A Matter of Life or Death
Notes
Transcript
Order of Service
Order of Service
Welcome
Welcome
Prayer
Prayer
Hymn -
Hymn -
Notices
Notices
Prayer Meeting - 7:30pm
Friday 7pm - Online
Sunday Morning 11am & 6pm
Tithes & Offerings - £
Main Prayer
Main Prayer
Hymn -
Hymn -
Reading
Reading
“And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you, and return to the Lord your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have mercy on you, and he will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you. If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there he will take you. And the Lord your God will bring you into the land that your fathers possessed, that you may possess it. And he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. And the Lord your God will put all these curses on your foes and enemies who persecuted you. And you shall again obey the voice of the Lord and keep all his commandments that I command you today. The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul. “For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it. “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
Sermon
Sermon
Moses sermon reaches a climax
Even if they sin and the Lord judges and scatters them
if they truely return to him, he will restore them
Repentance and Restoration (v1-5)
Repentance and Restoration (v1-5)
“And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the Lord your God has driven you, and return to the Lord your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul, then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes and have mercy on you, and he will gather you again from all the peoples where the Lord your God has scattered you. If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there the Lord your God will gather you, and from there he will take you. And the Lord your God will bring you into the land that your fathers possessed, that you may possess it. And he will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers.
Repentence & Obedience
“with all your heart and with all your soul”
“return to the Lord your God, you and your children, and obey his voice”
This promise was of great encouragement to those who believed it
It is repeated again in Jeremiah 29:12-14 - in exile in Babylon
Daniel’s prayer, in ch 9 of his book, expresses it
… For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”
Loving God and God Delighting (v6-10)
Loving God and God Delighting (v6-10)
And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live. And the Lord your God will put all these curses on your foes and enemies who persecuted you. And you shall again obey the voice of the Lord and keep all his commandments that I command you today. The Lord your God will make you abundantly prosperous in all the work of your hand, in the fruit of your womb and in the fruit of your cattle and in the fruit of your ground. For the Lord will again take delight in prospering you, as he took delight in your fathers, when you obey the voice of the Lord your God, to keep his commandments and his statutes that are written in this Book of the Law, when you turn to the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Disobedience flows from a heart of Rebellion
Obedience flows from a heart of Love
Outward obedience without a circumcised heart is hypocrisy and rebellion
“The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live”
“The Lord your God will put all these curses on your foes and enemies who persecuted you”
God will bless the repentant heart and soul
Life and Good, Death and Evil (v11-15)
Life and Good, Death and Evil (v11-15)
“For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it. “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.
It is a call to Love God and obey his voice and hold fast to him (v20)
“We love because he first loved us” 1 John 4:19
“this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you”
“neither is it far off”
Paul in Romans 10 quoted Leviticus 18:5 of righteousness that is based on the law
For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.
Paul then quotes in v6 from Deut 30:12-14
But the righteousness based on faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down)
return....
“For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it. “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.
Moses is laying ephasis on love for God
Love from God arises from faith
faith arises from seeing all that God has done in his love and the promises that are attached to his gracious acts
Moses is calling for a response of faith and love
Paul makes the same call, but naturally bases his call on the fullest expression of God’s love as seen in the gift, death and resurrection of Jesus
Abraham “believed the Lord. and he counted it to him as Righteousness” (Gen 15:6)
This does not mean Abraham didn’t need to obey God....
“Walk before me, and be blameless” (Gen 17:1)
For I have chosen him, that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice, so that the Lord may bring to Abraham what he has promised him.”
Moses makes clear in Deuteronomy, faith that issues in love will also issue in “walking in God’s ways” and “keeping his commandmets”
There is a significant difference between trying to make oneself righteous before God by keeping his law...
and having become account righteous by faith, walking in the righteous way that the law prescribed out of love for God and thankfulness for his mercy
The Continuing Choice (v16-20)
The Continuing Choice (v16-20)
If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
A valuable model for evangelism
No extended pressure put either on emotion or the will
A clear, straightfroward setting out the options
Left in no doubt of what the Word of God says to them
Stated warmly, with a heartfelt plea to make the right choice
Setting out the truth that makes the right choice obvious
This second-generation had grown up as God’s people and they took it for granted that they belonged to the LORD
Here was a challenge for them to affirm from the heart their commitment to love Him
Children growing up in a Christian family need to hear the same call to definite commitment
The people are going into Canaan
New temptations would arise
New challenges to their faith and obedience to the LORD
Will they remain faithful?
Hymn -
Hymn -
Q&A
Q&A
Hymn -
Hymn -
Closing Prayer
Closing Prayer
Doxology
Doxology
