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Well, this is the law is good if one uses it lawfully, session 19. If you would turn with me in your Bibles uh to Deuteronomy 4. Going to
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there. Deuteronomy 4 verse one. I I keep coming back to this particular passage um as as being if you had to pick one uh that was going to really
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define the attitude of our study of Deuteronomy, this this might be it. So, it's appropriate that we begin our study of Moses second discourse with
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it before we review some of these concepts. Deuteronomy 4. And now, oh Israel, listen to the statutes and rules that I am teaching you to do them, that
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you may live and go in and take possession of the land that Yahweh, the God of your fathers, is giving you. You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take away from it, that you may
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keep the commandments of Yahweh your God, that I command you. Your eyes have seen what Yahweh did at Baal Peor. For Yahweh your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of
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Peor. But you who held fast to Yahweh your God are all alive today. See, I have taught you statutes and rules as Yahweh my God commanded me, that you
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should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. keep them and do them. For that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who when they hear
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all these statutes will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people." For what great nation is there that has a God so near to it as Yahweh our God is to us
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whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? Only take care and keep your soul diligently, lest
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you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children's children. How on the day
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that you stood before Yahweh your God at Horeb, Yahweh said to me, "Gather the people to me that I may let them hear my
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words." Uh in last week's uh outline, I there was a number of things that I I didn't cover because it it would delay really getting into the meat of Deuteronomy too much. And um so I kind
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of called an audible there, but I put uh about a dozen different scripture references that I would like you to contemplate in the coming weeks um as an
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answer to three questions that I put on that outline, which were um why should the why should the learner listen? Why should the teacher speak? And why should
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the learner speak and the teacher listen? Um, I I think it's good to ruminate on why it is that when we gather
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together, knowing that we gather together because we belong to God and we have his spirit. Why is it that we teach and listen and converse? Why do we do that? We God
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has God has ordained to display his glory and glory and greatness through us. He's he's ordained to display his wisdom
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to the watching world through us. So when we gather together, we are to work at the acquiring of that wisdom of God that we are to be the display of and to
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contemplate the glory of our God that we are to be the display of in front of the watching world. Um but contemplate what I what I wrote there. If you if you don't have it or want a copy of it, I
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can get that for you very easily. Um uh and can also entertain questions as to why did you put that verse? Um happy to do that. But uh for now, we're going to
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move into uh our review of what we studied in part one uh as a way of getting some purchase before we keep going. Um at the beginning of uh the
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first session last year, I asked why is Deuteronomy pertinent to us as a church and feel like that's a good place to start for review as to why we're doing this. Um the first reason I gave or the
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first importance I listed were was that the new revelation of the word of God was about to cease for them for a time with the death of Moses and what was
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already given them would be their sole guide administered by the priests that is the written word. Hebrews tells us that God has spoken to us in these last days in the person of
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his son who is both our prophet and in that sense like Moses and our high priest. Uh and furthermore that once more I will shake both heaven and earth
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that is with his voice. So we know that like like Israel was on the cusp of going into the land, they were not expecting further revelation and until much later and we are not expecting
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further revelation until far a far greater time than they perhaps. But God ministers within us, his temple through his holy spirit that
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we may abide in his word. That is the purpose of him placing his spirit in us that we may abide in his word. So and and in abiding in his word we come to
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Mount Cion says Hebrews. So the smoke from the altar in heaven then is says revelation nothing less than our prayers. We are living and in
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um playing out and anticipating that deeper reality that is only shown to us in picture form in the history of Israel. But since we recognize the
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similarities of their place and our place, we stand in solidarity with Israel as to their possession which was the word of
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God. The second thing uh is that the times in which believing Israel were going to live were soon after to be times of great apostasy where everybody was an Israelite around them but not
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nearly all were Israel as to faith. And the history in laid out for us in Judges shows us that the state of the nation was dire um after not more than a
