Title: People who obey (I)/Deuteronomy 30:1~10
Obedient people (I)/Deuteronomy 30:1~10
Deuteronomy is a book written to teach the Israelites how to live after they entered the land of Canaan. Chapter 30 of them reveals about obedience to God and the grace and blessings that will come after obedience.
Today, focusing on Deuteronomy 30:1~10, let's think about what obedience is and what happens when we obey.
1. What is obedience?
The word obedience has many meanings, such as to listen, to listen, to listen attentively, to follow, and so on. In particular, the meaning of the word whipakuo is that the subordinate listens carefully to the superior and follows it. So, obedience is not a pretense, but a personal decision to listen and follow from the heart.
In Acts 5:29, Peter said, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” And the Lord wrote in John 14:21, “He who keeps my commandments loves me.”
Putting the above two verses together, true obedience is hearing the word of the Lord and keeping it. When you love the Lord, it becomes easy to obey His Word. But to obey without love is to be submissive.
People are very interested in the things they love. And he listens to whatever the person he loves says. It is exhausting and difficult to do church service, fulfilling duties, and taking responsibility with a sense of duty. But with love, nothing is impossible. We have to find the difference between obedience and obedience here.
Obedience, in a word, means unconditional obedience. For example, military orders are unconditional. It's not something you can keep or not keep, depending on the circumstances. Whether you like it or not, whether you like it or not, obedience is what you have to follow and keep. But obedience is an act that I autonomously decide. In other words, I may or may not obey.
However, the result is different. The Bible says that obedience brings blessings and disobedience brings curses. Obedience is the basic principle that human beings must follow. It is the principle and fundamental that the creation, that is, sinners redeemed by the Creator, obey God. Obedience is not forced to do difficult things.
We often have a negative understanding of the Ten Commandments. Let me give you an example. Is the commandment to honor your parents easy? Or is the commandment to cast out your parents easy? Do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal. If the commandment tells us to kill 10 people every day. Wouldn't that be a blessing if you were told to steal and eat every day? would you be a curse?
God has told us what we need, what we must keep, and what we must follow. We must obey and obey that command. We must rebuke that we do not direct or command what we cannot do.
2. What happens to obedience?
The results of obedience can also be found in the text. As mentioned above, it should be noted that the result of obedience is prosperity and blessing, and the result of disobedience is discipline and destruction.
1. God changes His will.
In verses 2-3, if you obey the word of the Lord with all your heart and all your soul, completely following what I have commanded you, “The Lord your God will change his heart and have mercy on you.” Here is a decisive grace. God rarely changes his heart or will once he has set it up. But if you obey, God will turn your heart and give you love instead of wrath and blessings instead of curses.
So, in order to turn failure into success, anxiety into joy, loneliness into comfort, and despair into hope, we must obey God, who is in total control over them. Only then will God change our hearts and give us blessings.
2) He restores the nation and nation.
Verse 3 says, “When you set your captives back, the LORD your God will gather you from all the people from whom you have scattered.” And in verse 4, it says, “He will gather them, and he will lead them.” If you go to war, you become a prisoner of war. And you will be ruled and ruled by the victors.
According to the Old Testament, Israel was a nation that fought countless wars. But each time, if we obeyed God, we won, and if we disobeyed, we lost. If you disobey, you lose even if you have a large army and excellent tactics.
We are now under the economic control of the IMF. The South and the North cannot directly discuss the issues of unification or the Korean Peninsula, but are meeting through joint dialogue with neighboring countries such as Japan, the United States, China and Russia.
One political and economic expert said it would take at least 10 years for us to restore the economic prosperity and glory of the past three years. It means that it takes a lot of effort, sacrifice, and time to restore the prestige and economic position once lost.
Today's text is looking for the path of recovery elsewhere. It means that recovery and regeneration are possible if we obey. Let us be obedient for personal recovery, financial recovery, and recovery from suffering.
3) Receive life.
At the end of verse 6, it says, “He will give you life.” Life here means salvation. It was God who gave life to man, who was originally made out of clay. And it is God who gave eternal life in me, dead in my sins. And it is also the grace of God to breathe life as a living being even at this time today.
The life we need is not the kind of life that we die after living for 70 to 80 years. We need the life that has been forgiven and saved, the life that never dies, the life that Jesus had. That life is what God gives us. And that life is given to those who obey God, those who love God, and those who believe and obey Jesus Christ, whom God has sent. In order to receive life, we must believe and obey.
4) Bless you.
Verse 10 says, “Because you have obeyed the word of the LORD your God… When you return to your God … May all the work of your hands, and the offspring of your body, and the offspring of your cattle, and the produce of your land, multiply, and bless you... He will rejoice over you again and he will bless you.” What you do with your hands is business. The rebirth of your body means children, livestock means cattle farming, and the production of land means agriculture. If you obey, you will be blessed so that business, agriculture, cattle ranching, and your children will all prosper. And more importantly, it is the fact that “they are glad and bless you.”
It does not mean that he gives blessings reluctantly and does not give them because he cannot, but that he gives them joy and blessings. Even eating a bowl of seolleongtang is delightful and tastes good and digests well. However, even if you eat acid and seafood, if you eat it badly, it will not be digested and there will be no taste. Helping others is tiring if you force it, but if you do it with joy, it will be rewarding. If we do the Lord's work and serve the church with joy, it is a blessing, but if we do it forcibly, it becomes more painful than forced labor.
We need to pay attention to the words in the text that we will receive the blessings that come with joy only when we obey. And it should be noted that the blessing is comprehensive and total. I made a lot of money, but there are people who have trouble with their children. There are people who made money, but one day, their health suddenly deteriorated and they could not eat, wear, or spend. There are people who are in good health and their children are growing well, but there are people who are struggling with business difficulties. In a nutshell, it is never easy to have all ten things.
Some people make a lot of money and succeed, but they live like hell because their marriage is not good. Some people make a lot of money and live in luxury, but there are people who ride the train to hell because they don't believe in Jesus. However, looking at the case of the text, all things are prosperous for those who obey God. There is nothing less than one to ten. The reason is simple. It is because the God who makes all things come to be and brings them into being, blesses them with joy.
Standing by my side with joy amidst the uncountable blessings I have received, saying, ‘I am. i have You have to believe in the greatest blessing that says, “I bless you.” That the Lord is by my side and with me is more important than money, power, fame, and people. Let's be grateful and rejoice that the Lord is with me with joy.
The body of the violin that makes a mysterious sound is made of wood. Italian cedar from Venice is said to be the best material for violin. The reason is that when a felled tree in the mountains falls into a valley where the rock rises, the tree hits the rock and the trees collide and get hurt. Then it crashes again into the flowing water and comes down to the river. In the meantime, the wood's molecules and grains turn into the best material for making violins.
Obedience is not easy. It requires patience, self-denial, and faith. And we have to endure sacrifices and suffering. But when I am obedient to the end through such a painful process, I become the best violin material in the world. Let us endure trials and trials, endure pain and suffering, and obey. Only then will God be pleased and he will bless me. Let us obey and be blessed.