[NOTE: For those who are continuing the 1-year Bible reading plan we started on April 1, 2018, just go to the end of this entry and you will find the Day 322-Acts 24-26; Matthew 9 summary!]
Today, we turn to the fifth and final book of the Pentateuch: Deuteronomy. The name means “second Law” in Greek and signifies Moses’ second giving of the Law to the people of Israel. As we would expect, much of Deuteronomy repeats information we have already received in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers, but we will also read of laws and experiences unique to the record of Deuteronomy.
Deuteronomy 1 rehearses the forty-year history of Israel’s wilderness wanderings in one chapter. At the beginning we’re told it ought to have taken eleven days to make the journey that took forty years. We’re told of Moses appointing leaders for the tribes, and judges to help him. We’re also told of the Israelites’ rebellion against God by failing to enter the Promised Land, because the majority of the scouts who went into spy out the land reported the people were too great for them to defeat. We already know all this from the previous books of the Pentateuch, but repetition is the mother of learning.
Deuteronomy 2 rehearses more of the wanderings through the wilderness and recounts the victory over Sihon the King of Hesbon. Deuteronomy 3 retells the accounts of Israel’s victory over Og, and the division of the land east of the Jordan River. It offers us some new information regarding Moses being told he could not enter the Promised Land. Moses tells us he pleaded with God to let him enter, but God’s mind would not be changed. I have always felt bad for Moses, because he endured so much as Israel’s leader, but didn’t get to be part of entering the Promised Land. Imagine leading a group of people for forty years, when the mission ought to have taken two weeks. Imagine at the end of that lengthy and often discouraging time being told, “You have made it to the doorway of the ‘prize,’ but you can’t pass through.” I understand God’s decision to show the people how important His glory is, by not letting Moses usurp it without consequence. Even so, I feel bad for Moses, who led so long and so well, but in the end came up 50 yards short of the finish line.
In John 15, Jesus offered an analogy of how closely connected we must be to Him. He told us He is the “vine” and we are the “branches.” In the analogy, the vine is the source of all growth, health, and strength. Jesus told us as long as we abide or remain in Him we will “bear fruit.” I have always loved this analogy, because it reminds us of two vital truths: 1) It’s all about Jesus. He is the one who gets the glory for every good thing we do. We will only do good things as we stay connected to Him; and 2) Jesus expects us to bear fruit. Some have said Jesus only expects us to be “faithful” not “fruitful.” We are to do our best and that’s all that’s necessary. Here we find Jesus not only calling us to be faithful, but to be “fruitful.” He does care about our “success.” Success can be defined in many ways by the world, but for Jesus success is defined as staying connected to Him, and by doing so to produce fruit. That fruit will include our own growth as His followers, and seeing others come to know Him through our interaction in their lives.
Jesus continued the image by adding that we are His friends, not His servants. We demonstrate that friendship by loving one another. He tells us greater love has no one than to lay down our life for our friends. In less than twenty-four hours, Jesus would be laying down His life for them, so His words ring true.
Finally, Jesus told the disciples they would be hated by the world, and they ought to understand that, because the world first hated Him. If they hated Jesus, who was perfect, they would certainly hate us for representing Him, albeit imperfectly. As we follow Jesus and represent Him in the world, we must expect times when we will be rejected. Thankfully, we have the Holy Spirit to strengthen us for such times and in such times!
Day 322-Acts 24-26; Matthew 9
Acts 24 records Paul’s defense before the Roman Governor Felix. The Jews spoke first accusing Paul of crimes punishable by death, but Paul responded to the attack with calm assurances He had not done anything of which they accused him. He admitted to being a follower of “The Way,” which was the preferred name Christians had for themselves at the time. He appealed to Felix’s knowledge of the way, but Felix left the matter undecided for two years. He called for Paul frequently, hoping Paul would offer him a bribe, which he never did. When Felix was reassigned, he left Paul in prison as a favor to the Jews, which meant Paul’s fate would be decided by the next governor, Porcius Festus.
In Acts 25, Festus gives the Jews an opportunity to speak against Paul again. They made charges they couldn’t substantiate, and then Paul made his defense. Festus didn’t see any real issues, but as a favor to the Jews, he asked Paul whether he would be willing to go to Jerusalem to stand trial. Paul responded he was in Caesar’s court where he belonged, and he was willing to take any just punishment that would be decided, but he appealed to Caesar. Before Festus made a decision, King Agrippa, the Jewish figure-head king, came to visit in Caesarea. Festus told him about Paul, and also said he didn’t see anything wrong with Paul, but Paul had appealed to Caesar, so he was going to send Paul to Rome. Before doing that, Festus wanted to have a proper charge to offer the emperor. He didn’t have one. King Agrippa said he would be glad to listen to Paul, and an audience was arranged.
In Acts 26, Paul offers his defense before King Agrippa and Queen Bernice. Once again, Paul rehearses his testimony, going into greater detail, because he understood King Agrippa was of Jewish background, and knew about Jesus, and “The Way.” As Paul was talking about his Damascus road experience, Festus interrupted, shouting that Paul had gone mad, because of his extensive learning. Paul responded he was not mad and that King Agrippa was well aware of all that had happened, because it wasn’t done “in a corner.” He appealed to Agrippa’s knowledge of the prophets. Agrippa responded, “In such a short time do you think you can make me a Christian?” Paul’s response was whether it was short time or long, he wished that all people were as he was except for the chains. After the presentation, Agrippa and Festus agreed Paul had done nothing deserving of punishment, and that he could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar. Think about that. Paul could have been set if he hadn’t appealed to Caesar. Yet, the Lord had already told him he would be appearing before Caesar. Paul’s appeal was part of God’s larger plan to see the gospel preached everywhere. Sometimes, we experience challenges in our life that make no sense to us at the time, but when we put them in God’s hands, he uses them for His good. Paul’s imprisonment was nota good thing, but God used it to bring glory to Himself, because Paul submitted to His lordship even in prison.
As we return to Matthew 9, Matthew offers us another string of miracles by Jesus. The order is somewhat different than that presented by Mark or Luke, but many of the miracles are the same. Jesus heals the paralytic, for whom He also forgives his sins. He calls Matthew as a disciple raising the ire of the religious leaders. Jesus heals the woman with the flow of blood, raises a little girl from the dead, heals a couple of blind men, and a man who couldn’t speak. The power of Jesus is so obvious, and His compassion equally obvious. As the chapter ends, Jesus points out to His followers that the “harvest” is plentiful, but the laborers are few. He then tells them to pray for the Lord of the harvest to send workers into the harvest. This is such a vital and powerful prayer. We know the Lord wants everyone to be saved. We have the role of being workers in the harvest, and we’re called to work in the harvest fields ourselves. As we’ll see tomorrow, Jesus had told the apostles to prayer for workers, and then virtually immediately, He sent them into the fields to work!