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century and for several centuries thereafter. Um and there was no visible shepherd of the whole nation. Um think again we occupy a very similar place to
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them. Um we do not have a visible shepherd of all even all Christians in our own country or our state. Um, and I actually think it's kind of an acute
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crisis right now that we are tempted in general, I don't mean necessarily us in particular, but in general, we are tempted to look at some men who teach the Bible in public and at large as if
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they will be a great unifying force uh in for the church in public and at large. And I would make the case that not only does scripture not only not
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only does scripture not hold out such a promise to us, but also that the the actual effect on the local bodies of these famous and at large and in public
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teachers is is not for unification. It actually tends to divide. Nevertheless, we are we are tempted to look to a man to solve the ills that we see not only
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in our local body but also in the church at large. Um Israel had a similar temptation. Um okay. And so and and to
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put a finer point on it, we like Israel are in a context where everybody's a Christian and there are lots of churches. Uh but the influence of the
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church, whatever we mean by that, is a mixed bag at best and seems to have been on the Wayne for some time. Um but we're not to see in the law a burden to get
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your act together and get things unified and change things. The commands of God, says scripture, are not burdensome. Um God is not God has laid on us only the
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charge of love and faithfulness. what Revelation calls the patient endurance of the saints. And in that sense, we're sitting in a place no different from that first generation to go into the
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land uh of Israel. We stand in solidarity with the remnant of Israel as to their to their afflictions. Okay. And thirdly, u the
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discourses that we're studying are there to reatune a people who had suffered under the condemnation of the law to the promises of God. Uh if we are in Christ, we know the condemnation of the law and
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we know the corruption of our own hearts. We know it acutely because we've been ransomed from it. And we also know the corruption in our flesh because we know that the spirit within us is grieved when we
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sin. So what's the answer? Uh is it more introspection? Try introspection? Try harder, frighten ourselves with the punishment, do the ungodly. I think
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that's a common one. Okay. make new rules. These are all common responses to the problem of sin and they're also common approaches to the study of the
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law which is what makes this so dangerous. Okay. Deuteronomy al though speaks to a people well aware of their own corruption and that of their fathers.
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Yet God brought them out of the house of slavery. He prospered them in the wilderness and he's bringing them for sure into the land that he promised them. We
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correspondingly have been brought out of the kingdom of darkness and are being shepherded by God's spirit while we remain in affliction in our bodies, okay, and in a world of sin. And he is
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bringing us into the land that he promised with promised with Israel. So we not only stand in solidarity with Israel as to their possession which is the word of God, in
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solidarity with their remnant as to their affliction, okay, which is apostasy, but we stand in solidarity with Israel as to their hope, which is that God will visit us
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and will keep his promises. In fact, we say God has visit us, visited us. He has is not removing his spirit but will make good on the deposit the sure deposit
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he's put within us. Any questions about those things before I move on? Sure.
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I guess what I mean by solidarity is in fellowship with our brothers who lived so much so much longer ago and had so much less than we have because you're right, we have so much more. But I'm
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saying it's beneficial for us to look back because we are going to study these things. This is the word of God which we have believed. It's beneficial for us to look back on their lives and say yes, we
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can identify with those same temptations. Yes, we are in fellowship with all Israel who were united with us by faith in listening as Hebrews says.
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Does that make sense what I mean by solidarity or does that muddy things?
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Right. It is. It is a grand thing. It's something we're going to I I intend on unpacking some today as well. that there is a there is a real contrast between what Israel said in the wilderness and
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and what they had the ability to do and and the the ability and power that we are given in the Holy Spirit that there is there is a very it's a glorious
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contrast. Uh I the main again the main thing I want to want to make sure of is that we're we're seeing the the wisdom
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of God in giving us their story and and recognize that I guess it's sort of like the turning the opposite. Hebrews says without them those that were of faith
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that did these things by faith with without us they were not made perfect. That's the end of Hebrews 11. Okay. And I'm kind of turning that around and
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saying we were made perfect. They they were made perfect with us. And so we we look back and say we're existing in the fulfillment of these things.
