It’s just an expression, but a memorable one.

A testimony of God’s Power to deliver!

Maybe I should say “God’s Power to rescue!”

Deuteronomy 4:20 is the Text for today. “But the Lord hath taken you, and brought you forth out of THE IRON FURNACE, even out of Egypt, to be unto Him a people of inheritance, as ye are this day.”

I’m interested in God’s analogy here of Egypt.

He called that place “the iron furnace!”

An uncomfortable situation, no doubt!

In fact, the Jews were slaves there!

Forced labor!

For, in round figures, “four hundred years!”

An “iron furnace” indeed.

The intense “heat” may be a reference to the making of bricks for Pharaoh’s many building projects, too. Here’s a direct quote from Exodus 5:16, surely such brick had to be “baked.” The Egyptian “taskmasters” to the Jews: “Make brick.” Then we are told: “Behold, thy servants are beaten,” when not enough “straw” was found to complete their projects!

Wow!

And God knew what the Israelites were suffering!

Remember Isaiah 63:9. When God’s people hurt … God hurts! “In all their (the Jews) affliction,  He (the Lord) was afflicted.”

Generations, in an “iron furnace!”

Readers here this Saturday morning, GOD KNOWS WHAT YOU ARE ENDURING AS WELL!

Hallelujah!

But, as comforting as that though can be … there’s more.

An iron furnace, stringent as it is, can also have benefits!

Like purifying certain metals.

And solidifying certain types of clay.

In other words, making things more useful!

More, using Paul’s words from 2nd Timothy 2:21, “meet for the master’s use!”

Iron furnaces … horrible?

Yes, in many ways.

But … profitable?

Yes, in many (more important) ways.

Remember, the three Hebrew children of Daniel chapter three were NOT in that (iron) furnace alone! “Lo, I see FOUR MEN loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like THE SON OF GOD.” Daniel 3:25

Wow!

God … and “iron furnaces!”

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

 

Our Text today records an earnest request Moses prayed to God, one of the last such in the man’s illustrious career. He here (Deuteronomy 3:23-28) asks God to allow him to enter the Land of Canaan!

Verse 25 specifies, quoting Moses: “I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon.”

But God said (emphatically) “NO!”

The following verse tells us that God was “wroth” with Moses!

And God “would not hear” the man’s prayer!

And that the Lord commanded Moses: “Speak no more unto Me of this matter.”

Unanswered prayer!

More than that, forbidden prayer!

However, God in His Grace did let Moses’ view the land from afar!

But not enter it.

There are reasons for this denial.

Sin being behind them all.

But still … God refusing (delaying is a better word) a request of a dear Servant!

The same thing happened to Jeremiah, on a number of occasions.

Note Jeremiah 7:16 … “Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.”

The same thing happened to Paul the Apostle!

In 2nd Corinthians 12:8, speaking of a “thorn in the flesh,” the Apostle relates: “For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.” Three times! Paul begged God!

But … the “thorn” stays! “And he (the Lord) said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”

Wow!

All I’m wondering today … are we any better than Moses or Jeremiah or Paul?

Might not there be a time that God would tell us (undoubtedly for our own good) … NO?

Something to think about this Friday morning.

When God says NO.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

Part of growing up, maturing, just may be learning to accept refusal (“NO”) and staying cheerful, productive in our Christian lives!

Any comments today?

Text number … 770-844-7627

 

 

God WITH His people!

That’s exactly what Deuteronomy 2:25 describes, at least depicting one RESULT of God being WITH His people!

“This day will I begin to put the dread of thee and the fear of thee upon the nations that are under the whole heaven, who shall hear report of thee, and shall tremble, and be in anguish because of thee.”

Wow!

God can made someone fear (or not fear) His followers!

Yes, and He can bring us into fellowship/friendship with those He chooses too.

As in Daniel 1:9. “Now God had brought Daniel into favour and tender love with the prince of the eunuchs.” This deserves a second “Wow!”

And really (maybe the best illustration of all) Proverbs 16:7 promises: “When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.”

Even the man’s enemies …. restrained from hurting him!

I’m writing the Lesson this morning as we drive up the road! Using everything wireless!

Realizing (maybe more than ever) that God can even care for us … control people’s reactions to us … under every circumstance of life!

If someone today loves you, appreciates you, has encouraged you … THANK THE LORD. I suspect strongly that He is behind those actions … not our radiant personalities!

