Deuteronomy 6:1

Deuteronomy 6:1 says, Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go to possess it:  Before they went into the Promised Land, Moses again told the people of Israel what God's commandments, statutes and judgments were, so that they would know to keep them.  Moses wasn't going in with them, but God was.  Though other Christians may die, God is always with those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, and we need to remember all His laws and commandments and keep them.  Verse two adds, That thou mightest fear the LORD thy God, to keep all his statutes and his commandments, which I command thee, thou, and thy son, and thy son’s son, all the days of thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged.  Moses said that if the people and their dependents obeyed God that their days, I believe as a nation and even as individuals ,would be prolonged.  If we obey God today by accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, our days will be prolonged to last forever.  Verse three continues, Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey.  Moses called on them to not only hear, but to do, what God called on them to do that their days would be long in the land God gave them, a land flowing with milk and honey.  When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we are promised an everlasting home flowing with everything we will ever need.  Verse four states, Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:  Moses called on the people of Israel to acknowledge that there was but one God, and there still is today.  If we are to spend eternity in Heaven, we must first acknowledge Who God is.  Verse five adds, And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.  Just as Moses told the people of Israel then, we must love God with all that we are.  Verse six declares, And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:  Moses said that the words that he taught them, God's words, needed to be written in their hearts to guide them in all that they did.  In order to serve God, His words must guide us in all that we do.  Verse seven adds, And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.  Just like the people of Israel, we need to teach our children God's laws diligently and at all times.  We cannot expect them to learn all about God in just a few hours one or two days a week.  Verse eight continues, And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.  Moses told them that they needed to keep God's laws continually before them, and so must we.  Verse nine concludes, And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.  God's laws were to be written where they could be easily seen.

Deuteronomy 5:22

Deuteronomy 5:22 says, These words the LORD spake unto all your assembly in the mount out of the midst of the fire, of the cloud, and of the thick darkness, with a great voice: and he added no more. And he wrote them in two tables of stone, and delivered them unto me.  Verse twenty-three adds, And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, (for the mountain did burn with fire,) that ye came near unto me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders;  Moses said that when the people of Israel heard the Voice out of the fire, all the heads of the tribes and the elders came to him.  When we hear the Voice of God calling us today, we don't have to go to someone else but can go directly to Him.  Of course, we need to pray that our leaders hear and respond to Him as well.  Verse twenty-four continues, And ye said, Behold, the LORD our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire: we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.  The leaders of Israel said that they now had seen the glory of God and heard His voice, and realized that God could talk to people and they could still live.  God is not some all powerful being that we cannot approach, but He is a God of love Who desires a personal relationship with us.  Verse twenty-five asks, Now therefore why should we die? for this great fire will consume us: if we hear the voice of the LORD our God any more, then we shall die.  Though professing that they could hear the Voice of God and not die, they now questioned if they would not die if they heard God’s voice too much.  God does not call us to a personal relationship with Him and then destroy us if we call on Him too much.  He wants to hear from us and for us to hear Him at all times as followers of Christ, which is why the Holy Spirit lives within us.  Verse twenty-six adds, For who is there of all flesh, that hath heard the voice of the living God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived?  They then asked Moses who had heard the Voice of God out of the fire and lived.  The fact that they had heard God’s Voice and were still alive should have answered their question.  I believe they still did not truly understand the nature of God, and if we see Him as a God looking to destroy us today, neither do we.  Verse twenty-seven continues, Go thou near, and hear all that the LORD our God shall say: and speak thou unto us all that the LORD our God shall speak unto thee; and we will hear it, and do it.  Thay then asked Moses to go near to God, and for him to hear and speak to them what God said.  We today as Christians, or simply as someone looking to enter into a relationship with God as their personal Savior and Lord through faith in Jesus Christ, do not need anyone to stand between God and us.  We can go directly to God.  Verse twenty-eight concludes, And the LORD heard the voice of your words, when ye spake unto me; and the LORD said unto me, I have heard the voice of the words of this people, which they have spoken unto thee: they have well said all that they have spoken.  Moses said he heard the Voice of God telling him that He had heard the voice of the people and that they had spoken well.  God chose to speak to the people of Isreal through Moses at that time and continued to speak to people through through prophets and religious leaders until Jesus Christ came, and since then we do not need anyone to go to God for us.  If we have accepted Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we have direct access to God.  Verse twenty-nine declares, O that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them, and with their children for ever!   God said that it would be good for the people of Israel and their descendants if they would fear, or respect Him and had a heart to keep His commandments.  I believe that we as followers of Christ should always have a great respect for God and understand how awesome He is, but I don't believe that we should ever be afraid of God.  Verse thirty adds, Go say to them, Get you into your tents again.  God told Mose to tell the people to go to their tents again.  Verse thirty-one continues, But as for thee, stand thou here by me, and I will speak unto thee all the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which thou shalt teach them, that they may do them in the land which I give them to possess it.  God then told Moses to stay there and He would give him all His commandments, statutes and judgments to give to the people of Israel.  Once more, we today have direct access to God, and do not need anyone else to go to God for us since Jesus Christ removed all barriers between God and us.  Verse thirty-two states, Ye shall observe to do therefore as the LORD your God hath commanded you: ye shall not turn aside to the right hand or to the left.  God told Moses that once He had given him His laws, that the people of Israel nor Moses himself were to deviate from them at all.  We cannot follow God and at the same time attempt to change His laws and commandments.  Verse thirty-three adds, Ye shall walk in all the ways which the LORD your God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you, and that ye may prolong your days in the land which ye shall possess.   God told Moses that if the people of Israel obeyed His laws that it would go well with them, and it still will for Christians today. 