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But yeah, I I guess they they were afflicted in very similar ways. um is is all and maybe that's where the maybe that's where I kind of lost you a little bit is is just the the remnant of Israel and their affliction that the fact that
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we live in times of apostasy where everybody's nominally a Christian is not all that different from them living in times of apostasy when everyone's an Israelite. Um so we can find some
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comfort in that the people of God have always had certain common afflictions. I was actually going to allude to Hebrews 11, but if you think about we
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are certainly much much better off. We have seen the consolation of God's redemptive plan. Doesn't that make their faith even
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more amazing in a way? I mean, there's still that's Hebrews 11, right? The Holy Spirit inspired him to remind us of the
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men and women who walked by faith, right, in a world very similar and who died not receiving it. and died not receiving it. And so we we don't go back there and try to relive their lives, but
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they have much to teach us. They they have much to teach us. Exactly. And and and you put me in mind of John 20 as well, that that you you have seen me and believe. Blessed are those who have not
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seen me and yet believe. And and that's even where on the other side of of the Lord's earthly ministry, I I think it it
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even in terms of our day-to-day lives, there's even more fellowship with those saints that were of old because we're not able to put eyes on Jesus as the as
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the disciples of the Lord were able to. And yet Jesus says we are the more blessed because we believe and have not yet seen him. But we will. Um Yeah.
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Um so as as we move forward into really reacquiring Deuteronomy, um we need to look at a few things as to how our approach to studying Deuteronomy has
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been informed by part one because we we studied the the full first discourse and a little bit of the second. And this has emerged as a as an anchor
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for the body of Deuteronomy going forward. And so whatever we learned here needs to be carried forward. This was Moses' introduction to everything that goes ahead. Um so uh first what have we
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learned uh in studying Deuteronomy as to its key lessons? Um, the first that I had down was faith is not enabled by seeing. I'll go and write that
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your words. Faith is not enabled by seeing. um that in the very first part of the first discourse uh you have the old generation saying ah where are we going
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we have seen the sons of the anakim in the land and Moses' counterargument is you've seen all that god did for you in the wilderness but it didn't prevail upon them because they were confirmed in
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unbelief what they saw did them no good if they would not believe um and on the other hand at the end at the conclusion of the first discourse Moses tells tells
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them what they saw at the mountain, okay? That and that it would be remembered through hearing, through careful attention to the word of God.
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Okay? In other words, that faith comes by hearing. Um, the second uh lesson that I thought to pull out was uh the essential unity of the people of
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God. That is a horrible P, my problem. Um uh he makes the case uh after having given them a guided tour of peoples whose ancestors were related to theirs, he makes a point at the end of the main
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body of that first discourse, right after relating how they fought the war with the two kings of the Amorites. He he makes a point about the trans Jordan tribes, those two and and a half tribes
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that would live east of the Jordan, separated from their brothers by a wide river. Uh that they are inheriting because God is setting them in their inheritance and is making the subtle
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point that it's one Israel whether divi divided by the river as they are they are one Israel. Um and furthermore then concludes that the the essential message
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as we read in Deuteronomy 4 is that God gathered the people to him and they are unified in that they hear his words. That that is how they stay Israel is by
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gathering together and hear hearing his words. Um thirdly um it's the inclination of the human heart to gravitate toward idolatry.
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the human heart gravitates toward idolatry and uh that idols and prosperity are a deadly combination. Um they were told not only what they had seen but also what they didn't see. You
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saw no saw no form. Okay. So therefore, they were to make no make no form. Their worship of God was not based on what they can see. Though they saw
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the fire and the cloud and the smoke, what that was for was that they might hear the voice that came out of it. Not so that they could see a form and then imitate that. Um furthermore, he so that
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that's in the first part of this conclusion to the first discourse. And then he goes on to tell them that as their fathers died outside the land for
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being uh steered by what they could see, we saw the sons of the Anakim, right? Um that the new generation would die outside the land if they pursued what
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they could see uh in idolatry. Um, fourth, the that the word of God is the people's possession.
