Deuteronomy 18-19 Boiling It All Down

In the middle of these laws for the Israelites, my commentary fleshed out several nuggets of divine wisdom.  Chapter 18 spoke of witchcraft and satanic worship, and I read, “If you want to worship Satan, you have to pay the price he demands.  He will give you what you want if you give him what he wants.”  But verse 13 says, “You must be blameless before the Lord your God.”  My commentary explained, “Blameless implies, not sinless perfection, but a heart totally devoted to the Lord.  It speaks of integrity and an undivided heart … It’s a serious thing to hear God’s Word and not respect it or obey it, for it is the Word of the living God, the God of truth.”

Chapter 19 tells us, “Laws can never change the human heart.  Only the grace of God can do that.”  There was a difference between intentional murder and accidentally causing the death of another, and God established cities of refuge to protect manslayers from avenging family members.  God was concerned for those who accidentally caused deaths.

One final nugget I found dealt with God’s direction to Israel to establish additional cities of refuge as their territory was enlarged by conquests.  “If we don’t obey God’s will and claim God’s promises, we can never receive all that God wants us to have.”  Israel failed to do that, and as a result it has never fully occupied all the land God had promised.  Think of the blessings we might be missing, simply because we fail to obey him and claim His promises!

Father, help me to be blameless before You, with a heart totally devoted to You.  Help me not to give Satan a foothold in my life.  Help me to obey Your will for my life and to claim the promises You’ve given me.  Don’t let me miss out on Your blessings!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford