Remembering To Forget The Lord

Remembering To Forget The Lord Deuteronomy 8:10-20 These verses have much to teach us because it accurately describes all of us to some degree. In all of our doing, how easy it becomes to remember to forget. Remembering to forget sounds like an oxymoron because remembering to forget sounds like a contradiction. You say, "You can't remember to forget. That's impossible!" Oh, but let me tell you just how possible it is. Remembering to forget is so possible that everybody does it, Christians included. That's why I called this sermon "Remembering To Forget The Lord" because of just how easy it's become. Like second nature, Remembering To Forget The Lord is perhaps the one thing that breaks God's heart more than anything else. Let me explain why. Suppose you're the parent of ungrateful children. You spend much of your time working hard and long to provide for your children, all at no cost to them. You work to provide your children with free housing, free food, free clothes, free entertainment, free shoes, free gas, even free spending money. A parent does all of this because they love their children, but oh, how frustrating and crushing it is when they become ungrateful. A spoiled child likes to complain. They don't recognize or appreciate the free gifts. Instead, all they see are the restrictions, and they want to complain. Complaining comes naturally. "How come I can't go?" "How come I can't have it?" "How come I can't stay out later?" Anybody who can understand the peril of parenting ungrateful children will begin to understand how God feels about His own ungrateful kids. God provides good things day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, just to have His children miss His goodness and His grace. "The free gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ," but that gift is rejected by many. Complaining is second nature, just look at how much complaining people do. Nothing ever seems to be good enough. And instead of remembering all of God's goodness and praising Him for it, just look at how many Christians and non-Christians complain when things don't happen as we think they should. People remember the Lord, but they also conveniently forget about Him. Nobody can deny God. Christian or not, nobody can deny God because everyone internally knows that God is real. All it takes is a look outside your window to know that God exists. That's why Romans 1:20 says, "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood from His workmanship, so that men are without excuse." Everyone is without excuse when it comes to denying God, and people are quick to Remember To Forget The Lord by pushing Him aside and trying to disprove His existence. The world pushes God aside and attempts to disprove God by means of reasoning or science. In their willingness to reject God, the world is quick to Remember To Forget The Lord by remembering to find ways that seemingly lead to the rejection of Jesus Christ. They remember the Lord because they can't deny God's existence, though they try, and they Remember To Forget The Lord by any means necessary. The problem comes when they can't disprove God because conviction sets in, and the inward battle of the heart begins to wage war upon the conscience. Even if their so-called evidence looks good on paper, it doesn't sound good in their heart. And Remembering To Forget The Lord, they push aside God's love, grace, and mercy, living as spoiled children, wanting to live their way without any consequences or accountability. Spoiled children continually want the good without having to give thanks to the giver of the good gifts. Towards the end of the NT, you'll find the small letter of James, in which is written, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like the shifting shadows" (James 1:17). Unlike God "who does not change," people are like the shifting shadows, always moving in search of ways to cover up their desire for more and more. Living in the shifting shadows of the world means living in darkness, and in one's darkness, the heavenly lights can blind those people who want the perfect gifts without having to acknowledge the Giver of those gifts. Because as soon as you acknowledge the Giver of the perfect gifts, you have to acknowledge the fact that you haven't done everything on your own; that you're not a self-made man, as some like to say. It means that not everything in your life was under your total control, and not being in complete control is something that goes against what most everyone feels to be true and necessary to live a good and successful life. This is the danger of Remembering To Forget The Lord. That in all of God's goodness and mercy, we Remember To Forget The Lord's goodness, and in doing so, we deny the fact that we so desperately need His grace and mercy because of our sinfulness. This brings conviction to all people because "all have sinned" (Romans 3:23). And in your conviction, it will either drive you closer to God, or it will harden your heart like a rebellious child, because what you accomplish depends on what you believe. That conviction you feel comes from God. The conviction of recognizing that you're not a self-made man but rather a sinner who can't do anything to earn God's salvation in Christ. That conviction tells you something in your life is missing. The conviction that, even if you're a Christian, that you've begun to fall away. The danger of Remembering To Forget The Lord is what Deuteronomy 8:10-20 is warning us about. These verses are not just aimed at unbelievers who Remember To Forget The Lord by trying to sideline Him or falsify the truth of His Word. No. These verses are aimed at those who claim to follow the Lord, but who are in danger of Remembering To Forget The Lord they follow. Remember, today's Scripture in Deuteronomy finds itself at the end of a 40-year long desert journey following the Israelites tremendous Exodus from Egyptian slavery. In today's verses, as the Israelites stand at the riverbank ready to cross over into the promised land, "a land flowing with milk and honey" (Exodus 3:17), Moses is reminding them of what God has done. Moses is reminding them because these are not the Israelites who followed Moses out of Egypt. These are their children; they're 2nd generation Israelites. And they're being reminded of what God has done because the 1st generation all died during the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness because they continually disobeyed God. These are people who have not yet seen God's power displayed or His miracles performed; they've only heard the stories. And here they stand, being reminded not to forget the Lord. God is the God of perfect gifts, such as grace, love, mercy, and forgiveness, among others. And you, like those 2nd generation Israelites, might not yet have seen nor experienced God's Almighty power, but like those 2nd generation Israelites, you also can't deny God. The warning of Remembering To Forget The Lord begins in verse 10, which says, "When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the LORD your God for the good land He has given you." When your not a Christian, it's easy to Remember To Forget The Lord when you're well-fed, and everything is going good. When life is good, when you're living on the good land in that good house, driving that good car on the way to deposit that good money in the bank, it's easy to live in those shifting shadows, neglecting your convicted conscience and need for God. Likewise, it's easy for Christians to Remember To Forget The Lord when life is going good. It's easy to take advantage of being a Kingdom citizen and a co-heir with Christ while neglecting the One who made your citizenship in God's heavenly kingdom possible in the first place. Deuteronomy 8:10 is traditionally used as the reason we say grace before each meal. But the real purpose of this verse is to remind the Israelites not to forget God when their wants and needs are being satisfied. I urge you to say grace before every meal and to use that time with God as a continual reminder of our Lord's goodness to you, and to your duty to serve and to share with those who are in need. And in the world, there's a lot of need! It's easy to Remember To Forget The Lord when life is going good. So, "Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God, failing to observe His commands, His laws and His decrees that I am giving you this day," as verse 11 tells us. You know, if you're truly honest with yourself, how many of you can honestly say that life is 100% good? That nothing is left out, damaged, or in need of changing? I don't believe any of us can say that. Christian or not, we all have hurtful memories, painful days, and un-realized dreams or goals left to be fulfilled. Being a Christian doesn't mean that waves will never rock your boat, but it does mean that the One who has the power over the waves will be in the boat with you. "Be careful and don't forget the LORD your God, His commands, His laws, and His decrees" (Deut. 8:11), "Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and 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," as Deut. 8:12-14 says. When you eat and are satisfied means when you eat and don't have to worry about when your next mean is coming from. It means eating as much as you want, when you want. Building fine houses is when you get that house, or when you finally pay it off. Herds and flocks is filling your house with all sorts of stuff. Silver and gold is making that money and having your bank account grow larger. When all that you have is multiplied, beware, because then you can find your heart growing proud and forget the Lord. The land of slavery is the land of sin, in which we all were once slaves of. Everyone is born into sin, and sin brings death. Nobody can escape sin or break its chains with their own power. Everyone also has their own Egypt, something that enslaves us, something that holds you captive. A secret sin, an addiction, a past that's always shaping your present. But for everyone who places faith in the LORD, He will bring you out of that land of slavery and into the land of freedom, forgiveness, mercy, and love. It's not just a new start; it's an entirely new life! Physical death is no longer the end because those in Christ have eternal life. God's power becomes your power to overcome your Egypt, and frees you from being a slave to sin! The next few verses tell of how God has been working, providing your freedom from slavery. He has been there all along, working in your life, even when you didn't realize it. That's why one of the very worst things you can say is found in verse 17, that "MY power and the strength of MY hands have produced this wealth for me." Remembering To Forget The Lord is only remembering yourself. And oh how easy this can be. You don't have to be rich to Remember To Forget The Lord; it can be done in the everyday business of life. Working at your job, desiring that promotion, spending time with family, hobbies, vacations, being sick, being tired, even going to church, can all become ways to Remember To Forget The Lord. These are just some of the ways people are Remembering To Forget The Lord because you remember the Lord, you just like your way better. You like your life better. You like your way of doing things better. Remembering To Forget The Lord is remembering to come to church, or watch this sermon online, but forgetting the real reason for worship. It's remembering your fear, but forgetting that faith redefines your fear. It's remembering to take care of your body, but forgetting that you are a member of Christ's