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in search for God. It is. But what what is warped by this is what's described for us when Eve looked at the fruit, seeing that it was pleasing to the eye and good for food and desirous to make one wise. That that's that's the twist
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is that yes the human heart wants the eternity is set in the heart of man says Ecclesiastes. Yeah. But but that we are twisted by being by dri like being
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driven by what we can see. Idolatry is at its essence and I'm I'm not prepared yet to unpack this but I'll just tell you ahead of time. My definition of idolatry from what I can see in
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scripture is devotion to the work of hands primarily or more generally devotion to what is seen. And I think
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that Moses first discourse and all that we looked in there suggests to us that that is so that idolatry is looking to the things that are seen and assigning them spiritual
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significance. So their fathers in the wilderness were driven away from Yahweh, not specifically by going after another deity, but rather by seeing the powerful
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people of the land and going, there's no way we can defeat them, even though they had the promise of God that they would.
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Right. It's a it's a gracious thing that that God would reveal himself at all and and then to take a people who are not only to set to for it to remain the tendency of man to seek him. I I I would
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I would agree with that in general with the caveat that um the the psalm saying no one seeks for God and that Paul makes a makes a big point out of that and and I so yes but also our inclination being
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we need to worship and that not being gone because of our sins. But the but the real grace of God is in gathering his people together and letting them
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actually hear his words. Because without that, our search for the divine is going to end in is really it's going to end in us. It's going to end in the the things
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of earth and and really in mankind himself. Did you have a comment? Yeah. I think what's amazing about this, we can't lose sight of the fact
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that Israel gravitated toward idolatry in spite of the revelation of the true God. Right. That's essentially the Old Testament. Yes. And it's
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prophesied in Deuteronomy, right? This is what you will do. That's right. In the land, you will rebel. Right. And I think that while it's absolutely
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true of true of Israel, do think it's important to realize that cure them just like Romans
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we have to understand both the grace of God and the corruption of sin. Yes.
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Right. Because faith can't be enhanced by what is seen. It can't be facilitated. So the only th this is all that will do. And
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and that is why it is is necessary that we recognize that even for Israel their full possession was the word of God. Without the word of God they wouldn't have a possession of the land or anything else. with the word of God.
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They had all the promises too. Um so and I put also that that as I said that what they hear
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um excuse me uh that that even what was seen even what he says you saw uh would be remembered through the hearing. So even the things that they saw that were uh actually God's revelation of himself
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to them they would still remember by hearing. I think that's very significant. Um fifth.
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Um that the fire of Yahweh manifest at the mountain is among us. Um they had God's spirit in their midst and yet they could not draw near. And here's a contrast. We have the spirit of God set
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in our hearts and by that we draw near to God. Seeing that contrast is very important. Um the but also that the end result that God intends for his people
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is that they be gathered together. The at the last day all of God's people will be gathered together. That is the intent of God uh that cuts
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through history. So when we gather together then we are anticipating that future reality where all of God's people will be gathered together um so that we
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draw near to God not only ourselves but we draw near to God together and drawing near to one another with the spirit of God in our hearts. Okay, those drawing near to God and gathering together that
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extended family, the idea that that being a faithful member of a church is actually an additional an additional stage of being a Christian.
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You can be a Christian. In fact, I was told this not too long ago by one of my siblings
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regarding definitely a Christian, but not we just kind of think church kind of optional, right? And we really do wish you'd go to church. It would be good for you to go to church, but it's not it's
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not necessary. It's not essential. Yeah. In our in our evangelical culture, it's no longer no longer that that you be living and active member of a body. As long as you believe
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in Jesus Christ, that's that's what you need. That that you gather together because you it's what you should do, not because it's who you are. Uh that's the
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attitude. The attitude is it's not even essential. But for whatever reason, you might gather together. It's just not viewed as essential. Yeah. It's optional. Purely optional. It's not viewed as essential
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in the wider culture. And I and I'm I make the strong case that what Moses represents to us is that it's who we are. It's essential. That that it's that that the gravity of the people of God is opposite, right? That it's together.
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Right. Um, not to use gravity too much. Um, okay. Um, and then the the seventh, uh, but, um, or sixth, I guess, not the
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final. I have one more that I'll get to later. Um, that it was the will of God to teach his
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appointed. that that's a pattern that is is shown us uh in Deuteronomy that that God will teach his people graciously through the man whom he has appointed. Moses stands as a shadow of that man.
