Above All Nations
Deuteronomy 28:1-14
The Constitution of the United States was ratified by the states in June 1788. In February of the following year the new nation's Electoral College selected Geo
rge Washington to be its first President. On April 16, 1789 Washington began the journey from his home at Mount Vernon to New York City, then the nation's capital, where he would be inaugurated. Washington was reluctant to leave the serenity of his home and uncertain about his new position. His journal entry for that day noted:
"About 10 o'clock I bade adieu to Mount Vernon, to private life, and to domestic felicity, and with a mind oppressed with more anxious and painful sensations than I have words to express, set out for New York in company with Mr. Thompson, and Colonel Humphries, with the best dispositions to render service to my country in obedience to its call, but with less hope of answering its expectations."
George Washington's humble uncertainties about his abilities to govern were accentuated by his nervous behavior during his inaugural address.
His hands were shaking as he held a paper copy of his speech with one hand and then the other in an attempt to hide his nervousness.
He completed the address with one hand in his pocket to disguise his discomfort and made one awkward attempt at gesturing which was such a dismal failure that he went back to speaking with his hand in his pocket.
History fills out the story to his great credit but the greatest legacy that George Washington left was his firm belief that God was the Prime Mover in governing the affairs of men and that ultimately, every government must answer to Him alone.
On the
day of his inauguration it is said that George Washington made a specific request regarding the bible upon which he would lay his hand and take the presidential oath.
With a clear understanding of the import of his request, the first president of these United States asked that the old bible be opened to the book of Deuteronomy. Is was his desire to lay his hand on chapter 28 while uttering the oath of office.
It is to this passage we turn this morning with the specific goal of finding God's will for our country and our own lives.
READ TEXT
Deuteronomy 28:1 ¶ And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:
2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.
3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
4 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
7 The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.
8 The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
9 The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.
10 And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.
11 And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
12 The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.
13 And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:
14 And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
PRAY
Our text comes from the powerful book of Deuteronomy.
The word Deuteronomy means literally "second law" because it was the second time the law was delivered to God's people in a systematic fashion.
The first time was to a recently delivered nation of Israel at mount Sinai.
As you remember, Israel then wandered around in the wilderness for 40 years while all the adults passed away one by one.
Now the nation of Israel has come back to the border of Canaan and is gathered on the plains of Moab preparing to enter the land.
Moses is nearing his own death and God has told him that he would not enter the promised land himself.
Moses gathers himself together for one last address to the young nation of Israel and redelivers the law in summary to the people.
As he nears then end of his farewell sermons he gets to the material we have read this morning in chapter 28.
He is solidifying the relationship that God wants to have with His nation of Israel.
This is where we can make a valid application to any nation as the principles herein are transferable in their basic truths.
This chapter is easily divided into two parts, the first of which we have just read.
The portion of Chapter 28 that we have read is 14 verses of positive affirmation for a nation that is willing to obey His commands.
Let us quickly review these promises of national blessings.
The primary nature of these promises is that they are conditional.
The first condition of a nation receiving all of the wonderful blessings of verses 1-14 is that that nation listen diligently to the voice of the Lord.
The second condition also reiterated in verse 1 is that a nation do all his commandments.
Verse 9 adds to these conditions walking in His ways.
Verse 14 finalizes the list of conditions with the requirement that the nation of God's affection never serve other gods.
I would like to submit this list of conditions for what it is, a formula for gaining God's blessings upon a nation.
If you want God's blessings on your life you have to:
1.) Listen to the voice of God.
Listening to the voice of God includes reading His word and purposefully positioning yourself under the preaching of the word on a regular basis.
2.) Do His commandments.
This is the one step mentioned the most often in the passage and fulfills the first step.
It matters not how well you listen if you have already made up your mind that you are not going to obey.
3.) Walk in His ways.
God's people do more than just mindlessly and robotically obey His wrote commands.
They have His word written on the hearts and it changes the way they walk.
How does your life reflect God's ways?