Deuteronomy 5:7

Deuteronomy 5:7 says, Thou shalt have none other gods before me.  Moses then started listing the ten commandments, beginning once more with the fact that the people of Israel were to have no gods before God, their God and the only real God there is.  This always has and always will be true for God's people.  Verse eight adds, Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:  Moses then repeated the second commandment, warning the people not to create any graven images, or idols to worship.  We need to be careful that we don't allow idols into our lives today, and they don't have to be graven images.  Verse nine continues, Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,  Moses said that God had said this was true because God was a jealous God.  Our sins may only affect us individually spiritually, but they can have effects on the next generation as well.  Still, we alone bear the punishment for our sins, unless we accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord.  Verse ten concludes, And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.  Just as God punishes those who do not believe in or put their faith in Him, He shows mercy to any and all who do.  God does not limit the number of people who can be saved.  Verse eleven states, Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain: for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.  This does not refer to profanity, but to using God's name without any real faith in Him or any real calling out to Him by faith.  Verse twelve adds, Keep the sabbath day to sanctify it, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee.  We now as followers of Christ set Sunday, the Lord’s Day, aside to worship God, but we too often let other things get in the way.  Verse thirteen continues, Six days thou shalt labour, and do all thy work:  We have really reduced this to five days laboring, but still often do not have time to set aside the one day to worship God.  Verse fourteen continues, But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou.  Moses reminded them that no one was to work on the Sabbath, the day set aside to worship Him, which for us is the Lord’s Day.  We may pride ourselves on not working on the Lord’s Day, but at the same time expect others to do so.  Verse fifteen concludes, And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.  Moses reminded them of the fact that God by His power had brought them out of bondage in Egypt and if we have put our faith in Jesus Christ, God has brought us out of spiritual slavery today.  For this reason, we are to set one day aside to worship Him.  Verse sixteen says, Honour thy father and thy mother, as the LORD thy God hath commanded thee; that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may go well with thee, in the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.  The people of Israel were reminded to honor their father and mother, so that their days might be prolonged.  This does not say we are to do so if we think they are worth honoring.  Verse  seventeen adds, Thou shalt not kill.  This really means that we should not commit murder.  Verse eighteen continues, Neither shalt thou commit adultery.  Right after not killing we have the command to not commit adultery.  Verse nineteen continues, Neither shalt thou steal.  Anytime we attempt to take what belongs to others without their approval, we are guilty of stealing from them, and I believe that anytime we do not use our time under God's guidance we are guilty of stealing from Him.  Verse twenty states, Neither shalt thou bear false witness against thy neighbour.  There is a lot of this going on in the world today, but we as Christians should never be guilty of doing so.  Verse twenty-one adds, Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour’s wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour’s.  We have God's commandment to not covet anything that belongs to another.  As long as we are content with what God provides for us, we should never have a problem with coveting what belongs to someone else.