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The Lord Jesus is the fulfillment of that intention. And so that he could say truthfully that it had come to pass that what had was spoken in the prophets that God's people will all be taught by
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God because he has he not only taught us and teaches us through his apostles but also teaches us by his holy spirit and all of those things agree.
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Um, so that's the what that's the what have we learned in studying Deuteronomy. Uh, there's also the how, some of the mechanics and some of the things to keep in mind. Um, what the first that we
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benefit from being familiar with Genesis through Numbers, all of it, if we can, in understanding the meaning of Moses' words here. And that's especially since his words may appear to us to be
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alterations uh, when they're really just interpretations. and understanding the subtlety of why did he say it that way depends upon you knowing Genesis through numbers. It's
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all one work. Uh the people of Israel were familiar with what was said in the first four parts of the law. Um and he depends upon that in speaking to them
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his final words. um he picks and chooses from their history to illustrate God's faithfulness in a particular light and encourage them as they go in and possess the land and he picks and chooses from
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the law that went before as well as adding some things to it which I found find fascinating uh to exhort them to fully possess that law by doing it.
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Okay. Um, secondly, the the old generation fell in the wilderness and Moses is telling us the story of the new generation already. I made the big point
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that the old generation fades out of the story and this is the story and the instruction to the people going in. This is looking ahead and it's really important to know.
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Um, thirdly, that the people's past, present, and future are un are important to understanding Moses' message. And I I particularly put emphasis on their
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future. But there's really another way of saying the past, present, and the future. There's a way of saying that he lays out to them the way of death u which is past unbelief and the falling
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in the wilderness uh of of their fathers, but also in the passage we read just before uh that you have seen that those who followed after the Baal of Peor were purged from your midst as
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well. Those were new generation people. the entire old generation was dead before they got to that point. Um, so he's not only purged the old generation for unbelief, but also those who
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disbelieved in their midst of the new generation. And then that corresponds to the certainty of their children being put out of the land for unbelief if they fail to impress upon their children uh
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the belief from which their fathers fell away. Um, he lays out the way of death. He weighs lays out the way of life. um the past and present faithfulness of God to the new generation corresponds to his
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continuing faithfulness to their children when they go into the land if only they continue in his kindness. Okay? And then thirdly, the way it will be in days to come. U because
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Deuteronomy does not shrink back from informing us just how it really will be. Um the reality of the people's future is what's described for us in Judges and
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Moses is well aware of that future. uh that speaking of it in the spirit in particular in this section here in the song and in the blessing both are
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intensely prophetic and its prophetic significance I'll make the case whenever I get here is in its majority focused on the
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history we find written out in judges that that's its primary and majority meaning um that it is for the people who will no
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longer have written revelation that they are to memorize the song and remember what was taught them. Okay. Um then literarily speaking uh we need to pay
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attention to repeated phrases as guideposts in the text to help us not get lost. So uh one guidepost type would be an imperative or an interjection. So
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these are obvious here. See and now saw all of those in in this little uh finale of the first discourse. Um
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themes and motifs is another to look at. Uh in the first discourse I made the case that the theme is that of possession and that that really guides that's the whole subject of what he's
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saying. But there are also motifs and markers. For example, the three times he says Yahweh was angry with me on your account or because of you. Okay. Um, so
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we need to look at those repeated phrases and let those help us organize it in our minds. In the second discourse, um, I I've already said that I feel like the second discourse is a
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tale of two mountains. Uh, that the mountain mountain mountain is is a repeated image in there that will help us. Um, also uh repeated phrases like you'll see take heed to yourselves lest
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you forget. Uh, and a more concentrated bundle of them in the middle of this part right here. Um, is if you say in
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your heart. There are others, but those are some of the more obvious. Um, and then finally, so imperatives and interjections, uh, themes and motifs, and then finally, uh, the the technique
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of what I'm calling abstract and unfolding. Um the an example of that uh is uh in Deuteronomy 1 uh five beyond
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the Jordan in the land of Moab Moses undertook to explain this law saying and then there's really no
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law in the entire first discourse and there's mention of it but I'm saying he doesn't lay out any law okay other than that they worship their
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their god God only and do not make a form. That's the only thing there. Um, and if you're expecting law, even just having that is maybe a little bit