4.) Do not go after other gods.
Like the commitment I made to my wife when we married, that I would never go after another woman, so my commitment to my God is exclusive.
Nothing can consume me like my passion for Him.
Nothing can influence me like my desire to please Him.
He is my all, and He is enough.
Now we get to the portion of the chapter that takes up all of 50 verses outweighing the 14 verses of positive affirmation.
While the first 14 verses are about blessings, the last 50 are about cursing.
You may say, " well that is kind of lopsided, I would rather you emphasize the positive and leave the negative alone."
In defense against that thought I have only this, "I didn't write it."
For every one positive verse about blessing in this chapter, there are 3 1/2 negative verses about cursing upon those who do not follow the formula outlined in verses 1-14.
In addition to all of the promised blessings in reverse, there is added many severe and horrific curses to come upon the nation that slips away from Him.
We must understand, God owes us nothing.
When we obey His commands as we ought, we do not deserve the blessing of God, they are not our right. God gives us blessings out of grace.
When we do our duty, He blesses us because He loves us.
When we earn His punishment we do just that, we earn it.
Deuteronomy paints the clearest picture of God, a God Who is Holy and gracious, but first Holy.
It accomplishes what the Law was set out to accomplish, the revealing of our shortcomings.
We fall short of His demands and must have a Divine bridge to enter into a relationship with Him.
God has provided that bridge in the righteousness of His own Son.
Have you accepted Jesus as your Saviour?
Deuteronomy 28:1-14
The Constitution of the United States was ratified by the states in June 1788. In February of the following year the new nation's Electoral College selected Geo
rge Washington to be its first President. On April 16, 1789 Washington began the journey from his home at Mount Vernon to New York City, then the nation's capital, where he would be inaugurated. Washington was reluctant to leave the serenity of his home and uncertain about his new position. His journal entry for that day noted:"About 10 o'clock I bade adieu to Mount Vernon, to private life, and to domestic felicity, and with a mind oppressed with more anxious and painful sensations than I have words to express, set out for New York in company with Mr. Thompson, and Colonel Humphries, with the best dispositions to render service to my country in obedience to its call, but with less hope of answering its expectations."
George Washington's humble uncertainties about his abilities to govern were accentuated by his nervous behavior during his inaugural address.
His hands were shaking as he held a paper copy of his speech with one hand and then the other in an attempt to hide his nervousness.
He completed the address with one hand in his pocket to disguise his discomfort and made one awkward attempt at gesturing which was such a dismal failure that he went back to speaking with his hand in his pocket.
History fills out the story to his great credit but the greatest legacy that George Washington left was his firm belief that God was the Prime Mover in governing the affairs of men and that ultimately, every government must answer to Him alone.
On the
day of his inauguration it is said that George Washington made a specific request regarding the bible upon which he would lay his hand and take the presidential oath.With a clear understanding of the import of his request, the first president of these United States asked that the old bible be opened to the book of Deuteronomy. Is was his desire to lay his hand on chapter 28 while uttering the oath of office.
It is to this passage we turn this morning with the specific goal of finding God's will for our country and our own lives.
READ TEXT
Deuteronomy 28:1 ¶ And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:
2 And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.
3 Blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed shalt thou be in the field.
4 Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep.
5 Blessed shall be thy basket and thy store.
6 Blessed shalt thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shalt thou be when thou goest out.
7 The LORD shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face: they shall come out against thee one way, and flee before thee seven ways.
8 The LORD shall command the blessing upon thee in thy storehouses, and in all that thou settest thine hand unto; and he shall bless thee in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
9 The LORD shall establish thee an holy people unto himself, as he hath sworn unto thee, if thou shalt keep the commandments of the LORD thy God, and walk in his ways.
10 And all people of the earth shall see that thou art called by the name of the LORD; and they shall be afraid of thee.
11 And the LORD shall make thee plenteous in goods, in the fruit of thy body, and in the fruit of thy cattle, and in the fruit of thy ground, in the land which the LORD sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
12 The LORD shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven to give the rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all the work of thine hand: and thou shalt lend unto many nations, and thou shalt not borrow.
