Deuteronomy 18 "The Command to Reject Occult Practices"

When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. (vv.9-11)

God knows that many people have a natural curiosity regarding the occult, and that curiosity often leads them to gain knowledge God commands them to leave alone. In out text we can see a list of those practices God deemed "abominations.

Anyone who makes his son or his daughter to pass through the fire: This refers to the debased worship of the Canaanite god Molech, to whom children were sacrificed by burning. 

Or one who practices witchcraft: The word witchcraft here seems to be a broad word, describing a variety of occult activities. Basically, anything that makes contact with the demonic or dark spiritual world was prohibited.  

Or a soothsayer: This has reference to astrological-type divination, predicting the future or seeking guidance through the stars, planets, clouds, or weather - predicting the future by means of physical signs (astrology).

Or one who interprets omens: The word comes from the root “to hiss” or “to whisper” and refers to psychics and fortune-tellers who use “aids” other than naturally created things to gain knowledge, tell the future, and cast spells (tarot card readers, crystal ball seers, tea-leaf readers, palm readers, Ouija board users, and the like). 

Or a sorcerer: This has reference to those who use drugs or potions to cast spells, gain spiritual knowledge, or enter into altered states of consciousness. Modern drug abuse easily falls into this category, and the use of drugs has a definite occult connection that the drug taker may not want but is exposed to nonetheless.

Or one who conjures up spells: This is literally, “A charmer of charms” and refers to those who cast spells or charms for good or evil upon others with spiritual powers apart from God.

Or a medium: The idea is of someone who “stands between” the physical world and the psychic world; they channel knowledge from the psychic world into the physical world. Those who practiced this art called up the departed from the realm of the dead, or rather, professed to do so.

Or a spiritist: Literally, this word refers to the “knowing ones” – those who claim unique occult or psychic knowledge and powers – such as those on the many psychic hotlines that one can pay to call. Again, a Christian has no business participating or approving of any of these practices, because either they are money-grubbing frauds (at best!), or worse, they gain their knowledge from satanic, demonic, spiritual sources.

God’s judgment was upon the Canaanites because of these occult practices, and if Israel took up the same occult practices, they could also expect the judgment of God. Therefore He called them to be 'blameless before the LORD your God" and reject these sinful practices or suffer His judgement. This was more than a general call to walk holy, this is a solemn warning to keep from any involvement with these detestable practices of the occult. The LORD your God has not appointed such for you!

We too are to be blameless in regard to such things, even as the Ephesian Christians, who destroyed all things that marked the occult in their lives (Acts 19:19-20). This is why it is dangerous for people to seek or approve of the occult, even if they don’t really believe it – even if they just kind of think it is “cool” for it can swallow you up and take you down the dark path from which it is difficult to break free.

The Truth: For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything He tells you. Anyone who does not listen to Him will be completely cut off from their people.' (Acts 3:22-23)

Deuteronomy 17 "Laws For Kings"

"When you come to the land which the LORD your God is giving you, and possess it and dwell in it, and say, “I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me,” you shall surely set a king over you whom the LORD your God chooses; one from among your brethren you shall set as king over you; you may not set a foreigner over you, who is not your brother. But he shall not multiply horses for himself, nor cause the people to return to Egypt to multiply horses, for the LORD has said to you, “You shall not return that way again.” Neither shall he multiply wives for himself, lest his heart turn away; nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself." (vv.1417)

I will set a king over me like all the nations that are around me: Here God looked forward – some 400 years forward – into Israel’s future, to the time when they would demand a king. God warned them to set a king over you whom the LORD your God chooses, and that person had to be an Israelite and not a foreigner. 

I will set a king over me: It is interesting to consider whether or not God wanted an earthly king over Israel. 1 Samuel 8:6-9, the record of Israel’s demand for king, puts the request for a king in a negative light. One might ask if God really did want Israel to never have an earthly king, and if He wanted them to recognize Him alone as king.  It is a debatable issue; but consider that Israel’s history without a king (the time of the book of Judges) was not a period of national glory. Perhaps we can say that God wanted Israel to have a king, but of His choosing, and at His timing. Saul is a perfect example of a king out of God’s will, chosen by the nation and at their timing; and David is a perfect example of a king chosen by God and in His timing.