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of a let down. But in in verse four, I'm sorry, um, chapter 4, verse 44, at the very beginning of the second discourse, the introductory paragraph, it says,
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"This is the law that Moses set before the people of Israel." showing us that that first discourse was an introductory block, an anchor, and now this will be
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the unfolding of many things that were introduced to us here. So, we're going to keep going back to what was said particularly in the conclusion in what
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Yeah. The u is is the is that any different from the Lord summing up the law in two commands. Um, I would say that as far as for use in our study, it is different because I'm speaking of this as a as a technique for
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organization, right? To show you that what is here is introduced for you in concentrated form here and you can tell by seeing the beginning of something
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that isn't resolved and then it comes back up later. And so you you you're seeing that a big thing lies within a small thing, which is why you've got some of this going on. But on the other
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hand, I appreciate your point that the that the law is able to be distilled and summed up and and even the teachings of the law are able to be distilled and
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summed up and that the Lord shows us that quite clearly. Yes, of course. But as far as a literary technique, a little different. Um would you have a comment? I think though it's the same pattern
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that Paul uses in Romans. I would agree, however, that in the first part, the abstract, it's all in there. It's all there. And
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so I think there's even a a lesson being taught there about the privacy of the prohibition of idolatry.
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The whole thing that's going to be expanded later is actually it's concentrated in that. And so that means that I mean when Moses came by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to
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abstractly summarize the whole law he chose graven image. So there there is something very important in how the initial abstract concept is given. Yes.
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and then unpack later with Paul, right? The way he says at the beginning, circumcision, true circumcision, for circumcision, for example, that's a very
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important summary statement of what he's going to unpack in three chapters later on in the letter. Right? It's it's not only a technique for teaching, it's also a technique for narrative. It's it's something that'll help you throughout
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your study of scripture, both of the histories in the Old Testament and of the Gospels, that oftenimes we get confused by what is nothing more than the first paragraph gives us the whole
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thing sewn up at at once. And then what follows is not chronologically after the last sentence. It's in that paragraph. It's now being unfolded for us.
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Right. Right. all that he like all that he says about the law um in I don't know our chapters two through three are are well sum uh summed up by him saying that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and that the
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righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel from faith for faith. Um those couple of phrases really do help uh help guide uh whatever we say about the rest
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of his teaching and elaboration. Sure. Um and and we'll look too at the at the end uh at the you are here marker. There's another one where those two um
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uh I will teach you the whole commandment. I will teach you the commandment, the statutes and the rules. And then a few verses later, this is the commandment that Yahweh taught me to teach you. Um thereby establishing um
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put another color here. Thereby establishing that that this that this segment has the same has the same um you know kind of general structure.
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Okay. Well, that's anyway. Um I'll get into that a little bit later. I can confuse myself if I'm not careful. Um but that it does unfold in in in big and
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small ways is is my point. Um okay. Um before before I do some uh concluding remarks concerning what is actually the focus passage get us gets
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us back to where we left off. Um, I do want to say one thing that I'm gonna ask uh just that you think about this and that you restrain yourself from responding because uh it I went back and
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listened to some of our talk on the use of the law and on the 10 words and there was one thing that stood out to me that I feel like I need to I need to warn
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about um and that's the the seventh uh lesson that I want to get out there which is uh which I summed up somewhat tongue and cheek as rules are for
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fools. Um what that means is the law for the people of Israel and this is another big contrast with us that the law was
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for the people of Israel both refuge and rod. Okay. And it was refuge and rod for them in their immaturity. Which Paul says when faith came and the time of
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reformation as Hebrews says like that that that we are the people of God brought into our maturity now growing in wisdom. That is not the people of Israel in the wilderness. That was the people
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of God in their immaturity needing the law as both refuge and rod. Um, the law for us though, I'm making the case, is wisdom because God has given us a heart
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to do his will and has thereby set aside the sacrifices and offerings for what is better. I come to do your will. Um, the
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law serves for us as an indicator not of righteousness, but of unrighteousness and an indicator of unound doctrine and false faith. that that is its power to
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call attention to what is not. Um the law you then is used unlawfully uh abused for the justification of
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oneself. It's used lawfully for love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. And so here's here's my warning that I want to just say it. I got to
