Deuteronomy 32:6 Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise? Is not he thy father that hath bought thee? Hath he not made thee, and established thee?
Ah my Friends, Today’s Bit fits us like a hand in a custom made glove. Those words were spoken by Moses to the Israelites shortly before his death because he knew that they were a stubborn, hard-hearted, impatient people who wanted everything easy and now for now. That sounds very much like our society today, doesn’t it Friends? As Moses said when he gathered the tribes to talk to them: ‘For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days; because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands.’ (Deut. 31:29) Moses certainly knew his people. They had done it before and would do it again. ‘They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation.’ (Deut. 32:5) Oh my people, Moses could have been referring to us in modern day society, for we are doing just like the Israelites. Because of their corruption, crooked and sinful dealings they had acquired a negative blemish that deprived them of the privilege of being considered God’s children. It’s the same with us today. Our society is so corrupt, sinful and ungodly that we cannot under any circumstances be considered God’s children or a godly society. Not by a long stretch of the imagination. That’s why Moses asked in the Bit; ‘Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise?’ Instead of complaining and turning against the Lord, they should have been saying stuff like the Psalmist: ‘What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits to me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows unto the Lord now in the presence of all his people.’ (Ps.116:12-14) Sadly, my brethren, we seem to be poured from the same mould. Instead of thanking God for the many benefits and blessings He’s so generously bestowed on us, we cause Him grief with our complaining and whining over the things we don’t get. But the fact of the matter is that many of the things we ask and long for are based on the world’s lustful expectations, rather than His spiritual programme. Under those circumstances, we certainly won’t get them, especially if our wishes are tied up with wrong motives. Our ungrateful, complaining attitudes over things that are not important in the Lord’s sight definitely throws us into the foolish and unwise category, specified by Moses. Friends, we cannot repay good with evil, or blessings with ingratitude, which is what our society seems to be about these days. We all expect a bountiful harvest without the requisite labour, and when it’s not forthcoming, we angrily wonder why. It’s simple my people; we’re not tuned into God’s wavelength so all we’re receiving is static, and until we tune our dial to God’s frequency, static is all we’ll receive. Consequently, our lives will be a mere shadow of what they could be under His wonderful patronage and tutelage. Such was Moses’ disappointment that he sadly enquired: ‘Is not he thy father that hath bought thee?’ Of course! The answer was and is and will always be yes on both counts. Let’s look at some of the justification. The Lord’s instructions to Moses on his first meeting with Pharaoh were: ‘And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my first born. And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me:’ (Ex.4:22-23) That certainly implies a father and son relationship. ‘And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the Lord thy God bare (carried) thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place.’ (Deut.1:31) That’s another reminder of Moses to the parental connection. Isaiah also commented on the subject when talking of the Lord’s great favour shown to Israel. ‘Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.'(Is.63:16) Now re His buying of Israel, one verse of Asaph’s Psalm 74 will suffice. ‘Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod (tribe) of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed.’ (Ps. 74:2) And the last part of the Bit queries; ‘Hath he not made thee, and established thee?’ For sure! He not only formed us from the earth with His LOVING hands, but also prospered His people. ‘But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly (scornfully) esteemed the Rock of his salvation.’ (Deut.32:15) Ah mih people, those are instances of Old Testament interaction between The Most High God Jehovah and His chosen people, which still hold true today, but we have even more now; the coming of Jesus and His new covenant that brought us back into a right relationship with the Father. He bought us again through Jesus’ blood spilled on that disgusting cross and again gave us the privilege to be called the children of God if we believed on His Son. The Lord showed His immense LOVE for us by giving His only Son’s life as a ransom for our sins, providing salvation and eternal life even though we didn’t deserve it. And just like Moses, I’m asking; Is this the way we requite all His LOVE and tender care, mercy and forgiveness, by living such ungodly, sinful lives, desiring the lusts and material possessions of the world more than the spiritual benefits of His holy kingdom? Ah Friends, it should be not so. It’s neither wise nor grateful. But luckily for us our God is patient and will usually give us enough time to come to our senses. The only problem is that we have absolutely no idea when He’ll say, enough. That means we’ve got to get on His good side, make amends NOW, cause later or tomorrow might just be too late. So let’s wisely tune into the Lord’s frequency and get with His programme nuh. Then we won’t be considered foolish and unwise. Much LOVE!…a wise child…will LOVE and revere their father…
