true God, who alone can save, was to be revealed.

Israel was worshiping and serving the God who created the cosmos, the Lord of heaven and earth; the pagans were worshiping rocks, stones, wood, and demons (Deuteronomy 32:17, Psalm 106:37).

What a stark difference!

In these verses, Moses pointed to two things that made Israel special. First, the Lord was near to them, as He was in a unique way such as through the sanctuary, and second, because of the “statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law” (Deuteronomy 4:8).

Read Deuteronomy 4:32-35. What else was the Lord saying to them that should have made them realize what a special calling they had been given?

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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Thousands died in the sin with Baal Peor. “All the men who followed Baal Peor” were destroyed. However, many didn’t follow in the apostasy.

Who were they?

“But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day” (Deuteronomy 4:4). How does this text explain the difference between those who fell into sin and those who didn’t? What’s the important message for us here regarding sin and temptation and the power of God in our lives?

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Notice the contrast between the word “all” in this verse and the verse before. “All” who followed after Baal Peor were destroyed; but “every one of you” who did cleave to the Lord was alive. There was no middle ground then, and there is none now, either. We’re either for or against Jesus (Matthew 12:30).

The Hebrew word for “did cleave,” dbq, often points to a strong commitment to adhere to something outside of oneself. The same Hebrew word root is used in Genesis 2:24, when a man shall leave his family and “cleave” unto his wife (see also Ruth 1:14). It, in this context, appeared four more times in Deuteronomy (Deuteronomy 10:20, Deuteronomy 11:22, Deuteronomy 13:4, Deuteronomy 30:20), and in each case the idea was the same: they, the people, were to cleave (cling) to their God. That is, they were to give themselves to Him and to draw power and strength from Him.

What’s important to remember is that the people themselves are the subject of the verb: they must do the cleaving. They must make the choice to “cleave” to God and then, in His power and strength, avoid falling into sin.

Read  Jude 24 and 1 Corinthians 10:13. What is being said here in the New Testament that also is found in Deuteronomy 13:4?

God is faithful; God is able to keep us from falling. But we have to make the conscious choice, as did the faithful at Baal Peor, to cleave to God. If so, then we can be assured that, whatever the temptation, we can remain faithful.

<–Monday Wednesday–>

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