May the mumbling commence!
It is important – yes, essential – to know where you come from. It is also essential to know who you belong to. Read from Deuteronomy chapter twenty-six:
"When you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you as a special possession and you have conquered it and settled there, put some of the first produce from each harvest into a basket and bring it to the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored. Go to the priest in charge at that time and say to him, 'With this gift I acknowledge that the Lord your God has brought me into the land he swore to give our ancestors.' The priest will then take the basket from your hand and set it before the altar of the Lord your God. You must then say in the presence of the Lord your God, 'My ancestor Jacob was a wandering Aramean who went to live in Egypt. His family was few in number, but in Egypt they became a mighty and numerous nation. When the Egyptians mistreated and humiliated us by making us their slaves, we cried out to the Lord, the God of our ancestors. He heard us and saw our hardship, toil, and oppression. So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with amazing power, overwhelming terror, and miraculous signs and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land flowing with milk and honey! And now, O Lord, I have brought you a token of the first crops you have given me from the ground.' Then place the produce before the Lord your God and worship him. Afterward go and celebrate because of all the good things the Lord your God has given to you and your household. Remember to include the Levites and the foreigners living among you in the celebration.
Every third year you must offer a special tithe of your crops. You must give these tithes to the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows so that they will have enough to eat in your towns. Then you must declare in the presence of the Lord your God, 'I have taken the sacred gift from my house and have given it to the Levites, foreigners, orphans, and widows, just as you commanded me. I have not violated or forgotten any of your commands. I have not eaten any of it while in mourning; I have not touched it while I was ceremonially unclean; and I have not offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the Lord my God and have done everything you commanded me. Look down from your holy dwelling place in heaven and bless your people Israel and the land you have given us – a land flowing with milk and honey – just as you solemnly promised our ancestors.' (Verses 1-15)
We come from the land of slavery. In fact, we live in the land of slavery… slavery to sin. But God has brought us forth from that slavery through the teachings, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Praise God!
When you prosper, praise God. When you share with people in need, praise God. When you internalize God’s Law of Love, praise God.
Remember where you have come from. Remember who you belong to. And remember and stick to the path that the Christ put before you. Indeed, remember.
It’s a life or death choice we’re talking about. Read from Deuteronomy chapter thirty:
"This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand or perform. It is not up in heaven, so distant that you must ask, 'Who will go to heaven and bring it down so we can hear and obey it?' It is not beyond the sea, so far away that you must ask, 'Who will cross the sea to bring it to us so we can hear and obey it?' The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart so that you can obey it.
Now listen! Today I am giving you a choice between prosperity and disaster, between life and death. I have commanded you today to love the Lord your God and to keep his commands, laws, and regulations by walking in his ways. If you do this, you will live and become a great nation, and the Lord your God will bless you and the land you are about to enter and occupy. But if your heart turns away and you refuse to listen, and if you are drawn away to serve and worship other gods, then I warn you now that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live a long, good life in the land you are crossing the Jordan to occupy.
Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, that you and your descendants might live! Choose to love the Lord your God and to obey him and commit yourself to him, for he is your life. Then you will live long in the land the Lord swore to give your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob." (Verses 11-20)
Here we are – up close and personal with our living Lord. How will we choose? Remember and prosper and be blessed. OR forget and suffer death and curses. The choice is clear: REMEMBER.
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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