One Year Bible Reading Plan and Devotional
Today’s Bible Reading: March 7
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Clicking on the Scripture links above will open a new window where you can read the scripture from the Holman Christian Standard Bible at Biblegateway.com or choose the Bible version you prefer to read. Check back each day to get the Scripture to read in the One Year Bible Reading Plan.
The Lord, He is God
Lee Strobel is a well known Christian author. One of the books he wrote is called, “The Case for Christ.” In this book he tells his own personal story of discovery that God is real and there is no other God. Strobel was an atheist. When his wife becomes a Christian, he sets out to show her that there is no God. Yet every evidence he uncovered only pointed to the truth that “the Lord, He is God.” As a result, Strobel also gave his life to Christ.
Moses Demands Obedience to God’s Commands
In Deuteronomy 4, Moses reminds Israel of God’s commandments and tells them to obey them. In the first two verses he tells them: “Now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the judgments which I teach you to observe, that you may live, and go in and possess the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you. You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.” He then reminds them of how those who chose to follow after the false god, Baal, were now dead and those those who chose to follow after God are still alive. Moses then tells them that he has taught them everything God had given to him.
The Benefits of Diligently Keeping God’s Commandments
In verses 6-9, Moses tells them the benefits to diligently keeping God’s commandments saying, “Therefore be careful to observe them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who will hear all these statutes, and say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the Lord our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him? And what great nation is there that has such statutes and righteous judgments as are in all this law which I set before you this day? Only take heed to yourself, and diligently keep yourself, lest you forget the things your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. And teach them to your children and your grandchildren.”
The benefit to the nation of Israel for keeping God’s commandments is that the nation will have God near them and they can call on Him for any reason. But the nation had the responsibility to diligently keep them and not forget what they had already seen God do for them. If they did not, the risked departing from living the holy, set-apart lives God has called them to. Moses also told them to be sure they taught God’s commandments to their children and grandchildren. When we as parent fail to train up our children in the ways of God, they will depart from God and live like the world.
The Warning against Idolatry
In verses 15-40, Moses wans them about the dangers of idolatry. When God met them at Horeb, God did not take on any shape or figure, but came to them in a pillar of fire. In J.I. Packer’s book, Knowing God, Packer quotes Charles Hodge saying, “idolatry consists not only in the worship of false gods, but also in the worship of the true God by images.” Packer then explains: “In its Christian application, this means that we are not to make use of visual or pictorial representations of the triune God, or of any person of the Trinity, for the purposes of Christian worship. The commandment thus deals not with the object of our worship, but with the manner of it; what it tell us is that statues and pictures of the One whom we worship are not to be used as an aid to worshiping Him.”
In the Ten Commandments, God said, “Thou shalt not make any likeness of any thing” for use in worship. Packer further states, “It also rules out the use of pictures and statues of Jesus Christ as a man, although Jesus himself was and remains man; for all pictures and statues are necessarily made after the “likeness” of ideal manhood as we conceive it, and therefore come under the ban which the commandment imposes.” We do not come to know God through pictures and statues of him because no one has seen God on this earth. All the pictures and statues are what we conceive God and/or Jesus to be – not who He is.
God Chooses How He Will Make Himself Known
God wants us to know Him by experiencing Him. Moses told the people in verses 35-38, “To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord Himself is God; there is none other besides Him. Out of heaven He let you hear His voice, that He might instruct you; on earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the midst of the fire. And because He loved your fathers, therefore He chose their descendants after them; and He brought you out of Egypt with His Presence, with His mighty power, driving out from before you nations greater and mightier than you, to bring you in, to give you their land as an inheritance, as it is this day.”
God knows that if He reveals Himself to us in a visual way, then we will begin to worship images of Him rather than worshiping Him. So, He makes Himself known to us as we experience Him at work in our lives.
We each must determine in our heart that the Lord, He is God
Each one of us must come to a point in life where we consider in our heart and know that God is God. God wants us to know of his goodness, greatness, and glory. He wants us to experientially know Him. Everything in creation points to Him. Every blessing He gives us. Every time He speaks to us through His Word. And every answered prayer. When we experience healing, judgment, grace, or mercy, we are experiencing God. When we surrender our battles to Him and He fights for us, we experience Him. And when we need wisdom or guidance in life, we experience our Good Shepherd.
It all points to God. The way to get to know Him is through Bible study, prayer, and experiencing Him at work in your life. You can’t know a person you don’t spend much time with. You might know about them, but you can’t truly know them.
So, have you determined in your heart that the Lord Himself is God and there is no other?
#ReadYourBible #Deuteronomy #Mark #theLord #HeisGod #obedience
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by Julia M. Bruce
What’s Inside God, Love, and Marshmallow Wars?
This book includes 365 daily activities and takes you on a guided journey through Biblical principles about Godly marriage that you can then apply to your marriage, as well as helping you talk through concepts that can help you develop a solid relationship. Inside you will find simple, quick activities that include:
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