body, in which you play a crucial role. It's remembering your ways, but forgetting that God's ways are higher than yours. It's remembering to pray, but forgetting to commune with God. It's remembering to read your Bible, but forgetting to let it transform you. It's remembering to pick up your Bible, but forgetting you can't pick out what you don't like. It's remembering that your pew is inside the church building, but forgetting that the world is your parish. It's remembering the Great Commission, but failing to serve. It's remembering to love your neighbor as yourself, but forgetting to serve as Christ served. It's remembering to give your offering, but forgetting to fully trust God by holding some back. It's remembering that God's grace offers forgiveness, but forgetting that God knows your heart. It's remembering the guilt of your past, but forgetting your new life in Christ who takes away your guilt. It's remembering your sins, but forgetting that God forgave your sins. Examine yourself, and ask, "In what ways do I Remember To Forget The Lord?" You're not denying God exists, you remember Him, you just don't place God first in everything. You like remembering God when it's convenient or when bad things happen. But God's not a God of convenience; He is a God of Covenant. That's why verse 18 says, "Remember the LORD your God for it is He who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms His covenant, which He swore to your ancestors, as it is today." Now don't be misled, there are plenty of poor Christians, Lord knows I'm one of them. But we are poor only in the eyes of the world because our riches are in heaven. If you have wealth, God's not blessing you with the opportunity to gain wealth just so you can lavish it upon yourself. It's not saying that God's covenant is for you to produce wealth and have worldly riches. A covenant is an agreement, and this verse is saying that God's covenantal responsibility is Him agreeing to provide freedom in Christ for "all who call upon the Name of the Lord" (Rom. 10:13). And having Christ, folks, is the richest you'll ever be! In times where you have plenty, it's easy to take credit for your prosperity and become proud of your hard work. It's easy to become so busy collecting and managing the good things in life that we push God aside. It's God who provides, and it's God who asks us to manage for Him what He provides for us. But there's a difference in being proud and being prideful. You can be proud of your hard work, your accomplishments, your achievements, your family. But pride takes our proudness and places it in front of God, blocking our view of Him, and it casts a shifting shadow over His goodness, leaving us only seeing ourselves. Being proud means managing what God has given us as His faithful stewards; being prideful means Remembering To Forget The Lord by managing things only for ourselves and for our glory, not His. Christians are God's stewards and Ambassadors, and we're blessed with a freedom only found in Christ. But we end with 2 warnings. The 1st warning is for each of us individually because God loves us individually. Verse 19 says, "If you ever forget the LORD your God and follow other gods and worship and bow down to them, I testify against you today that you will surely be destroyed." When you Remember To Forget The Lord, forget to observe His commands, laws, and decrees, freely living in your Egypt, and pushing the eternal away in favor of the temporary, you'll end in destruction. God loves and cares for each of us personally, but He also loves and cares for the nations. Which is why the 2nd warning is for the nations of the world. Verse 20 says, "Like the nations the LORD destroyed before you, so you will be destroyed for not obeying the LORD your God." We have freedom as Americans that's unlike any other country. But if you don't want to see America continue down this destructive path, then preach the LORD Jesus Christ, because He is the only way. There is no other because when a country Remembers To Forget The Lord, look at what happens. They remember to try to take God out of everything, while forgetting all that God has provided. God doesn't play favorites, and He won't allow people to live as they please forever. It's easy to find yourself Remembering To Forget The Lord. But we have a God full of grace and mercy, who is quick to forgive and restore your relationship with Him. So "Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up" (James 4:10). Remember to read your Bible, pray, and don't forget to worship God with your very lives wherever you are! "Draw near to God, and He'll draw near to you" (James 4:8). Remember the Lord, and stop forgetting that your life is hidden within His, that you're accountable for your words and actions, and that one day we'll all stand before the King of Kings. Remembering To Forget The Lord is remembering He is God, but forgetting our need and daily dependence in Him. It's remembering He is God, but forgetting that we need Him more than on Sundays or when things go bad. It's remembering to say, "have faith in Christ," but forgetting to strengthen your faith. Don't forget the Lord, but remember Him always, every day, in every way. "Be careful that you do not forget the LORD your God" (Deut. 8:11). And as the alter continually reminds us of Jesus Words, "Do this in remembrance of Me" (Luke 22:19). Stop Remembering To Forget The Lord, and start remembering the Lord by acknowledging your life is found in His for all who place saving faith in Christ Jesus for the forgiveness of sins. So remember the Lord your God and the cross of Christ, because Jesus is the only hope for our nations. Only Jesus can redeem you from the slavery of sin, break the chains of your Egypt, and place you into the promised land of His eternal Heavenly Kingdom. AMEN 2