Walking In His Ways | Sunday, September 4, 2022

When you come into the land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations... For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD... You shall be blameless before the LORD your God... The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear... I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth... (Deuteronomy 18:9-22)

Moses points Israel—and us—to four essentials for walking in alignment with God's word and His ways.

Why Deuteronomy Still Matters

For more than two years we have been making our way through the book of Deuteronomy, which I believe is a key to understanding the Old Testament. Everything that follows—from Joshua to Malachi—is essentially an application or illustration of this text. Deuteronomy establishes the "if this, then that" algorithm for Israel's life as God's people in the promised land. If Israel followed God's ways and kept His commandments, they would experience His blessing and abundance. But if they turned away and transgressed His commandments, they would reap the consequences and curses of the law. We see a perfect summary of this conditional sowing and reaping in Deuteronomy 28, illustrated throughout the history and prophecy books.

Sitting here 3,400 years after Moses, we are not under the law of Israel in the same way they were. When we read about the feasts, sabbaths, sacrifices, dietary restrictions, and purification rituals, they may feel like they have little bearing on our lives as Gentile Christians in 2022. Many Christians live as though Deuteronomy and the rest of the Old Testament are unimportant; many never read these passages, and sadly many churches never open these books.

But Deuteronomy is important for us. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10 that all these things happened to Israel as examples, written for our admonition, "upon whom the ends of the age have come." Then he adds this caution: "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." These overlooked books reveal important things about God and give us insight into what it means to live as His people—and how we are, or are not, to follow Him.

Israel Governed by God's Law

God's design was that His people would live lives governed by His law. One definition of the name Israel is "governed of God." Throughout the wilderness wanderings, Moses had been the mediator of the law. If the people were short on water or food, if someone committed a trespass, they went to Moses and he took care of it. But as Israel prepared to enter the land, God called them to live as His people according to His law without the direct mediation of a man like Moses. Those who read the rest of the Old Testament know it didn't turn out well—and these things were recorded that we might learn from them.

God did not leave them alone. As we saw in Deuteronomy 17 last week, He outlined the offices of the priests, the Levites, and the judges, who were tasked with helping the people walk before God in a righteous way. The priests and Levites were experts in understanding this law; the judges helped work it out. These individuals oversaw the spiritual and moral life of the people.

Deuteronomy 18:1-6 reveals that their complete focus was this work. They received no portion of the land as an inheritance, so they were freed from tending fields and flocks. Verse 2 says, "Therefore they shall have no inheritance among their brethren; the LORD is their inheritance, as He said to them." Verse 5 says the LORD "has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand to minister in the name of the LORD, him and his sons forever." Their entire job was not sowing seed but sowing God's word and shepherding God's people, so the people would know how to walk rightly before God.

Cultivate Priestly Relationships

Though we are not under God's law in the same way Israel was, we still need those who sow God's word into us and shepherd us. To live rightly as the people of God, we must cultivate priestly relationships in our lives. Do you know who those people are in your life?

It may sound self-serving for a pastor to say this, but if you follow Jesus you need shepherds and pastors who faithfully sow God's word into your heart. You should also cultivate relationships with other brothers and sisters in the body of Christ who will speak God's word into your life—not their opinions or perspectives, but people who say, "That reminds me of a passage over here in Deuteronomy or in Chronicles." I need those people in my life too, who direct me to the word of God.

This is why we at Cross Connection are so focused on connect groups. We don't believe you'll reach your fullest potential as a follower of Jesus on your own, without other members of the household of faith encouraging your growth. We were created for connection—to live in connection with God and with one another. Jesus said the thief comes to steal, kill, and destroy, "but I have come that you may have life, and that you may have it more abundantly." You cannot be a lone-ranger Christian thriving in your faith on your own.

A priestly relationship doesn't mean someone has authority or power over you to whom you submit; it means people who encourage and challenge you to walk in the Lord's ways and point you back to Scripture when you're making a decision. Even as a pastor, I have such relationships—friends, family, mentors, other men in the faith who challenge me to grow. Gathering on Sunday morning and getting a donut afterward is great, but it isn't sufficient to grow deep. We need deeper engagement and connection if our lives are going to align with God's word and His ways.

Cut Off Corrupting Carnal Philosophies

Moses continues in verse 9: "You shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD... You shall be blameless before the LORD your God."

At first these six verses may seem inapplicable. You probably aren't keeping company with witches or sorcerers. But you may know people who consider themselves "spiritual" or spiritually aware, who claim special knowledge or higher consciousness, who don't know God or the Bible but boast of insight. Given our culture, some friends or family may even encourage you to use psychedelics or marijuana to "connect with the divine." You may know people into Wicca, the New Age, astrology, transcendental meditation, occultism, horoscopes, or séances. These things are still around, just as they were thousands of years ago.

If we are going to walk in God's ways, we must cut off all forms of false wisdom and knowledge. It has been said we become the average of those we spend the most time with; Scripture says it more plainly in 1 Corinthians 15:33, "Do not be deceived: Evil company corrupts good habits." The land Israel was entering was filled with twisted, immoral practices, even sacrificing children to a deity called Molech. As to these things, God's people were to be blameless—completely separate.

