Reading notes - week 16

Deuteronomy 28 was in this week’s reading and it reminded me of a post from a while back. I am recycling that for us today…

"Finally, my brothers, (uh, sisters), rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things again is no trouble to me and it is a safeguard to for you."  Philippians 3:1

I must have read the book of Philippians a hundred times before I saw the last clause of this verse.  Rejoicing as a safeguard.  Whatever could the Apostle have meant by that?

 God is certainly serious about rejoicing......commentaries tell me that "rejoice in the Lord" is mentioned nearly 200 times in Scripture. Let's unpack what He means, why it's important, and how it is a "safeguard for us".......

What does it mean to "rejoice"?  To find joy?  I think it's as simple as it sounds - being happy and satisfied and content and pleased. 

We all want to be happy and satisfied.  All of us.  We pursue it, whether we realize it or not. To quote one more wise (and famous!) than I -
.  Blaise Pascal, who saw that "all men seek happiness. This is without exception. Whatever different means they employ, they all tend to this end. . . . The will never takes the least step but to this object. This is the motive of every action of every man, even of those who hang themselves"

Some Christians think that seeking to be happy is wrong.  That we should just want to be holy. (Note to self:  those are hard friends to have fun with!)  I don't think that's God's perscpective - He made us to long for happiness.  He even commands us to be happy!  And He lovingly guides us to the source of immutable happiness....Himself.    Finding our joy is who He is.....that's what "rejoicing in the Lord"means.

Why is it important?  Well, back to those folks that think we should just be holy -- do they make you long for a deeper walk with Christ?  Mmmm, didn't think so.  I like what John Piper says - "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."  Joy in the Lord is magnetic.  It draws others, not really to us, but to the source of the force field within us.....Jesus.  And that honors the Lord.

But rejoicing in the Lord is not only about Him.  Or others.  That's where the "safeguard" part comes in.  It is for us.  Since we are designed to seek happiness, we are going to do it....automatic pilot, sort of.  The decision on our part isn't whether we will seek to be happy but rather where we are going to find that joy.  Being satisfied....content.....happy....joyful in the Lord means I don't need to find it anywhere else.  Not in other relationships or possessions or status or circumstances.  When those things "all line up", they are just icing on the cake.  But when they don't, my joy is not threatened. And if I can grasp the Truth that those things really can't deliver on the "joy" promise like Christ can, then I don't wear myself out trying to get them to.

Here is how God explains it through Moses, in Deuteronomy 28:47-48 - "Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy and a glad heart . . . therefore you shall serve your enemies" .  And that's exactly what happens.  When we aren't satisfied in the Lord, we wind up a slave to whatever else we think will make us happy.  Beauty.  The opinions of others.  Material gain.  Whatever promises to make us feel valued or loved or accepted.  Unlike our powerful Heavenly Father, those things are hard masters.  They demand our time and affection....and yet they don't make good on their promise.  Any happiness we find is temporary, subject to unceasing demands to give more, more, more of our time or energy or emotion. And yet delivering less, less, and less happiness.

So that's what the "safeguard" part of that verse means.  Finding my joy in the Lord keeps me from looking for it in all the wrong places.

Rejoice, sisters, rejoice!

 

Reading notes - week 14

How’s the Bible reading going? Anybody still doing the plan? As I have said several times already, I love this slower pace. It has helped me see nuggets of truth every day, instead of racing through the passage just to get finished. Here are some notes from this week:

Numbers 33 - Moses recorded their journey. The places they started from, stopped at and went to. These were real places, real people, and reading this history conjured up for me the physical difficulties of moving around from place to place. The stories of the journey hold relevant lessons for all of us - maybe we can take away from this that our own journeys need to be documented and shared. Perhaps not for an audience of millions like this one (but who knows, right? :) ) but for those in our life circle. What lessons might our family and friends glean from the places God has taken us through life?

33:3,4 stood out to me - the Israelites left Egypt BOLDLY. Not fearfully or secretly but rather BOLDLY. The Egyptians were occupied burying their firstborn from the plague of death that the Lord sent and the Israelites were able to march BOLDLY out from among them. Because of their faith (obedience), the angel of death had passed over them and they were spared the consequences that the Egyptians suffered.

33:55 - the warning of the impact the nations would have on God’s people…this truth is reiterated in Deuteronomy 9:4 where God tells them that the other nations are being destroyed not because Israel is righteous but because those nations are so wicked. God is extravagantly efficient - while He is fulfilling the promise to Abraham of the land for His people, He is also punishing the wickedness of the heathen nations.

Numbers 35 - God spends a lot of time on the cities of refuge. Very interesting. I wonder what would a country be like if His plans were carried out…instead of leaning on the ideas of man….

Deuteronomy - means “a copy” or “second law” - so this book is a repeating, a summarization of what God told His people through Moses. I get the sense that Moses knows his death is near and he feels compelled to repeat God’s instructions just to be sure they “get it”!

Deuteronomy 1:29, 30 surely convey precious truth! “Do not be shocked nor fear them. The Lord your God who goes before you will Himself fight on your behalf, just as He did for you in Egypt before your eyes.” We can hang onto that!

Some other truth nuggets that we could chew on for hours - I’ll just reference them and would love to hear yours -

Chapter 2 - they lands they invaded had the chance to treat Israel right - they refused to let God’s people pass through so God punished them

3:24 - WOW! Yes and Amen!

5:5 - compare this to Matthew 5 - two different mountains…the giving of the Law vs the Spirit of the Law - the people were afraid of God at the first mountain but were able to sit with Him face to face on the second one <3

6:12 - Good word of warning - watch yourself! and v. 24 - observing these statutes - to fear God for our good always

7:22 - notice how God said He was going to clear out the nations “little by little” - often how He operates in our lives — He doesn’t always give us immediate and complete victory

8:2,3 - testing reveals what is in our hearts….God already knows- this is for us to see! v. 5 - the testing is for discipline and growth

8:10-14 - what a great warning! So relevant for today - has pride caused us to forget that our blessings have come from God?

9:3 - circles back to the unrighteousness of the nations God had the Israelites conquer and also to the warning against self-righteousness

Let me know any nuggets you found!