13 And the LORD shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and thou shalt not be beneath; if that thou hearken unto the commandments of the LORD thy God, which I command thee this day, to observe and to do them:
14 And thou shalt not go aside from any of the words which I command thee this day, to the right hand, or to the left, to go after other gods to serve them.
PRAY
Our text comes from the powerful book of Deuteronomy.
The word Deuteronomy means literally "second law" because it was the second time the law was delivered to God's people in a systematic fashion.
The first time was to a recently delivered nation of Israel at mount Sinai.
As you remember, Israel then wandered around in the wilderness for 40 years while all the adults passed away one by one.
Now the nation of Israel has come back to the border of Canaan and is gathered on the plains of Moab preparing to enter the land.
Moses is nearing his own death and God has told him that he would not enter the promised land himself.
Moses gathers himself together for one last address to the young nation of Israel and redelivers the law in summary to the people.
As he nears then end of his farewell sermons he gets to the material we have read this morning in chapter 28.
He is solidifying the relationship that God wants to have with His nation of Israel.
This is where we can make a valid application to any nation as the principles herein are transferable in their basic truths.
This chapter is easily divided into two parts, the first of which we have just read.
The portion of Chapter 28 that we have read is 14 verses of positive affirmation for a nation that is willing to obey His commands.
Let us quickly review these promises of national blessings.
The primary nature of these promises is that they are conditional.
The first condition of a nation receiving all of the wonderful blessings of verses 1-14 is that that nation listen diligently to the voice of the Lord.
The second condition also reiterated in verse 1 is that a nation do all his commandments.
Verse 9 adds to these conditions walking in His ways.
Verse 14 finalizes the list of conditions with the requirement that the nation of God's affection never serve other gods.
I would like to submit this list of conditions for what it is, a formula for gaining God's blessings upon a nation.
If you want God's blessings on your life you have to:
1.) Listen to the voice of God.
Listening to the voice of God includes reading His word and purposefully positioning yourself under the preaching of the word on a regular basis.
2.) Do His commandments.
This is the one step mentioned the most often in the passage and fulfills the first step.
It matters not how well you listen if you have already made up your mind that you are not going to obey.
3.) Walk in His ways.
God's people do more than just mindlessly and robotically obey His wrote commands.
They have His word written on the hearts and it changes the way they walk.
How does your life reflect God's ways?
4.) Do not go after other gods.
Like the commitment I made to my wife when we married, that I would never go after another woman, so my commitment to my God is exclusive.
Nothing can consume me like my passion for Him.
Nothing can influence me like my desire to please Him.
He is my all, and He is enough.
Now we get to the portion of the chapter that takes up all of 50 verses outweighing the 14 verses of positive affirmation.
While the first 14 verses are about blessings, the last 50 are about cursing.
You may say, " well that is kind of lopsided, I would rather you emphasize the positive and leave the negative alone."
In defense against that thought I have only this, "I didn't write it."
For every one positive verse about blessing in this chapter, there are 3 1/2 negative verses about cursing upon those who do not follow the formula outlined in verses 1-14.
In addition to all of the promised blessings in reverse, there is added many severe and horrific curses to come upon the nation that slips away from Him.
We must understand, God owes us nothing.
When we obey His commands as we ought, we do not deserve the blessing of God, they are not our right. God gives us blessings out of grace.
When we do our duty, He blesses us because He loves us.
When we earn His punishment we do just that, we earn it.
Deuteronomy paints the clearest picture of God, a God Who is Holy and gracious, but first Holy.
It accomplishes what the Law was set out to accomplish, the revealing of our shortcomings.
We fall short of His demands and must have a Divine bridge to enter into a relationship with Him.
God has provided that bridge in the righteousness of His own Son.
Have you accepted Jesus as your Saviour?
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