The LORD said to Moses, “You are about to die and join your ancestors. After you are gone, these people will begin to worship foreign gods, the gods of the land where they are going. They will abandon me and break my covenant that I have made with them. Then my anger will blaze forth against them. I will abandon them, hiding my face from them, and they will be devoured. Terrible trouble will come down on them, and on that day they will say, ‘These disasters have come down on us because God is no longer among us!’ At that time I will hide my face from them on account of all the evil they commit by worshiping other gods. [Deuteronomy 21.16-18]
I know many want to discount the words of the Old Covenant as if Jesus made it all go away. But, that is not what Jesus said...
“Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose. [Matthew 5.17]
Jesus came to accomplish the purpose of Moses' and the prophets' writings.
Moses represents the law. After all, he was the one God gave the law to and who wrote it all down. We must understand that Moses' passing also points to the Advent of Jesus Whom Joshua can be seen to represent. Obedience to God was just as important when Joshua was leading as it was when Moses was leading - there was just new leadership. Just as Moses pointed to Joshua, so Jesus said the law pointed to Him.
“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [John 5.39]
Here's the deal. Israel needed to follow Joshua to enter the Promised Land. Obedience to God was just as important under Joshua's leadership as it was under Moses' leadership. So obedience to God's will remains key to following Jesus today. Moses led Israel around in the wilderness. Joshua led Israel to the Promised Land. Under Joshua's leadership, it is not ironic that there was a miraculous crossing of the Jordan River into the Promised Land representing salvation and baptism under Jesus' leadership.
While this is all very enlightening, it is not what this article is designed to convey... Deuteronomy 21.16-18 offers a prophecy God gave about His people after they entered the Promised Land: they would betray His will and suffer "terrible trouble" for it. As the Promised Land represents the New Covenant, we should be extremely attentive to understand what took place there!
The "terrible trouble" would be terrible trouble indeed. It would be everything described in Deuteronomy 28 as the result of having disobeyed God. Military defeat, sickness, disease, financial loss, and stress of every kind were all defined in Deuteronomy 28.15-68 as outcomes for not walking with God; from straying away from faith in God and trusting in idols. Deuteronomy 21.16-18 says these things would happen to Israel in the Promised Land and they would say, "These disasters have come down on us because God is no longer among us!"
What we need to understand is that these disasters Israel experienced ("terrible trouble") are very prevalent among us today! The problem however is that we have become so spiritually dull that we no longer attribute "terrible trouble" to disobedience to God. Instead, we chalk them up to science and circumstance while faithlessly prostituting ourselves to idols of the world for remedies only God can truly provide: health, wealth and peace of mind. All the while, obedience to God is ignored with some even claiming "grace" in Christ Jesus. All the while, "terrible trouble" gets worse and worse.
Regardless how foolish it seems to reject the world and its solutions, there simply is no way to trust God alone (as He commanded) without doing just that: trusting Him alone.
You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.3]
Until God's people repent and return to God alone trusting Him only, "terrible trouble" will afflict His people no differently than it afflicts the world. A revival of this thought is coming, but there will be few who acknowledge it. Jesus Himself said it:
But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it. [Matthew 7.14]
We need to look around and see the obvious: God is no longer among us. We need to stop declaring "Jesus" when nothing about our lives mirrors the life and testimony of Jesus Christ as detailed in the Bible with Jesus Himself even telling us our lives should mirror His:
Again he said, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” [John 20.21]
It is pure fantasy to expect "peace" if we are not showing the world Jesus by our lives. Yes, this statement hurts me just as much as anyone... But, until we truthfully acknowledge what our circumstances glaringly declare (that God is not among us), we remain on the broad way to the wide gates of hell.
God's Word has spoken and continues to speak through every "terrible trouble" in the news, in the world, and yes, even in the Church. But unrepentant ears will not hear it.
Father, may we open our eyes and ears to the truth of Your Word. May we see the terrible trouble around us with the understanding that it's not "science" but disobedience that is the cause. May You find a movement of repentance among Your people. May You see Jesus, Your Son among us (but not "our version" of Jesus). May there be a revival of Jesus in the earth with miraculous works not as the goal, but as the confirmation (as Your Word says). Even so, come, Lord Jesus. So be it.
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