God Speaks
Moses’ Teaching Regarding Clean/Unclean Food, Tithes, Debts, First Born Animals, the Passover and Other Festivals
Verse of the Day: [Oh, that our nation’s judges, other public officials and private citizens would live according to these verses.] ” . . . and they shall judge the people fairly. Do not pervert justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the innocent. Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD your God is giving you.” (Deuteronomy 16:18-20 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding Deuteronomy 14-16:
1. What does this chapter tell me about God?
2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?
Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.
Deuteronomy 14
1. God, like any good father would, teaches His children what is good for them to eat and what is not.
2. People are to provide for those who have no means of providing for themselves.
[The author of this blog is indebted to Dennis Prager for insight into this chapter, particularly from pages 237-249 in The Rational Bible: Deuteronomy.]
Deuteronomy 15
1. God is concerned about how creditors deal with those indebted to them, how His people treat the poor, and that His people dedicate the first of their crops and flocks to Him.
2. People tend to be selfish, miserly, or stingy, but they can overcome these tendencies by obeying God.
Deuteronomy 16
1. God wants His people to remember and be grateful; thus, He established the three holy days of Passover, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths.
2. People need rituals and routines to help them to remember and to be grateful.
Prayer:
3. How might I pray regarding Deuteronomy 14-16?
LORD God, thank You for adopting me into Your family because I have put my faith in what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross. Thank You, Jesus, for taking on the punishment my sins deserved. Thanks for giving me the indwelling Holy Spirit: His presence enables me to live the life You intended for me all along. Help me to follow You. Your choosing me makes me responsible to correctly reflect You and Your ways, but it does not make me superior to other people. In fact, it often points out how much I frequently fall short of following You, Jesus. Please help me to mourn properly, to eat what is good and not eat what consumes some other creature. Help me to treat animals kindly but not put them above people. I determine to worship You, LORD God, the way You choose. The scriptures show me how. I am not to blindly follow man-made rules or ideologies. May I use the money and possessions You allow me to have to bless others and not just accumulate them for myself. Use me to bless others for Your glory, LORD.
Thank You, LORD God, that You have blessed me abundantly so that I am able to loan or give to others. May I be especially caring toward fellow believers who are in need. Thank You for making me Your special possession. Help me to be careful to obey all of Your commands. May I bless or lend to others without demanding compensation. Help me to stay out of debt–except to You, Jesus, whom I could never repay. Help me to be understanding and generous with those who are poor instead of being hard-hearted or tightfisted. Keep me from following my human nature to be selfish, mean-spirited, or lazy. I know that You will eventually reward me if I give generously to those in need. If someone leaves my employ, I acknowledge You by giving them a generous severance package. Help me to be a faithful employee and/or a reasonable employer. I agree that a servant who is faithful over time is more valuable than a temporary worker who just does things for the pay. Help me to be the former and really care about my employer. May my love for You cause me to dedicate the best of all I have to You, LORD. Your commands and instructions are meant to help me respect the life force and needs of both people and animals. Everything I say and do is meant to bring glory to You, LORD.
Dear LORD God who directs His people to remember and celebrate, I am grateful that You, Jesus, ransomed me out of slavery to sin, self, and Satan. Now, Holy Spirit, help me to follow God’s instructions to rejoice in the midst of all circumstances. I realize that the best way for me to express my gratitude is how I reach out to help others be happy and provided for or protected. Thank You, Jesus, for being the ultimate Passover sacrifice. You made it possible for God the Father to exercise justice and then extend compassion to all human beings (myself included). I determine to rejoice before You, LORD, at special times like the feasts of trumpets, harvest, or booths. I pledge to give or do whatever I can to help my spouse, my sons and daughters, male and female servants, religious workers, civil servants, sojourners, the fatherless, and widows be happy as well. Please expose all corruption and bring evildoers to justice. You declare that vengeance belongs to You, and You will repay. You alone, LORD God, are to be worshiped and revered. Glory to Your holy name. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Deuteronomy 14-16?
- I will thank God for making me His child and special treasure.
- I will examine my budget and confer with the LORD as to how I should set aside money both for the furtherance of the Kingdom of God and for those who cannot provide for themselves.
- I will work hard so that I am not in debt to anyone other than God.
- I will treat those who work for me well so that they will want to stay with me.
- I will read The Rational Passover Haggadah by Dennis Prager to better understand how and why Passover is celebrated.
- I will investigate how and why the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Booths are celebrated and participate in them as a guest if possible.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.