Deuteronomy Chpt. 9

¹ Hear, O Israel: Thou [art] to pass over Jordan this day, to go in to possess nations greater and mightier than thyself, cities great and fenced up to heaven,

² A people great and tall, the children of the Anakims, whom thou knowest, and [of whom] thou hast heard [say], Who can stand before the children of Anak!

³ Understand therefore this day, that the LORD thy God [is] he which goeth over before thee; [as] a consuming fire he shall destroy them, and he shall bring them down before thy face: so shalt thou drive them out, and destroy them quickly, as the LORD hath said unto thee.

⁴ Speak not thou in thine heart, after that the LORD thy God hath cast them out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness the LORD hath brought me in to possess this land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD doth drive them out from before thee.

⁵ Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

⁶ Understand therefore, that the LORD thy God giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy righteousness; for thou [art] a stiffnecked people.

⁷ Remember, [and] forget not, how thou provokedst the LORD thy God to wrath in the wilderness: from the day that thou didst depart out of the land of Egypt, until ye came unto this place, ye have been rebellious against the LORD.

⁸ Also in Horeb ye provoked the LORD to wrath, so that the LORD was angry with you to have destroyed you.

How often do we think in our own lives that we receive blessings simply because of our own righteousness? How often do we inwardly think that we are blessed over others simply because of the "good" that we have done.


Moses was telling the Israelites here that God doesn't bless on the account of our righteousness. He warned them against becoming puffed up and self-righteous. He also reminds them that in actuality they are not really any better than the people that have turned their backs on the Lord. He reminds them of their past sins so that they would see the mercy of God on them in spite of what they had done.


The Bible tells us in Ephesians 2:8,9 and 11,12 that it is only by God's grace and mercy that He saves us from a much deserved fate. It has nothing to do with the good that we do but everything to do with the greatness that is in Him.


My questions to you today are:

• Have you been cleansed by the blood of Christ? Has He been made your Saviour today? It's only through Him that we will ever see the glorious Kingdom that so many await.
• Have you become a little self-righteous today? Do you tend to think more of the things that you do than you should?
• Have you pondered on what the Lord has saved you from? Do you look at your past, see where you are in the present and rejoice that Christ is your future?
• When was the last time you bowed your head and thanked the Lord for changing you and bringing you to where you are today?

Lovin' Learnin'