However, it is very clear what the future kings (which God knew would exist) were not to do. He shall not multiply horses for himself: The future king of Israel must not put undue trust in military might. Neither shall he multiply wives for himself: The future king of Israel must not put undue emphasis on physical indulgence and personal status. Nor shall he greatly multiply silver and gold for himself: The future king of Israel must not put undue emphasis on personal wealth. Lest His heart turn away: Each of these issues is a matter of balance. The king had to have some military power, but not too much; one wife and certain comforts, but not too much; some personal wealth, but not too much. Such balances are often the hardest to keep.

Solomon was a notorious breaker of these commands. He had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots (1 Kings 4:26), and Solomon had horses imported from Egypt (1 Kings 10:28). He had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart (1 Kings 11:3). He surpassed all the kings of the earth in riches (1 Kings 10:23). He knew the commands of  Deuteronomy 17, but he was self deceived into thinking he could handle it, which did not work out to well in the end, “all is folly.” 

Each of these three areas reflects the places where many modern Christian leaders fall: In regard to power, pleasure, or money. God’s commands for leaders have not changed; and neither has the need to be on guard against the self-deception in these things which felled Solomon. Staying in the word of God would have kept the king properly humble and helped him to not think of himself as above God’s Laws. 

As Christians we would save ourselves much of the same deception by staying in His Word daily.

The Truth: "Thy Word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee." (Psalm 119:11) 

Deuteronomy 16 "The Three Sacred Festivals"

"The Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy will be complete. Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed. Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you." (vv.15-17)

In today’s reading, the people of Israel received instructions to joyfully celebrate God’s blessings to them in three sacred festivals: Passover (vv. 1-8), the Feast of Weeks (vv. 9-12), and the Feast of Tabernacles (vv. 13-17). 

Passover commemorated the night that the angel of the Lord “passed over” the Israelite houses in Egypt. In the last of the ten plagues, he killed the firstborn son wherever there was no blood on the doorposts (see Ex 12:1-28). Passover was immediately followed by the Feast of Unleavened Bread, named for the bread without yeast that the people carried in their hasty departure from slavery (cf. 1Cor. 5:6, 7, 8). This festival took place in the month of Abib (March or April on our calendars), the first month of the Jewish year. Passover is “New Year’s Day,” a fresh start for God’s people.

The Feast of Weeks was a harvest festival. At the wheat harvest, the people celebrated it to show joy and thankfulness for God’s blessing. This event took place in May or June, and was also called “Pentecost.” In the history of the church, Pentecost is the day the Holy Spirit first descended on the believers. Jewish tradition also links this festival with the giving of the Law at Mt. Sinai. 

The Feast of Tabernacles or Booths, took place in September or October, and was also a harvest festival, commemorating the Exodus from Egypt to Canaan. The people lived in booths made of tree branches and foliage in order to remember the journey.

And every man shall give as he is able: These were also times for worship and offerings, not just pleasure or leisure (though those were included). No work was permitted to be done, as that would have been a distraction. Celebrating was intended to draw the community’s attention to their blessings and the Giver of all good things. Therefore, every man must appear with a gift as he is able, according to the blessing the LORD his God has given him. 

These were only three (four, actually, counting the feast of unleavened bread as a separate feast) of the seven feasts of Israel. Not mentioned in this chapter are the feasts of trumpets, of firstfruits, and of the Day of Atonement. Yet, the feasts mentioned in this chapter were the most important feasts in Israel – and every Jewish man, to the best of His ability, was to go to the place of the tabernacle (or later, the temple) and celebrate this feast with the whole nation of Israel. Even Jesus was obedient to this command; He made the trip from Galilee to Jerusalem to be at these feasts (Luke 2:41, John 7:2, 10).

What an amazing testimony these feast represent in the Jewish culture handed down from generation to generation. 

 

Deuteronomy 15 "The Release Of Debts"

"At the end of every seven years you shall grant a release of debts. And this is the form of the release: Every creditor who has lent anything to his neighbor shall release it; he shall not require it of his neighbor or his brother, because it is called the LORD’s release. Of a foreigner you may require it; but you shall give up your claim to what is owed by your brother, except when there may be no poor among you; for the LORD will greatly bless you in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance; only if you carefully obey the voice of the LORD your God, to observe with care all these commandments which I command you today. For the LORD your God will bless you just as He promised you; you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow; you shall reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over you." (vv.1-6)

In Israel, money was always loaned with the understanding that every seventh year, debts would be canceled: "You shall grant a release of debts." So there was no long-term debt in this sense – money could never be borrowed, or owed, for more than six years. This was an important matter to God; the release was said to be the LORD’s release. As Israel obeyed this command, there would never be a permanent under-class in Israel. Some might go through a bad period but would have the opportunity to rebuild their lives financially on a regular basis.

