Deuteronomy 28:47-48a  “Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, therefore you shall serve your enemies,

    

    Occasionally when dealing with the ‘rules’ in a classroom, a teacher will be confronted by a student who accuses the teacher of some version of “you just don’t like me.” Or “you just don’t want us to have any fun.” 

    Of course there are a great variety of ‘flavors’ to this, but the main idea is consistent: the teacher, for some self-serving reason, just wants to control kids. There’s nothing new about this. It’s not even a result of childishness on the part of the kids. This goes back as far as people do to the garden of Eden. It’s Satan’s tired old lie.

    Satan has consistently tried to convince people that they don’t need to listen to God. In fact, he always presents them with a false choice: “you can be a slave to God, following His rules, or you can have true freedom!” But just like the last email you got from a Nigerian Prince, the offer sounds too good to be true, because it is!

    In today’s passage, Moses is wrapping up his reprise of the Law. The people had, after forty years, finally come to the Promised Land again. Before going in Moses gives them a refresher on the Law. (Deuteronomy means “second law”) The passage is long and this verse is a small part, but the chapter lays out a “follow the law and be blessed, or break the law and be cursed” idea. 

    Underlying that stark contrast is a God who created the ‘rules’, the Law, for the good of mankind. He created a world that works a certain way and following His Law, is a way that just ‘syncs up’ with His world. Breaking God’s Law causes drama, chaos, and ultimately, destruction. 

    When a parent tells a child not to touch the stove, they are not exhibiting some deranged need to control. When you come to a busy intersection and have to wait for a long red light, there is not some city planner behind the scenes maniacally laughing. God didn’t give the Law because He doesn’t like people and just wants them to be miserable. It is the exact opposite! He gave us the way to true happiness.

    Bob Dylan encapsulated the real truth behind Satan’s lie when he sang, “You’re gonna have to serve somebody. It may be the devil, or it may be the Lord, but you’re gonna have to serve somebody.” I wonder if he’d just read Deuteronomy 28:47-48?

Blessings,     

Pastor Russ