Ah my Friends, Today’s Bit fits us like a hand in a custom made glove. Those words were spoken by Moses to the Israelites shortly before his death because he knew that they were a stubborn, hard-hearted, impatient people who wanted everything easy and now for now. That sounds very much like our society today, doesn’t it Friends? As Moses said when he gathered the tribes to talk to them: ‘For I know that after my death ye will utterly corrupt yourselves, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days; because you will do evil in the sight of the Lord, to provoke him to anger through the work of your hands.’ (Deut. 31:29) Moses certainly knew his people. They had done it before and would do it again. ‘They have corrupted themselves, their spot is not the spot of his children: they are a perverse and crooked generation.’ (Deut. 32:5) Oh my people, Moses could have been referring to us in modern day society, for we are doing just like the Israelites. Because of their corruption, crooked and sinful dealings they had acquired a negative blemish that deprived them of the privilege of being considered God’s children. It’s the same with us today. Our society is so corrupt, sinful and ungodly that we cannot under any circumstances be considered God’s children or a godly society. Not by a long stretch of the imagination. That’s why Moses asked in the Bit; ‘Do ye thus requite the Lord, O foolish people and unwise?’ Instead of complaining and turning against the Lord, they should have been saying stuff like the Psalmist: ‘What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits to me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows unto the Lord now in the presence of all his people.’ (Ps.116:12-14) Sadly, my brethren, we seem to be poured from the same mould. Instead of thanking God for the many benefits and blessings He’s so generously bestowed on us, we cause Him grief with our complaining and whining over the things we don’t get. But the fact of the matter is that many of the things we ask and long for are based on the world’s lustful expectations, rather than His spiritual programme. Under those circumstances, we certainly won’t get them, especially if our wishes are tied up with wrong motives. Our ungrateful, complaining attitudes over things that are not important in the Lord’s sight definitely throws us into the foolish and unwise category, specified by Moses. Friends, we cannot repay good with evil, or blessings with ingratitude, which is what our society seems to be about these days. We all expect a bountiful harvest without the requisite labour, and when it’s not forthcoming, we angrily wonder why. It’s simple my people; we’re not tuned into God’s wavelength so all we’re receiving is static, and until we tune our dial to God’s frequency, static is all we’ll receive. Consequently, our lives will be a mere shadow of what they could be under His wonderful patronage and tutelage. Such was Moses’ disappointment that he sadly enquired: ‘Is not he thy father that hath bought thee?’ Of course! The answer was and is and will always be yes on both counts. Let’s look at some of the justification. The Lord’s instructions to Moses on his first meeting with Pharaoh were: ‘And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith the Lord, Israel is my son, even my first born. And I say unto thee, Let my son go, that he may serve me:’ (Ex.4:22-23) That certainly implies a father and son relationship. ‘And in the wilderness, where thou hast seen how that the Lord thy God bare (carried) thee, as a man doth bear his son, in all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place.’ (Deut.1:31) That’s another reminder of Moses to the parental connection. Isaiah also commented on the subject when talking of the Lord’s great favour shown to Israel. ‘Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou O Lord, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.'(Is.63:16) Now re His buying of Israel, one verse of Asaph’s Psalm 74 will suffice. ‘Remember thy congregation, which thou hast purchased of old; the rod (tribe) of thine inheritance, which thou hast redeemed.’ (Ps. 74:2) And the last part of the Bit queries; ‘Hath he not made thee, and established thee?’ For sure! He not only formed us from the earth with His LOVING hands, but also prospered His people. ‘But Jeshurun waxed fat, and kicked: thou art waxen fat, thou art grown thick, thou art covered with fatness; then he forsook God which made him, and lightly (scornfully) esteemed the Rock of his salvation.’ (Deut.32:15) Ah mih people, those are instances of Old Testament interaction between The Most High God Jehovah and His chosen people, which still hold true today, but we have even more now; the coming of Jesus and His new covenant that brought us back into a right relationship with the Father. He bought us again through Jesus’ blood spilled on that disgusting cross and again gave us the privilege to be called the children of God if we believed on His Son. The Lord showed His immense LOVE for us by giving His only Son’s life as a ransom for our sins, providing salvation and eternal life even though we didn’t deserve it. And just like Moses, I’m asking; Is this the way we requite all His LOVE and tender care, mercy and forgiveness, by living such ungodly, sinful lives, desiring the lusts and material possessions of the world more than the spiritual benefits of His holy kingdom? Ah Friends, it should be not so. It’s neither wise nor grateful. But luckily for us our God is patient and will usually give us enough time to come to our senses. The only problem is that we have absolutely no idea when He’ll say, enough. That means we’ve got to get on His good side, make amends NOW, cause later or tomorrow might just be too late. So let’s wisely tune into the Lord’s frequency and get with His programme nuh. Then we won’t be considered foolish and unwise. Much LOVE!…a wise child…will LOVE and revere their father…
SCRIP-BITS 