Blameless separation is a New Testament principle too. In 2 Corinthians 6 Paul says, "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers... what accord has Christ with Belial?... For you are the temple of the living God... Therefore come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you." And in Colossians 2:8, "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit... and not according to Christ. For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him." In Christ you are complete. You don't need a spiritist, a spiritual guide, astrology, horoscopes, or any chemical to open your eyes. All we need is Christ.

Develop a Genuine Connection to Christ

Moses says in verse 15, "The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your midst, from your brethren. Him you shall hear." He recalls Horeb, where the people feared to hear God's voice directly. God answered, "I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him." This prophet speaks God's word directly to the people, and his words are consequential: "Whoever will not hear My words, which He speaks in My name, I will require it of him."

You may notice that the New King James capitalizes Prophet and the pronouns He, Him, and His. That choice is editorial—ancient Hebrew has no capitals—but it helps us see what becomes clear in the New Testament. Moses was the mediator of the old covenant at Sinai. Yet here he predicts a greater Prophet who will mediate a new and better covenant. The old covenant, the law, was good, but Hebrews 8:6 tells us Jesus is the mediator of a better covenant. In Acts 3, Peter quotes Deuteronomy 18:15 and applies it to Jesus. Jesus is the Prophet, the mediator of a better covenant; He speaks the words of God because He is God incarnate, and His words are consequential. Ignore Him at your own peril.

Moses had a mountaintop experience at Sinai where he saw God's glory in part and heard God's voice (Exodus 34), and as high priest he related that to the people through the law. In the Gospels there is another mountaintop experience. In Matthew 17, Jesus is transfigured before Peter, James, and John; they behold His glory and hear the Father's voice: "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him." Jesus is our High Priest and mediator of a greater covenant, making it possible for us to connect with the glory and word of God.

You cannot live in alignment with God's ways without a genuine connection to Christ through prayer, worship, His word, and fellowship with Him. Let me say it again: you cannot and will not walk in a way that is pleasing to the Father if you are out of step with His Son. He is the way, the truth, and the life; there is no other way to the Father.

So ask yourself: have you developed a habit of spending time in fellowship with Christ? Practically, that means a regular, consistent time with God in prayer, in reading His word, and in worshiping Him. One of the highest forms of worship is imitation—Paul says, "Be imitators of Christ as dear children," and we can only imitate Him by knowing Him in Scripture. Coming one Sunday a week or watching one message on YouTube is not sufficient. You will not grow into the image of Christ apart from spending time in God's word and applying it.

Guard Against Presumptuous False Prophets

Finally, verse 20: "The prophet who presumes to speak a word in My name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or who speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die." And how do we know? "When a prophet speaks in the name of the LORD, if the thing does not happen or come to pass... the prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him."

We must guard against presumptuous false prophets. False prophets exist and always will. Jesus warned in Matthew 7:15, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves." Peter wrote in 2 Peter 2:1 that there were false prophets among the people, "even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies." And John wrote in 1 John 4:1, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world."

So these four things are essential if we are going to walk in step with God's word and His ways: cultivate priestly relationships, cut off corrupting influences and vain philosophies, develop deep connection with Christ through His word and prayer, and guard against false prophets and false teaching. If we do these things, we will invite and experience God's blessing in greater measure, and begin to enter the fullness of the abundant life Jesus promised.

Remembering Christ in Communion

Today we partake of communion, where we commemorate what Jesus did on the cross and remember that He instituted a new covenant. We do not relate to God on the basis of how well we keep His law. There is no longer a separation where God is high on Sinai and we cower at the bottom. Because of what Jesus did on Calvary, we have the privilege to come into God's presence, for He fulfilled all the righteous requirements of the law that we never could.

On the night He was betrayed, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to His disciples, saying, "Eat this, all of you; for this is My body, which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of Me." As we take this bread, we remember His body broken for us, which makes it possible to approach a holy God.

In the same way He took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." The old covenant began with a sacrifice at Sinai; the new covenant comes upon the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the pure and spotless Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Hebrews says, "Without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins." Jesus died in our place, and His blood cleanses us from all sin so we can have connection with God, experience His glory, and hear His voice. Today we remember His blood shed for us as we partake together.

Closing Prayer

Father God, I thank You so much for what You have done for us in sending Your Son Jesus. You came to put Your life on the line for us, and not just on the line, but to die for us, so that we could have new life in You. You who knew no sin became sin for us, that we might receive Your righteousness. We remember that today; we commemorate and rejoice in the good work You did on Calvary. God, I pray that You would continue to do a good work in us, transforming us by the renewing of our minds. Help us to cultivate relationships with people who will direct us to You and to Your word. Help us to cut off anything that might be distracting us or leading us away from You. Help us to develop a genuine connection with You through Your word and prayer, walking out Your word and obeying it. And God, guard us from any false teaching and false prophets that might lead us astray. Do a work in Your church, we pray. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.