God established an economic system wherein no one had to be chronically poor. If people would obey the LORD, He would bless (both sovereignly and as the natural result of the obedience), and they would not be poor. However, Deuteronomy 15:11 – just a few verses down – states: For the poor will never cease from the land. Is God contradicting Himself? Not at all. He knows that He has established a system where no one must be chronically poor, yet He knew that because of disobedience, some would, and there would always be the poor in Israel. So, God did not guarantee prosperity for any one in Israel; but He did guarantee opportunity for prosperity for an obedient Israel. Therefore, if Israel obeyed and the individual citizens of Israel enjoyed the blessing of God’s prosperity, then they would (as a nation) be prosperous, and blessed above other nations.

“God loves a cheerful giver” because that's exactly what He is! God gives freely and beyond all we can imagine. This is true first and foremost in the gift of His Son, but it's also true every day we live and breathe. Take time this weekend to reflect on God's generosity in your life.

The Truth: As we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. (Galatians 6:10)

Deuteronomy 14 "Clean And Unclean"

"For you are a holy people to the LORD your God, and the LORD has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all the peoples who are on the face of the earth." (v.2)

The idea here in our text behind Israel's identity as "a holy people" is that they were "separate" unto the LORD, chosen by God, to be His own special people. In Jesus, we too are a chosen people, special to God: as Peter wrote, "But you are a chosen generation… His own special people (1 Peter 2:9). 

We also see in out text that Israel was, a special treasure to God. Each of these glorious privileges carried with it a special responsibility. If God regarded Israel as something special among the nations, then they had to conduct themselves as something special, different from all the peoples on the face of the earth.

Therefore, beginning in v.3, we see God's command to His people to separate themselves form other people and nations in regard to foods. Moses then goes on to reiterate these dietary laws for the people of Israel in vv.3-21 in regards to which meats were considered clean and which were unclean. These laws, given to Moses by God, severed the people well not only in Moses’ day, but for centuries to come. During the Middle Ages when plagues and disease devastated the continent of Europe, the Jewish people were singularly protected from many of them because of their adherence to the dietary laws found here in the book of Deuteronomy.

These dietary laws may seem strange to us but, they were medically correct and profoundly healthy for that time period. Jesus later used this idea of diet to speak metaphorically of spiritual defilement saying, “It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.” (Mark 7:15) With this in mind, we as Christians today need to be on guard against what goes into our hearts that is unclean, rather than what goes into our bodies. 

How do we do that? The eyes are the gateway to our minds and to our souls. Therefore, we need to filter what we see through the spiritual lens of, "clean vs unclean" - as spiritual defilement has serious consequences. Therefore, “Be careful little eyes what you see.”

The Truth: “If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” (1 Corinthians 3:17)

Deuteronomy 13 "Hold Fast"

If there arises among you a prophet or a dreamer of dreams, and he gives you a sign or a wonder, and the sign or the wonder comes to pass, of which he spoke to you, saying, “Let us go after other gods”; which you have not known; “and let us serve them,” you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams, for the LORD your God is testing you to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. (vv.1-3)

This chapter asks an important question: What would it take to lead you away from God? Would signs and wonders do it? What if your mate forsook God, or all of your friends? What if culture, or nationalism, or ethnic ties called you away from Jesus? We must never allow such ties to come before our bond to Jesus. We must decide, as the song says, “Though none go with me, still I will follow.”

For every thing that is true, genuine, and real in this world, there is also a fake. Counterfeit prophets have arisen in each and every generation. Some are so obvious as to be ridiculous and almost laughable. However, there are many who are more subtle and dangerous, and must be taken very seriously. These are the false prophets that at first brush seem to be speaking about the Kingdom of God we know and love. But be careful; it may be a test. 

This verse clearly says, “God is testing you.” The test is of course not for God to find out something about you that He doesn’t already know, but for you to know, in your own heart, “whether you love the LORD your God.” The testing of our hearts can be very revealing. We often don’t even know what’s truly in us until it’s tested. And when it is we can see if we really love the God of truth, or if we are only looking for some new religious experience. It is all part of God’s plan to grow and conform us into the image of His Son.

How can we know today if a person claiming to be a prophet or miracle worker is in fact from God? We simply ask ourselves, “Does what they say line up with what God has already said in His word?” We need to exercise care and ask God for discernment as we examine the message of a spiritual leader. We must look at the message instead of any spiritual experience present. God is saying quite clearly that signs and wonders can never be the final evidence of truth. 

