Deuteronomy 8
McGeeCHAPTER 8THEME: God’s past dealings give assurance for the futureIn this section of the restating of the Law, we come now to the portion dealing with religious and national regulations, which will be continued through chapter 21.
Deuteronomy 8:1
Here is the new generation, standing on the east bank of the Jordan River. They are ready to cross over into the land with high anticipation and hope. As Moses is preparing them to enter the land, he encourages them to obey God.
Deuteronomy 8:2
God wants them to remember the past. They should see in the past that God has been dealing with them, that He has been testing and training them. God wants us to remember our past, too. Paul put it like this for the believer: “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Php_1:6). We are to remember that God has led us and blessed us. Isn’t this true for you? Can’t you say that God has brought you up to this very moment? If He has done that in the past, He will continue to do so in the future. Remembering is for our encouragement. It is to give us assurance for the future. Why did God test Israel in the wilderness? It was to humble them and to prove what was really in their hearts. That explains why God puts you and me through the mill. Sometimes He puts us in the furnace and heaps it on very hot. Why? To test us and to humble us. Little man is proud, he’s cocky, he is self-confident, and, to be frank, he is an abomination! Listen to the boasting and bragging and the pride with which little man walks the earth. So God must take His own people and put them through the mill in order to humble them and to prove them. You know, testing really proves the metal. Tests will reveal whether or not a person is really a child of God. Our churches today are filled with affluent people who have never been tested. I can’t tell whether or not they are genuine. The man who has been tested is the man in whom you can have confidence.
Deuteronomy 8:3
Our Lord quoted this verse when He was tempted in the wilderness (Mat_4:4 and Luk_4:4). If the Lord Jesus had not quoted this, we would probably pass by the great spiritual lesson that is here. God has been good to us. He has blessed us in many, many ways with material things. The important lesson is that God gives us those things in order that we might see that there is a spiritual wealth, the Word of God. It is the Word of God that is the real wealth for the child of God today.
Deuteronomy 8:4
Here is a strange, marvelous, miraculous statement! Imagine having a suit of clothes that would not wear out. I know the ladies would not like this at all. Year after year the wife could tell her hubby that she needed a new dress, and year after year the husband could say that the one she was wearing looked brand new. I tell you, after that went on for forty years, the women would be pretty far behind in the styles. However, in the wilderness the styles didn’t change; so it really didn’t make any difference. Seriously, this is marvelous; it is a miracle. “Neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.” A missionary doctor explained to me that out in the Orient where he served, the people had a sameness of diet. They did not get all the vitamins they needed; so they would show the manifestations of beriberi. One of the symptoms is a swelling of the feet. Now, you see, Israel got all their vitamins. They got all the nourishment that they needed. What did these folk eat for forty years? Why, it was manna. God fed them with manna, which was a miracle food. It provided everything they needed for the nourishment of their bodies. Spiritual manna is the Word of God. It is a wonderful food. It will supply all your needs. I marvel at the letters I receive that attest to this. Someone will say that when I spoke on a certain chapter, that passage brought comfort to his heart. Someone else will write that he was in sin and had gotten away from God, had become cold and indifferent, and that passage from the Word of God brought him back. Someone else writes to say he listened and was saved. You see, friend, you won’t get any swelling of the feet if you will read the Word of God. In other words, the Bible will meet your individual needs, whatever they may be. This is manna. God promised temporal blessings to the nation Israel if they would serve Him.
Deuteronomy 8:5
God does not give this promise to Christians today. I would have you note this. There is a lopsided notion that if you are a faithful Christian, God will prosper you in temporal things. My friend, that is not true. God promised to prosper Israel in the land. He does not promise to prosper the Christian in the things of this world. Now I know that there are Christians who are outstanding, successful businessmen. They say they took God into partnership, and God blessed them abundantly. He does do that, and we praise Him for it. But that is not what He has promised to do. This is the promise to the Christian: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ” (Eph_1:3). He has promised us spiritual blessings. There is no verse in the New Testament which promises temporal blessing to the child of God today. May I also add that although God does not promise temporal blessings, He sometimes does add them. God does this for some, but not for all. There are wonderful Christians whom the Lord has blessed financially. Some of them have been a great help to us in broadcasting the Word of God by radio. But I also want to say that some of the choicest children of God today have been blessed with spiritual blessings and not with the things of this world. They seem to be the happiest, and they seem actually to do more for God than anyone else. Certainly they have been a blessing to this poor preacher and a blessing to the cause of Christ in the world. One of the major distinctions between the nation Israel in the Old Testament and the church in the New Testament is that God promised Israel temporal blessings and He promises us spiritual blessings. If you keep this straight it will prevent a great deal of heartache. Also, it will cause a great many children of God to rejoice rather than to lapse into a backslidden condition. My friend, if you are on a low economic level, cash in on some of your spiritual blessings so that you may enjoy the riches He has promised you.
Deuteronomy 8:10
He continues his warning to Israel for the coming days of prosperity.
Deuteronomy 8:14
At the “latter end,” in the future Millennium, God promises to make Israel the leading nation with earthly blessings. God has not promised that to the church, my friend; so don’t appropriate that promise for yourself. The Lord Jesus said, “…I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also” (Joh_14:2-3). The hope of the child of God today is that Christ is coming to take us out of this world. The hope of Israel is in this world. That distinction is of utmost importance. If you try to mix these promises, it will cause utter confusion. Too many so-called theologians use a blender. They put the whole Bible into a blender, and they really mix it up! If you let the Bible stand as it is, you will see that God is very specific when He makes promises.
Deuteronomy 8:17
When the nation of Israel is in the land and is being prospered, then you can know it is obeying God. When it is not prospering in that land, it is an indication that it is not obeying God. Look at Israel today and make your own decision.
Deuteronomy 8:19
This is God’s warning to them. He promises to bless them if they will be obedient to Him. If they are not obedient, He will treat them as He treated those nations that were in that land before them. The fact of the matter is that God treated them even worse than the nations that preceded them. Do you know why? Because Israel had been given more light. Light creates responsibility before God.