Deuteronomy 5:1

Deuteronomy 5:1 says, And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them.  Moses called all the people of Israel together and asked them to hear the statutes and judgments that he would tell them that day, so that they could learn and keep them.  When we gather as God's people today, we need to hear God's laws so that we can learn and keep them.  Just knowing them was not enough then, nor is it now.  We must also keep them.  Verse two adds, The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.  Moses reminded them that God made a covenant with them at Horeb, just as He made a covenant with us when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse three continues, The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day.  Just as Moses told the people of Israel, God's covenant was not with just one generation of the people of Israel, but is with every current generation.  God's law will never die.  Verse four states, The LORD talked with you face to face in the mount out of the midst of the fire,  Moses said God talked to them face to face, or personally, out of the fire.  God continues to speak to the followers of Christ personally today through the Holy Spirit.  Verse five adds, I stood between the LORD and you at that time, to shew you the word of the LORD: for ye were afraid by reason of the fire, and went not up into the mount;) saying, Moses said He stood between the people and God then because they were afraid because of the fire that God spoke out of and would not go up the mountain.  We have no reason to fear God today as Christians, nor do we need anyone to stand between Him and us, because Jesus Christ already does that.  Verse six continues, I am the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.  God then reminded them of Who He is.  He is the God Who brought the people of Israel out of bondage in Egypt, and He is the God Who brings all those who put their faith in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior and Lord out of the bondage of sin today. 

Deuteronomy 4:40

Deuteronomy 4:40 says, Thou shalt keep therefore his statutes, and his commandments, which I command thee this day, that it may go well with thee, and with thy children after thee, and that thou mayest prolong thy days upon the earth, which the LORD thy God giveth thee, for ever.  Moses told the people of Israel to keep God's commandments so that things might go well with them and their descendants forever.  There is no expiration date on God's commandments.  Verse forty-one adds, Then Moses severed three cities on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;  Verse forty-two continues, That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live:  Moses then set aside three cities on this side of the Jordan as sanctuary cities, where those who had accidentally killed someone could go to escape the revenge of the relatives of the one who was killed.  Verse forty-three concludes, Namely, Bezer in the wilderness, in the plain country, of the Reubenites; and Ramoth in Gilead, of the Gadites; and Golan in Bashan, of the Manassites.  There was one sanctuary city in the land each of the two and a half tribes that remained this side of the Jordan.  We all have equal access to the sanctuary from the death penalty of sin if we put our faith in Jesus Christ, even if we have deliberately committed sins.  Verse forty-four states, And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel:  Though Moses presented the law to the people of Israel, it was God's law given to him by God Himself.   Today, the Bible presents God's law to us, but it is God's law just as surely as if He Himself were speaking to us, and the Holy Spirit helps us to understand what the Bible says.  Verse forty-five adds, These are the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which Moses spake unto the children of Israel, after they came forth out of Egypt,  These were the laws given to Moses when the people of Israel came out of Egypt.  Since most of those people who would have heard them at that time were dead, they needed to be restated.  As followers of Christ, we need to teach God's commandments to each new generation.  Verse forty-six says, On this side Jordan, in the valley over against Bethpeor, in the land of Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt at Heshbon, whom Moses and the children of Israel smote, after they were come forth out of Egypt:  This was done on this side of the Jordan after the people of Israel defeated Sihon, the king of the Amorites.  It had to be done on this side of the Jordan since Moses was not going to be allowed to go into the Promised Land.  Verse forty-seven adds, And they possessed his land, and the land of Og king of Bashan, two kings of the Amorites, which were on this side Jordan toward the sunrising;  It was then stated that they possessed the land of Og king of Bashan and that of two kings of the Amorites on this side of the Jordan.  Through our faith in Jesus Christ, we have been given the victory over all the powers of the world, whomever or wherever they may be.  Verse forty-eight continues, From Aroer, which is by the bank of the river Arnon, even unto mount Sion, which is Hermon,  Verse forty-nine concludes, And all the plain on this side Jordan eastward, even unto the sea of the plain, under the springs of Pisgah.  Moses then gave a description of the boundaries of the land.  As God's people today, there are no boundaries to where we are to be a part of His kingdom. 