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just say it. Okay. I'll labor to justify my approach to the law as much as I need to. But in the last session, I feel like there was one point at which we got bogged down with exactly what I am warning against in this study in the
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law. Um, our discussion of honor your father and mother became a discussion of what does it really mean to honor your father and mother? And it became in my opinion and I relisted twice a quibbling
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over words. Um it became a discussion of it became instead of contemplating the wisdom of God in giving us the father and mother and authorities we
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have in our lives and how best to act in godly ways and wise ways toward that situation that he set up for us by his wisdom. It became an examination of our
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fathers and mothers behavior. And to state another way, it became an examination of our fathers and mothers instead of an examination of ourselves. especially as to how we might make these
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things a light burden to our own children. And I say our own children, those in our midst, those we pray that God will call to himself, those we expect to embrace as brothers and sisters in the Lord. Um, if we if we
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quibble over, well, what does that really mean? I I fear that we are falling into the shadows again, that we're using
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the law for an examination of our works. And if I'm reading Paul right, if we do that, then we are seeking to justify ourselves and we
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are implicitly admitting that we are sinning when we do that. But as descriptive of God's people, the
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law is very useful for teaching and rebuking and correcting and training in righteousness. And and I want to seek out that usefulness that accords with
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the grace of God given us. It doesn't just throw us back into the shadows and having us debate what does the law mean and how okay well then how do we behave and how do we is this okay? Is that
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okay? I don't want to do that. I deliberately sought to avoid that in teaching on the 10 words. We're not going to talk about our behavior. We're
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going to talk about the wisdom of God. We're talking about who we are, what this shows us, um how we might grow because our obedience doesn't come from the law. Our obedience comes from faith
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and the law is not of faith. Um, so, uh, if you have questions about that or you think that was just really confusing, don't understand, I mean, feel free email me. Um, also, please
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feel free to bring questions and comments next time. I'm just asking that you contemplate it for a bit uh, before responding because I know it's a lot.
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Um, but on the other hand, as as Avis has pointed out, and I appreciate you pointing this out, we occupy, unlike Israel, an incredibly privileged place.
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So if for the last couple of minutes um chapter 5 um verse 22 Yahweh spoke these words to all your assembly at the
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mountain out of the midst of the fire, the cloud and the thick darkness with a loud voice and he added no more. And he wrote them on two tablets of stone and gave them to me. And as soon as you
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heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, while the mountain was burning with fire, you came near to me, all the heads of your tribes and your elders, and you said, "Behold, Yahweh our God
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has shown to us his glory and greatness. We have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire. This day we have seen God speak with man, and man still live. Now
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therefore, why should we die? For this great fire will consume us. If we hear the voice of Yahweh our God anymore, we shall die. For who is there of all flesh
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that has heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire as we have and has still lived? Go near and hear all that Yahweh our God will say, and speak to us all that
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Yahweh our God will speak to you, and we will hear and do it." And Yahweh heard your words when you spoke to me. And Yahweh said, "I have heard the words of these people which they have spoken to
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you. They're right in all they have spoken. Oh, that they had such a heart as this always to fear me and keep all my commandments that it might go well with them and with their sons forever.
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Go and say to them, "Return to your tents." But you stand here by me and I will tell you the whole commandment and the statutes and the rules that you shall teach them that they may do them
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in the land that I am giving them to possess. You shall be careful, therefore, to do as Yahweh your God has commanded you. You shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left. You
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shall walk in all the way Yahweh your God has commanded you. That you may live and that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land that you shall you shall possess. But see, Paul tells us that we
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are the people of God to whom God has made known his word. So far, that's the same as Israel. But he tells us further that he's written his law not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of fleshy
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hearts. That's from 2 Corinthians 3:3. And by the way, in my deeper study of Deuteronomy, 2 Corinthians has opened up to me in ways I did not expect. Um, just a note, when he spoke to them, they were
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in fear and the the words were the letter on stone. But for us, they're on our hearts. Furthermore, we are the people that shall live. They feared, "Let us not hear the voice of Yahweh
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anymore, lest we die." We are the people who have professed that we shall live by the promise of God. 2 Timothy 2:7 says, "God gave us not a spirit of fear, but
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of power and love and self-control, that is a demonstration of the spirit and the wisdom of God." Hebrews 10:39 says, "But we are not of those who shrink back and
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are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls."
