Deuteronomy 4:1

Deuteronomy 4:1 says, Now therefore hearken, O Israel, unto the statutes and unto the judgments, which I teach you, for to do them, that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which the LORD God of your fathers giveth you. Moses called on the people of Israel to obey the laws of God that he was going to teach them, and he said if they did that they would successfully possess the land which the God of their father’s had given them.  Through obedience, He would become their God too.  If we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, we are promised that one day, we will go home to our Promised Land, Heaven.  Verse two adds, Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.  Just as Moses told the people of Israel then, we are not to add to or take away from God's word, but we are simply to obey it.  Verse three continues, Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you.  Moses said that they had seen what God did to those people of Israel that followed the false God of Baalpeor, and that was that He destroyed them.  We cannot follow Christ and any false god at the same time.  Verse four states, But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day.  Moses said that those that remained faithful to God were still alive that day, and if we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we are spiritually alive today and forevermore.  Verse five adds, Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the LORD my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it.  Moses said that he had taught them statutes and judgments as the LORD had commanded him.  We today need to teach people God's statutes and judgments as recorded in the Bible.  Verse six continues, Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.  Moses then told them to keep God's commandments and if they did, they would be known as a wise and great nation in the eyes of other nations.  If we are to be known as a Christian nation today, we must follow God's laws, and not just know them.  Verse seven asks, For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?  Moses then asked them what nation was so great as Israel, which was close to God because of their obedience to Him.  They were only great when they were obedient to God, just as we as individuals and a nation are today.  Verse eight adds, And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?  Moses repeated the question about any nation being as great as Israel  because they followed God’s law, which Moses had set before them that day.  There will come a day in the life of every individual when he or she has to decide whether or not to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord, and then once they do, then they must choose to be obedient to His word.  The same can be said for a nation.  If we are to be a Christian nation, we must follow God's laws and commandments.   Verse nine declares, Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons;  Moses then warned them to diligently keep God's laws, and to teach them to their children, from generation to generation.  We must do the same today.  Unless we as followers of Christ teach the next generation about Him, the world certainly won't.  Verse ten adds, Specially the day that thou stoodest before the LORD thy God in Horeb, when the LORD said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.  Moses said that God had the people of Israel gather at Horeb, where He had given them His law and commandments, and that they were commissioned to teach them to their children.  We as Christians come to Jesus Christ at the foot of the cross, and once we accept Him as our Savior and Lord, we have a commission to share the gospel with our children, and with the world around us.