DCLM DAILY MANNA DEVOTIONAL FOR JANUARY 19, 2023 (DIVIDENDS OF OBEDIENCE)
TOPIC: DIVIDENDS OF OBEDIENCE
Text: Deuteronomy 4:1-9 (KJV)
Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers giveth you.
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.
3 Your eyes have seen what the Lord did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, the Lord thy God hath destroyed them from among you.
4 But ye that did cleave unto the Lord your God are alive every one of you this day.
5 Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.
6 Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.
7 For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our God is in all things that we call upon him for?
8 And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
9 Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;
KEY VERSE: – (Deuteronomy 4:1)
“Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you.”
MESSAGE
A general in the army wanted to do a social experiment to prove that people would respect him whether he wore his uniforms or not. He instructed his driver to carry a junior officer in his personal car that was equipped with sirens. Meanwhile, he sneaked out in his friend’s car in mufti.
To his amazement, everyone saluted the junior officer and no one noticed him in his friend’s car while in mufti. He found out that people respected and showed allegiance to his office once he wore his uniform, but as soon as he wore civillian clothes, he was treated as an ordinary person.
Moses, in rehearsing the laws of God to the would-be inheritors of the Promised Land, made them to understand that it was only in keeping of God’s word that their preservation in the land was guaranteed. It was like giving them a complete manual or owner’s guide that would enable them to maximise their enjoyment of the privileges God had in store for them in the Promised Land.
God demanded full obedience to His word from them. They were charged to neither add (any superstition or human idea) to the word nor deduct (by omission any inconvenient part) from it.
The Israelites needed to be reminded of the grievous judgment that was visited on those who indulged in idolatry at Baalpeor and also the impudent Israelite and Medianitish lady slain by Phinehas to which they were witnesses. They had also witnessed the blessings of obedience as was the case of Phinehas and the Levites.
In God’s economy, God’s blessing and punishment are conditional. Once a person fulfils the condition of His promise, he/she is bound to receive the dividends of obedience. However, when a person flaunts the commandments, he/she reaps the attendant consequences.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Complete obedience to God compels divine blessings.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Exodus 8-11
Daily Manna is the daily devotional of the Deeper Christian Life Bible Ministry (DCLM) written by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi. It is an extraction of God’s Word designed to draw the sincere seeker closer to God on a daily basis through an insightful exposition and analysis of God’s Word.
