When you need a definition of a word you need a good dictionary. I remember being in college and lugging around a huge dictionary so I could reference it and quickly learn the meaning of words and effectually build vocabulary. But if you want to go beyond the meaning of a word, where do you go? Say I seek the definition of a concept, idea or belief? Then it gets much tougher. You see as we broaden our search to define and understand the things of this world, we open ourselves up to greater interpretations. As we ask people for their definitions, it now gets tainted with their beliefs, backgrounds and biases. So where can we go to find the true north of absolute truth? For those that believe in Jesus Christ, you simply go to one place, the Word of God.
So here’s a tough question for you, how would you define or describe a great nation? One that has a great GDP? One where it’s citizens are safe, healthy and happy? One that has great beauty in the landscape? One that is debt free and operates within it’s means on a budget? One that enjoys political harmony? One that has great rapport with all the nations around it? One where it’s citizens can make a bunch of money and live luxurious lifestyles? One that has affordable healthcare for all? I think as you carefully ponder this question you could take a hundred lines of logic and they in turn could take you down a hundred different rabbit trails? Refer back to the first paragraph, the answer you receive depends on who you ask.
Today in the Word of God we look at Deuteronomy 4. I trust that if you’re a follower of the 5MC that you are reading the study chapter first before you read the 5MC commentary. After all, how can you study a book without first reading the book? Well, as we read the true north of God’s Word today, guess what? God gives us the most beautiful definition of a great nation that you will ever find. I guess how you accept or reject this definition really depends on how you view the absolute truth that is God’s Word. I personally believe that the Word of God is just that. It is the inerrant, God inspired written words and instructions of Almighty God. It is His rules, laws, commands and wisdom to guide believers of Jesus Christ to find and live a life that is abundantly full of peace, freedom and joy. I believe that life’s answers are all found within it’s pages and that all we need do is study it daily, pray for God to reveal it to us and then simply apply the principles into our life. As we study God’s Word today, let’s encounter His perfect definition of a great nation.
“See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you 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 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 the Lord our God is to us, 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?” Deu 4:5-8
Let’s break this passage down and look at the 5 components God deems necessary to be a great nation in His eyes.
1) “And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you.” Due 4:1
There’s an old saying from George Bernard Shaw that says, “He who can does; he who cannot, teaches.” I see the point of the quote focusing on the word “do” and that’s exactly where the verse above focuses. There are millions of people every week in the US that attend some type of worship service and hear the Word of God. But because of the condition of their heart, God’s Word bounces off their heart like grass seed on a cold concrete drive. In fact, that’s the whole point of the parable of the sower. (Matt 13:1-18) How does the Word of God affect your heart? You see, you can hear the Word of God with your ears and shun it in your heart. It’s not enough for a nation to hear the Word of God, it has to do the Word of God. And folks, a nation is merely many people living within a set geographic border. A nation is simply many hearts. The revival of a nation starts with individual hearts. How does your heart receive the Word of God? Do you just hear it, or do you also do it? “But don’t just listen to God’s Word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves.” James 1:22
2) “You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the LORD your God that I command you.” Deu 4:2
I’ve read recent reports about the current wave of plagiarism in our schools. Because of the internet you can borrow, steal and even purchase term papers, research papers and book reports. Many students try to make it their own by altering the words of the report just enough to make it sound like their own words so that the teacher won’t get privy and flunk them for cheating. Folks, that is what God is saying here. Don’t take His laws and commands for a righteous life and then spin them to fit your needs or beliefs. Yet today the hearts of nations do exactly this. They take the laws of God and reshape them into what they want as if it were a fresh clump of clay. There is no better example of this than what our world's nations has done to marriage as God defines it in His Word. One man, one woman, joined in a union created by God that has a purpose for God. In fact, it’s such a foundation of God’s world, that He put it in 2nd chapter of His entire book! But because prideful, sinful hearts want what they want, nations have altered God’s law to satisfy those hearts. Even to the point of making this "new marriage" national law. If you are a parent, I do not think that your rules for your children are probably wide open for debate or that they can change them to their liking. God is no different. His rules are the rules.
3) Therefore, watch yourselves very carefully, so that you do not become corrupt and make for yourselves an idol, an image of any shape” Deu 4:16a
Idolatry and a sinful heart go hand in hand like peanut butter and jelly. A sinful heart will idolize whatever promises it the most pleasure. My favorite definition of an idol is “anything that creates distance between you and God.” Today, more than likely you do not have a big carved wooden idol on your mantle that you worship, but if you really search your life, you probably have far more than a wooden idol. If you consider the above definition,anything can and will create distance between you and God. Number one is oursleves. Look in any mirror and you’ll see the number one thing that can create distance between you and God…pride, ego and selfishness. We can easily put ourselves and our wants and desires before the law of God. Idols in our life can also be money, power, family, work, education, pornography, cars, homes, clothes, drugs (prescription or illegal), status, food , alcohol, adultery and the list goes as deep as the desires of the heart. Idolatry can and will create distance between you and God and the result is a nation of hard, selfish hearts that will shun the Word of God to instead seek their own pleasure. “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 John 5:21
4) “Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, when he said to me, “Assemble the people before me to hear my words so that they may learn to revere me as long as they live in the land and may teach them to their children.” Deut 4:9-10
Any nation is a living evolving organism. Every day people die, and new people take their place. It is a never ending revolving door of life. So how do these new lives learn the Word of God? The older people that have already learned the Word of God are to teach it to them. This is God’s plan for the continuity of His living Word to live throughout all generations. There’s a couple of things to note here. God says it’s the responsibility of the adults in any nation to teach the younger people the Word of God. How can you teach the young people in your life the Word of God if you don’t know it? We see nations of people today that are completely ignorant of God’s Word. As a result, it’s the blind leading the blind. It’s no wonder we see new generations of lives spiraling out of control when we have greatly strayed from God’s clear plan of teaching His Word through our generations. Do you know why one of the 10 Commandments is to Honor your parents? Because your parents have one major God given job, to teach their children the Word of God. Learn the Word of God and teach it to the youth of our nation, it’s God’s law.
5) “See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the Lord my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it. Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” Deut 4:5-6
By living the Word of God each and every day, you live a “wordless sermon.” Your actions, behavior and treatment of others tell them all they need to know about your heart. As you live for Christ and by His Word, His light will emanate from you to the world around you. A nation composed of these hearts that shine for Jesus, will create a light that shines forth unto the entire world. God instructs us to be a great nation that through our actions and obedience to His Word, sends a clear message to the entire world. We love God, we follow God and as a result God blesses this nation with His goodness.
As I ponder these invaluable points today, it makes me ponder not what a great nation is, but where are the great nations? A great nation not only hears the Word of God but does the Word of God. A great nation follows God’s Word to the letter and does not alter it to meet their sinful desires. A great nation brings up its children in the way of God so that they may not stray from it as they grow. A great nation does not put anything before God, idolizing themselves and their pleasures. A great nation shines the light of Jesus Christ to the World.
But remember, to be a great nation such as this, it all starts with the heart that beats within your own chest. Don’t demand a great nation of others, start a great nation today by letting the light of Christ shine in your own life.
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