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Furthermore, they they professed that they would hear all these words and do it. And we know good and well that was not the case. That and that was the old generation saying this uh that they would hear all these words and do it.
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And yet and and and our place is by contrast that we will indeed hear and do it. Um that is a promise. That's just
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that is is a glorious reality that God has set his spirit in us that it may be a certainty that we will do his will that he will guide his people into all
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truth and that he will set them apart more and more conforming them to the image of Christ and that the reality is that we not only that that whereas the people res were restricted from the
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mountain and felt that restriction because of the corruption in their hearts that we go up into the heavenly places with Jesus and are seated there. This is from Ephesians 2. And you were
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dead in the trespasses and sins in which you walked, following the course of this world, following the prince and power of the air, that spirit which is now at work in the sons of disobedience, among
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whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath like the rest of mankind. But God being rich in mercy
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because of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our trespasses made us alive together with Christ. By grace you have been saved and
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raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus. So that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in
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Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing. It is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one
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may boast. Moses was the man whom God appointed, in other words, to go up and come down. Jesus came down to bring us up onto the mountain of God from which the
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people of Israel were restricted. And he's written this law on our hearts so that we do indeed have a heart such as this. Always.
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this. Always. We have been given the revelation from which the people shrank back and we've been given that revelation in the face of Jesus Christ um uh from first John
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1. That which was from the beginning which we have heard which we have seen with our eyes. Notice the similarities. We have seen with our eyes
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which we looked upon and have touched with our hands concerning the word of life. the word, excuse me, the life made manifest. We have seen it and testify to
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it and proclaim to you the eternal life which was with the father and was made manifest to us. That which we have seen and heard, we proclaim also to you, so
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that you too may have fellowship with us. And indeed, our fellowship is with the Father and with his son, Jesus Christ. and we write these things so
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that our joy may be complete. In other words, in Jesus Christ, God has come to live with us. Let us hear his voice and has given us his very spirit that we might have
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fellowship with him. And we will see his face as surely as his disciples saw Jesus face. And further that we have been given the mind of Christ, a mind
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such as this always, to do his will. Um, in our being united to Christ by his spirit, we are made like him. Uh, a body you have prepared for me to do your
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will. Um, I am going to read that passage u for prayer. I know I'm going a little bit long. I apologize. Um, these are important
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things. For since the law, this is Hebrews 10. For since the law was but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never by the same
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sacrifices continually offered every year make perfect those who draw near. Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered since the worshippers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have
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any consciousness of sins. But in these sacrifices, there is a reminder of sin every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away
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sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me. In burnt
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offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure." Then I said, "Behold, I come to do your will, oh God, as it is written of me in the role of the book."
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the book." When he said above, you have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings. These are offered according to the law. Then he adds,
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"Behold, I come to do your will." He does away with the first sacrifices and offerings according to the law to establish the second, doing the will of
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God. And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest stands daily at his service
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offering repeatedly the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the
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right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a foottool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. And the
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Holy Spirit also bears witness to us. For after saying this is the covenant I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts and write them on their
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minds. Then he adds, I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more. Let us pray. Father, we thank you for our privileged
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place in which we stand by your mysterious will by which we stand because of no righteousness of our own
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and in which we will surely stand by the deposit and certainty and strength and love of your spirit. We ask that you would set us in hope that the law for us
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has no condemnation for us, but rather you have declared yourself to be our father and have given us your word to teach us,
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to guide us into all truth, to make us wise, and to make us more like Jesus. We ask that you would help us in our coming study and in our praises today to
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contemplate that glorious reality and contrast that where as we share in the faith of all who believe that we have so much more and we thank you for that in
