Daily Reading
Deuteronomy 30-31
Psalms 40
1 Corinthians 1
Scripture
“In the future, when you experience all these blessings and curses I have listed for you . . .”(Deut 30:1)
“You are about to die and join your ancestors. After you are gone, these people will begin to worship foreign gods, the gods of the land where they are going. They will abandon me and break my covenant that I have made with them.” (Deut 31:16)
“There they will become prosperous, eat all the food they want, and become fat. But they will begin to worship other gods; they will despise me and break my covenant.” (Deut 31:20)
I know that after my death you will become utterly corrupt and will turn from the way I have commanded you to follow. (Deut 31:29)
Observation/Application
Wow, how depressing! Could you imagine poor Moses? “Hey, Moses, you’re going to die soon. And even though you spent the last several years suffering for these people, they’re still going to do whatever they want. But hey, just for kicks and so I can say “I told you so” I want you to teach them this song. . .” But isn’t this very similar to what Jesus went through? The HUGE difference was that Jesus was perfect and His death ACCOMPLISHED something! The WHOLE PURPOSE of Moses and the Old Testament was to show humanity that we WILL FAIL. If left to our own devices, we will always follow our own human desires. We will fail. Without Jesus, we will fail. It’s as simple as that. Why is the Old Testament so hard to read? It reminds us of our failure against God. It reminds us that WE ARE EVIL. It reminds us that we need a savior. Yes, the Old Testament is very depressing. But many who lived in those time foresaw a more beautiful time:
2 He lifted me out of the pit of despair,
out of the mud and the mire.
He set my feet on solid ground
and steadied me as I walked along.
3 He has given me a new song to sing,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see what he has done and be amazed.
They will put their trust in the Lord.
4 Oh, the joys of those who trust the Lord,
who have no confidence in the proud
or in those who worship idols.
6 You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings.
Now that you have made me listen, I finally understand[a]—
you don’t require burnt offerings or sin offerings.
7 Then I said, “Look, I have come.
As is written about me in the Scriptures:
8 I take joy in doing your will, my God,
for your instructions are written on my heart.” (Ps 40:4, 6-8) (bold mine)
David knew of a time when we would not be slaves to our sinful nature! He knew there would be a time when sacrifices would not be needed in order to talk to God. He foretold of the time when Jesus, the Word of God (instructions) would be written in our hearts. The song of Moses (Deut 32) is depressing; it says, “You are all evil and I will punish you. I AM a God of Justice” But, David had a NEW SONG to sing! The song of Jesus! The song that says, “You are evil, but punishment has already been given, you can come to me as you are. I am a God of Love and Grace.”
Prayer
Oh Jesus, how many times can I thank you for what you’ve done? Every morning I read your word and I see what it is all about! All I see is the wonderful things you accomplished through your sacrifice. Thank-you for giving me a new song to sing! Thank-you for saving me from my own sinful nature!
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