A requiem can be defined as “a solemn chant, such as a dirge, for the repose of the dead.” And what we find in chapters 32 and 33 of Deuteronomy could be loosely defined or described as such. God and Moses continue to speak openly, honestly and candidly and within those daily conversations God alerts Moses that he will not be on the Earth much longer. It must have been really odd to have been Moses and openly converse with God like that. You see, God didn’t candy coat anything, the conversations were up front, bold and truthful. And well, often times, the truth can just sting like the dickens. I can’t imagine God coming to me today to tell me I was going to die later this week. Yes, the truth is just that, but still not easy to process.
On top of Moses passing away soon, God had another bittersweet pill for Moses. He would not be allowed to step foot into the promised land. For 40 years (from 80 to 120) He had been traipsing around with the Israelite nation, suffering through their daily fluctuations of obedience to God. Moses had seen some stuff. One of my favorite lines from Moses is early on in his leadership and already he is beginning to see the stress and pressure of leading God’s “stiff-necked” people.
“If this is how you are going to treat me, please go ahead and kill me” Numbers 11:15a
Can you imagine delivering this line directly to God? And meaning it? For 40 long years Moses led the people around the desert, part of their punishment for refusing to enter the promised land when God instructed them. The spies went into the promised land for 40 days and came back with a report that it just wasn’t possible for them to conquer it in their own power. And they were right. All power flows from God and without the faith to see that power manifested, we’re sunk. As a consequence, God gave them one year in the desert for every day they spent spying out a land that God had already given them, hence the 40 years.
But today as God is preparing Moses to prepare the people for his departure, God makes a rather odd request. He gives Moses a song and asks him to write it down and then have the people commit it to memory. So, what we see here in chapter 32 today is one of the original worship songs. In fact, many times throughout the song it mentions the coming of our Savior, and specifically calls Him the Rock. I guess you could also say this was the first and original “Rock song.” (hey, don’t complain, the jokes are free.)
Do yourself a favor and read chapter 32 today. The song that God gives is nothing less than a masterpiece. All the ingredients are here. The perfect work of Jesus Christ, faith, obedience, disobedience, the promises of God, salvation, the lack of ability of sinners to appease God’s righteousness, and the judgement of God upon those that reject Him. I would almost say this song would go straight to God’s Greatest Hits because it is just that, a conglomeration of all of His Word, summarized beautifully in lyrical fashion.
And how Moses presents the song to the Israelites is just as powerful as the song.
“Moses came and recited all the words of this song in the hearing of the people, he and Joshua the son of Nun. And when Moses had finished speaking all these words to all Israel, he said to them, “Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. For it is no empty word for you, but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.” Deut. 32:44-47
You see we’re told by the world today that God’s Word is passive. It’s more of a history book and within it’s pages some things are true and some are not. And as far as choosing what those might be, well, it’s up to the individual of course. Call it a Bible buffet. I frequently talk to people that quickly tell me what they believe and don’t believe from the pages of God’s Word. But we are told, by God, just the opposite of His Word. It is not passive, it’s active. It is alive and it is living and for the faith filled heart, it will react like a chemical explosion. When you have a heart filled with the Holy Spirit of God, His Word, can and will do amazing things when they come into contact.
So, the question is how often does your heart come into direct contact with the Holy Word of God? Once a week? Once a month? Since your church is closed due to the Corona virus have you stopped reading your Bible all together? Folks, within the pages of God’s Word, lies the abundant life that Christ has for you. How do you claim it. Three steps…open, read, do. The instructions that Moses gave the Israelites about God’s Word are the same instructions that a virus plagued world needs today in 2020. It is not a trick, it is not a gimmick, there’s no strings attached. Simply as a child of Jesus Christ, open up His Word, study it and commit it to your heart and then do what it says. The very life you desire and long for lies within the pages of God’s Word, seek it out today. God’s already made the promise, all you have to do is claim it.
“Take to heart all the words by which I am warning you today, that you may command them to your children, that they may be careful to do all the words of this law. For it is no empty word for you, but your very life, and by this word you shall live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to possess.”
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