Deuteronomy 4:30

Deuteronomy 4:30 says, When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;  Moses called on the people of Israel to remember God and to be obedient to Him in times of tribulation, especially in the latter days.  This still holds true for us today as followers of Christ.  Verse thirty-one adds, (For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers which he sware unto them.  We, like the people of Israel, can trust God because He is a merciful God and will never fail to keep His word.  God will never forget His covenant with anyone who accepts Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord.  Verse thirty-two asks, For ask now of the days that are past, which were before thee, since the day that God created man upon the earth, and ask from the one side of heaven unto the other, whether there hath been any such thing as this great thing is, or hath been heard like it?  Moses told them to ask themselves if since God had created mankind there had ever been anything else done that was as great as what God did for them or if they had even heard of anything.  We as Christians have now heard of something greater than God's delivering the people of Israel out of Egypt, and that is His delivering anyone who will put their faith in Jesus Christ, Who died to deliver us, from the death penalty of sin.  Verse thirty-three adds, Did ever people hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as thou hast heard, and live?  Moses asked if any other people had heard God’s voice speaking out of the midst of the fire and lived.  We today as followers of Christ may not have physically heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire, but we have spiritually heard the voice of God calling us to Him, and the only way to everlasting life is to say yes to His call to salvation.  Verse thirty-four continues, Or hath God assayed to go and take him a nation from the midst of another nation, by temptations, by signs, and by wonders, and by war, and by a mighty hand, and by a stretched out arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes?   Moses asked the people of Israel if they had ever heard of any god doing all that the one and only true God had done for the people of Israel to attain their release from Egypt.  Most of the people there had only heard about it, because the generation that had experienced it were dead.  We did not personally experience the greater act of deliverance that Jesus Christ provided on the cross, but we must put our faith in Him if we are to be saved, and we must tell our children about the great salvation that He offers everyone.  Verse thirty-five states, Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him.  Moses said that what God did fot Israel in Egypt was done so that they might know that He is God and there is none other beside Him.  I am not sure why God chose the people of Israel to be the ones who would proclaim Him to the world, but He did.  I am not sure why God chose to allow His only begotten Son to die in my place, but He did.  Verse thirty-six adds, Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice, that he might instruct thee: and upon earth he shewed thee his great fire; and thou heardest his words out of the midst of the fire.  Moses said that out of heaven God made His voice heard to them so that He might instruct them, and that He also showed them the great fire that they heard His voice from.  We today as Christians hear the voice of God calling us to salvation and then to faithfulness to Him.  We may not hear an actual voice speaking out loud, but we must hear the voice of God speaking to us spiritually in order to be saved.  Verse thirty-seven continues, And because he loved thy fathers, therefore he chose their seed after them, and brought thee out in his sight with his mighty power out of Egypt;  Moses said that because God loved the fathers of the people of Israel that He brought them out of Egypt.  God had established His covenant with their forefathers before they went into Egypt, and God still honored that covenant relationship with them.  Once we enter into a covenant relationship with God by putting our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, God will never go back on His covenant with us, even if we fail to live up to our part by not always putting Him first.  Verse thirty-eight says, To drive out nations from before thee greater and mightier than thou art, to bring thee in, to give thee their land for an inheritance, as it is this day.  Moses said that God drove out nations greater than the people of Israel and gave them the land of those who had been driven out.  We can still rely on God to provide for our needs today, even in difficult situations as long as we remain faithful to Him.  Verse thirty-nine adds, Know therefore this day, and consider it in thine heart, that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else.  This is the decision that every person has to make at some point in their life.  God is the only God in heaven and in the earth, and the only way to salvation is through faith in the fact that Jesus Christ died for our sins to bring us salvation if we put our faith in Him.