Amen.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

 

To travel (on foot) from Mt. Sinai (where Israel received the Law of God) … to the border of the Promised Land should have taken a total of only eleven days.

So Deuteronomy 1:2 informs us, matter-of-factly. “There are ELEVEN DAYS’ JOURNEY from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.”

One can’t help but read the next verse though. “And it came to pass IN THE FORTIETH YEAR, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that the LORD had given him in commandment unto them ….” And at this point Israel STILL is not in the Land of Canaan!

They took 40 years to march an 11 day route?

Yes.

So the natural question is, WHY?

And the answer is a little word, SIN!

Folks, sin is a retardant!

In Latin, “tardus” means “slow.”

Sin slows one’s spiritual progress, or stops it altogether.

Wow!

What sin did Israel commit?

That cost them a whole generation of people, of her citizens?

Yes, 40 years would be a generation, back then anyway.

The sin of unbelief.

God had told the Jews, “Enter the Land of Canaan. I will help you defeat the enemies there. I will keep my promises, made to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob.”

But Israel did not believe God.

They saw problems (obstacles) in acquiring their future homeland … clearly not hearing the promises of God!

One Preacher said that “unbelief” is so very dangerous because it is a sin of the will. It generally translates mere “doubt” into blatant “rebellion.”

Maybe today’s verse is worthy of memorization! “There are ELEVEN DAYS’ JOURNEY from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.”

Too long, so many wasted years … shriveling in the desert, the wilderness!

The whole Bible idea of “confusion,” a man being “confounded” is built upon this premise of “delay.”

Sin delays!

That’s not all it does, but such delay is certainly near the top of the list. I suppose “death” is at the very apex! As in “The wages of sin is death.” Romans 6:23.

Are you “on time” in your spiritual growth pattern, dear friend?

If not, guess why!

— Dr. Mike Bagwell

 

 

The Bible is the inspired Word of God, from Genesis 1 through Revelation 22, a total of 1,189 chapters. To me anyway, not one sentence is suspect.

That being so, the Bible is (not only, as I’ve just said, authored by God) … but still beautiful as Literature.

And the opening paragraph of Deuteronomy illustrates this fact.

“These be the words which Moses spake unto ALL ISRAEL on THIS SIDE JORDAN in the wilderness, in the plain over against the Red sea, BETWEEN Paran, and Tophel, and Laban, and Hazeroth, and Dizahab. ² (There are eleven days’ journey from Horeb by the way of mount Seir unto Kadeshbarnea.) ³ And it came to pass in the FORTIETH YEAR, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month, that Moses spake unto the children of Israel, according unto all that THE LORD had GIVEN him in COMMANDMENT unto them; ⁴ After he had slain Sihon the king of the Amorites, which dwelt in Heshbon, and Og the king of Bashan, which dwelt at Astaroth in Edrei: ⁵ On this side Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law, saying ….”  Deuteronomy 1:1-5, King James Version, where I have purposely left the verse numbers in place.

Great writing (freshmen in any college journalism class immediately learn) always answers a series of basic questions … and does so in the first few lines at that.

The pertinent questions are: “who, what, where, when and why,” though not necessarily in that order.

Moses, in our Text today, gives a classic example of such illustrative writing.

Who, the subject of the Address? “All Israel!”

Where, the location of the narrative? “On this side Jordan in the wilderness,” east of the River. The long years of journeying are over, the miles (mostly) lie behind them now.

What, the subject matter of Deuteronomy? ” A review of … “all that had been given him in commandment unto them.” A second giving of the Law of God, Deuteronomy.

When? Carefully it’s recorded … “in the fortieth year, in the eleventh month, on the first day of the month” of the last year of Israel’s trek to the Promised Land!

And WHY? Maybe the most important question of all. Because “the LORD had given him commandment.” That’s reason enough, God had spoken!

Wow!

After just five verses our attention is riveted!

We now know (due to Moses’ excellent writing) what to expect as we wade into the thirty-four chapters of this great (inerrant) Book of Scripture!

We’re just getting started … but I feel a “hunger” already for this Book Jesus seemed to love so much. He quoted from Deuteronomy, remember, each time He thwarted the Devil in Matthew 4. In Luke 4 as well, both recording the same Victory our Lord enacted.

Amen.

— Dr. Mike Bagwell