Exodus 3:1–10; Deuteronomy 34:1–4; Exodus 3:8

 

How are you ensuring that you remember the Lord and that you are preparing to enter the promised land He has prepared for all who follow Him?

"1 Now Moses kept the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian: and he led the flock to the backside of the desert, and came to the mountain of God, even to Horeb.

2 And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

3 And Moses said, I will now turn aside, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt.

4 And when the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I.

5 And he said, Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

7 ¶ And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.

9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.

10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt." (Exodus 3:1–10)

"1 And Moses went up from the plains of Moab unto the mountain of Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, that is over against Jericho. And the Lord shewed him all the land of Gilead, unto Dan,

2 And all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea,

3 And the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar.

4 And the Lord said unto him, This is the land which I sware unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying, I will give it unto thy seed: I have caused thee to see it with thine eyes, but thou shalt not go over thither." (Deuteronomy 34:1–4)

"8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites." (Exodus 3:8)

And here's the introductory commentary to this week's reading assignment: "May 11–17: “Beware Lest Thou Forget the Lord” Deuteronomy 6–8; 15; 18; 29–30; 34" :

"Moses’s earthly ministry began on a mountain, when God spoke to him from a burning bush (see Exodus 3:1–10). It also ended on a mountain, more than 40 years later, when God gave him a glimpse of the promised land from the top of Mount Nebo (see Deuteronomy 34:1–4). Moses had spent his life preparing the children of Israel to enter that promised land, and the book of Deuteronomy records his final instructions, reminders, exhortations, and pleadings with the Israelites. Reading his words makes it clear that the real object of Moses’s ministry—the preparation the people needed—wasn’t about wilderness survival, conquering enemies, or building a nation. It was about learning to love God, obey Him, and remain loyal to Him. That’s the preparation we all need to enter the promised land of eternal life. So, although Moses never set foot in the “land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:8), because of his faith and faithfulness, he did enter the promised land that God has prepared for all those who follow Him.

For an overview of Deuteronomy, see “Deuteronomy” in the Bible Dictionary."

Are you able to see the hand of the Lord in your life, not just once in a while, but every single day? Are you seeing how your daily experiences are teaching you to love God, obey Him, and remain loyal to Him? Are you able to remember these experiences? Can you see how these experiences are preparing you to enter the promised land that God has prepared for all those who follow Him? You wouldn't want to forget these experiences, would you? Wouldn't writing these experiences day after day help ensure that you remember the Lord?

Numbers 22:5–7, 15–17; Numbers 22:18, 38; 23:8, 12, 26; Jude 1:11

How can we remain faithful to the Lord despite pressure from others?

"5 He sent messengers therefore unto Balaam the son of Beor to Pethor, which is by the river of the land of the children of his people, to call him, saying, Behold, there is a people come out from Egypt: behold, they cover the face of the earth, and they abide over against me:

6 Come now therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people; for they are too mighty for me: peradventure I shall prevail, that we may smite them, and that I may drive them out of the land: for I wot that he whom thou blessest is blessed, and he whom thou cursest is cursed.

7 And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the rewards of divination in their hand; and they came unto Balaam, and spake unto him the words of Balak.

15 ¶ And Balak sent yet again princes, more, and more honourable than they.

16 And they came to Balaam, and said to him, Thus saith Balak the son of Zippor, Let nothing, I pray thee, hinder thee from coming unto me:

17 For I will promote thee unto very great honour, and I will do whatsoever thou sayest unto me: come therefore, I pray thee, curse me this people." (Numbers 22:5–7, 15–17)

"18 And Balaam answered and said unto the servants of Balak, If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more.

38 And Balaam said unto Balak, Lo, I am come unto thee: have I now any power at all to say any thing? the word that God putteth in my mouth, that shall I speak." (Numbers 22:18, 38)

"8 How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the Lord hath not defied?

12 And he answered and said, Must I not take heed to speak that which the Lord hath put in my mouth?

26 But Balaam answered and said unto Balak, Told not I thee, saying, All that the Lord speaketh, that I must do?" (Numbers 23:8, 12, 26)

"13 If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the Lord, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the Lord saith, that will I speak?" (Numbers 24:13)

"16 Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the Lord in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the Lord." (Numbers 31:16)

"11 Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core." (Jude 1:11)

And here's the commentary entitled: "I can follow God’s will, even if others try to persuade me not to." :

"When Balak, the king of Moab, learned that the Israelites were approaching, he called for Balaam, a man known for pronouncing blessings and curses. Balak wanted him to curse the Israelites. Notice how Balak tried to persuade Balaam (see Numbers 22:5–7, 15–17), and think about temptations you might face to go against God’s will. What impresses you about Balaam’s responses in Numbers 22:18, 38; 23:8, 12, 26; 24:13? Sadly, Balaam eventually gave in to pressure and betrayed Israel (see Numbers 31:16; Jude 1:11). Ponder how you can remain faithful to the Lord despite pressure from others."

"Temptations lose their pow'r, when Thou art nigh". This line from the hymn "I Need Thee Every Hour" tells us how God is able to bless us when we are close to Him. He blesses us with the strength to withstand temptations. He blesses us with the power to resist the persuasions of others to not follow God's will. We need that blessing of empowerment from the Lord in order for us to stay firm with our decision to follow His will. Who else would empower us this way? Only the Lord (and His faithful servants). So, wouldn't knowing this motivate us to do all we can to remain faithful to the Lord, no matter what, even when a king like Balak pressures us otherwise?