This can be frustrating for us because we want to see, we long to sense, the moving of God in our lives. We would all like to have a supernatural experience each time we fellowship with Him, and God does want us to have a spiritual experience but not necessarily one filled with signs and wonders. When we seek the gift more diligently than the face of the Giver, we open ourselves up to spiritual deception.

Therefore, hold fast to the truth of God's Word which will allow you to stand firm when deception comes. Then, through none go with you, you will be strong enough to follow Jesus.

The Truth: "If you hold fast to My teachings, you are truly My disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (John 8:31-32)

Deuteronomy 12 "Worship"

“Whatever I command you, you shall be careful to do; you shall not add to nor take away from it.” (v.32)

Many scriptures like Deuteronomy 4:2 tells us, "You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it." Similar warnings are found in Proverbs 30:5-6, Revelation 22:18 and again right here in Deuteronomy 12:32. It is indeed a precarious position any person puts themselves into, by adding to God’s Holy Word. Revelation 22 tells us that, “if anyone adds to the book, God will add to him the plagues which are written in this book (v.18).Yikes!

Chapter 12 deals with God's commands concerning worship. Differences over worship styles are the basis for many church conflicts today. In most instances people disagree over music. Although these conflicts are never desirable, they can have the benefit of forcing us to ask some fundamental questions about worship. What is God looking for? Does He accept all forms of worship? Or does He want us to worship Him in a specific way?

As far as worship under the Law of Moses was concerned, God was indeed looking for a particular “style” of worship. The Law of Moses described how Israel was to worship in great detail, specifying when, where, and how God’s people were to approach Him. It even regulated the kind of clothing that priests were to wear when they approached the altar! The Lord also warned His people not to adopt the religious practices of the nations they were about to displace as they took possession of the land of promise. In fact, they were commanded to take extreme measures to ensure that the idolatrous worship of those people didn’t spread.

These commands raise an inevitable question. Is God as specific when it comes to the church’s worship? The answer is “yes”–but with a significant difference. The commands given to Israel dealt primarily with methods and rituals. The church, on the other hand, is to approach God in worship through the person of Jesus Christ - "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" (John 4:24)

All that the Old Testament law specified merely anticipated what Christ would accomplish by dying on the cross and rising from the dead. As important as the Law was, it could not do for the worshiper what Jesus Christ would eventually do: “The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming–not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship” (Heb. 10:1).

It is possible that our many conflicts about worship style have caused us to lose sight of the real focus of our worship? Jesus told the woman of Samaria that God is seeking a certain kind of worshiper, "those who worship in spirit and in truth." (John 4:21-24). The heart of worship is all about Jesus, not us, not about our feelings, it's all about Him. 

The Truth: "For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh." (Philippians 3:3) 

Deuteronomy 11 "The Choice"

"Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you today; and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way which I command you today, to go after other gods which you have not known." (vv.26-28)

The three great elements to the Old Covenant were the law, the sacrifice, and the choice. Israel had a choice – to obey and be blessed, or to disobey and be cursed. It was a cause and effect relationship for them with God. 

However, it is important to recognize that we as believers in Jesus Christ, do not have an Old Covenant relationship with God. The curse we deserved was laid upon Him (Galatians 3:10-14). Though there may be an inherent curse of consequences in our disobedience, under the New Covenant, He does not punish us or curse us – because all that we deserved (past, present, and future), was poured out upon Jesus. We then expect to be blessed, not because of our obedience, but because of our position in Jesus.

This choice was up to Israel too. If they wanted to be blessed, then they should walk in obedience (as they were in the days of David and Solomon), but if they disobeyed, they would be cursed (as they were in most of the days of the later kings). 

Inherent in Israel’s disobedience was idolatry (turning aside from the way to go after other gods). And like them, whenever we walk in disobedience, we exalt ourselves against God – and declare that our rules, our standards, our desires, are all more important than His. Thus, turning aside to our own ways. This is idolatry in its most basic and common form today. 

Indeed, the culture of the last days has a problem with the idea of “true truth” altogether, because it believes that we each are the center of our own universe and we each create our own truth. According to the spirit of the last days there is no truth outside of ourselves. So we can learn and learn and learn - but they will never come to God’s eternal truth.

So the choice remains the same today blessing or cursing, life or death. His ways or our ways.

The Truth: "Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call upon heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, that you and your offspring may live." (Deuteronomy 30:19)