Deuteronomy 4:21

Deuteronomy 4:21 says, Furthermore the LORD was angry with me for your sakes, and sware that I should not go over Jordan, and that I should not go in unto that good land, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance:  Moses said that God was angry with him because of the attitude and actions of the people of Israel and would not allow him to go into the Promised Land, but I believe it was more Moses's attitude and actions on one occasion that caused this.  We can be certain if we are not allowed into heaven it will be because of our actions alone.  Verse twenty-two adds, But I must die in this land, I must not go over Jordan: but ye shall go over, and possess that good land.  Moses said that even though he would die on this side of the Jordan, the people of Israel must go in and possess that good land.  Still, even though Moses never got into the earthly Promised Land, he is in heaven today.  We will all die on this side of Heaven, unless Jesus Christ returns first, but we will all get to Heaven if we put our faith in Him as our Savior and Lord.  Verse twenty-three continues, Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of the LORD your God, which he made with you, and make you a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, which the LORD thy God hath forbidden thee.  Moses warned them against being unfaithful to God and starting to worship idols when they were settled in the Promised Land.  Simply being in the Promised Land did not mean that everyone would have a personal relationship with God, no more then simply declaring oneself  Christian means that we do today.  Verse twenty-four declares, For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.  Moses told the people then that God was a consuming fire and a jealous God, and He still is.  We cannot be a child of God and still worship other gods.  Verse twenty-five adds, When thou shalt beget children, and children’s children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall do evil in the sight of the LORD thy God, to provoke him to anger:  Moses warned them that if they started to worship false gods and idols after they had been in the Promised Land for several years, they would anger God.  We need to be careful that we do not allow allow ourselves as followers of Christ to be influenced by any false gods today as well.  Verse twenty-six continues, I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.  Moses called on heaven and earth to be a witness that if the people of Israel turned away from God in the Promised Land that they would be utterly destroyed.  Though we are saved forever when we put our faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, if we have not truly done so, but have only claimed to do so for material reasons, we one day will be sent away to everlasting punishment.  Verse twenty-seven states, And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.  Moses continued to warn them against turning from God to worship idols, stating that they would be scattered and their numbers few if they did.  Only those who were faithful to God would remain, and even they might be scattered from the Promised Land.  Simply going into or being born in the Promised Land did not assure the people of Israel that they were a part of God's everlasting Kingdom, just as where we are born or the family we are born into doesn't assure us that we are a part of God's everlasting Kingdom.  We must have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ to be a part of God's everlasting Kingdom.  Verse twenty-eight adds, And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men’s hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.  Moses said that if they turned away from God that they would serve idols made by man and that these idols would be worthless.  Any idols that people worship today are worthless in bringing people everlasting life with God.  Verse twenty-nine continues, But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.  Moses then gave them the good news that if they sought the LORD their God, they would find Him, no matter where they were,and so will anyone who seeks Him today.  God is already seeking the lost, so all we have to do is respond to His call.