Deuteronomy: Chapters 15-21<\/p>\n
Chapter 15: Cancel the debt and help the poor. Give God our very best.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1-6: If we cancel the debts that people have owed us, we will be blessed greatly by God. Testimony (1) How Mrs. Yin loved her enemy. (2) A test of love before Mary went to America. Chapter 16: Take out the yeast; bring offerings to God with thanksgiving. Pursue justice.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1-3: Observe the day we are redeemed from sin all the days of our lives. Chapter 17: Purge the evil and keep the covenant. Do not turn away from the law.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1: When one has defect or flaw in him: Chapter 18: Be content with God\u2019s provision and strive upwards in the spirit. Be blameless before God.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1-8: God\u2019s servants should give all of their attention to God. Chapter 19: Set up six cities of refuge. Save those who have killed people unintentionally.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1-10: Set up six cities of refuge Jesus Christ is our refuge. The Lord is the Word. When we are caught in a sin, we take refuge in Jesus. In city of refuge we read God\u2019s words carefully and pray according to His words day and night. The avenger of blood cannot harm us anymore. Set it up on the whole land. Then we will not be guilty of bloodshed. Chapter 20: Fight against the enemies according to God\u2019s words.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1-4: Do not be afraid to war against the enemies, because God will be with us. Chapter 21: Be righteousness and just. Save the people nearest to us.<\/span><\/p>\n V. 1-9: If a man is found killed, the one nearest to him is responsible for his death. Deuteronomy: Chapters 15-21 Chapter 15: Cancel the debt and help the poor. Give God our very best. V. 1-6: If we cancel the debts that people have owed us, we will be blessed greatly by God. Testimony (1) How Mrs. … Continue reading
\nV. 7-11: Always give freely to people whatever they need. We are lending to the Lord when we do this.
\nV. 12-15: Give people plenty and generously as the Lord has blessed us.
\nV.16-18: Do not be harsh on people; let them go free. If they do not want to leave, let them stay.
\nV. 19-23: Give our best to God. Genesis 4\/4-5, \u201cBut Abel brought fat portions from some of the first-born of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering He did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.???Share testimony of sister Leong in London.<\/p>\n
\nJesus Christ appears so that He delivers us from sin and evil. How can we continue to sin? Since Christ suffered in His body, arm ourselves also with the same attitude. We will not live the rest of our earthly lives for evil human desires. But we will live for the good will of God. V. 3, \u201cDo not eat\u2026bread made with yeast, but for 7 days eat unleavened bread??? This is how we should observe the true Passover. Completely get rid of the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness. Then we are truly new creations. It is like what happened to Naaman of leprosy. He went down to the Jordan River and washed himself in it seven times. He was healed totally. Everyday we wash ourselves with water through God\u2019s words. We will be delivered totally from our sins and sinful nature.
\nV. 4-8: We remove yeast not only from ourselves, but also from our possession in all our land.
\nBe watchful for our Lord to check whether there are any sins, false teachings or cults existing in our homes, churches, towns and nations. Then stand in the gap, praying and removing the old yeast on behalf of our land.
\nV. 4 God\u2019s Word is our daily bread and meat. We should eat His words everyday and put it into practice on the same day. Never postpone doing God\u2019s words until the next day or later. \u201cThe meat you sacrifice???means putting God\u2019s words into practice.
\nV. 5 Sacrifice according to God\u2019s will. Hannah prayed to God for a son and vowed to dedicate this son to God. The Lord answered her prayer because it was after His heart. As soon as Samuel was weaned, she brought him to the house of the Lord. Hannah was so grateful that she also brought many gifts with her to fulfill her vow to God. She truly roasted the meat and ate it. She gave praise to God and dedicated her first born son to the Lord.
\nV. 8 Be sure to obey God\u2019s words to get rid of the old yeast completely before we do any ministry. Never serve the Lord with sins or old nature. Many people are busy with driving out the demons and healing the sick. But they remain in sinful ways of life. On that Day, the Lord will say plainly to them, \u201cI never know you. Be away from me.???br> V. 9-12: Count off seven weeks
\n(1) From the time we begin to put the sickle to the standing grain, we must earnestly focus our prayer for Pentecost\u2013a world-wide revival of gospel preaching so that we can be ready for the second coming of Jesus Christ. We will become so motivated in our ministry that we will serve with such humility, diligence, holiness and gratefulness, just like Ruth. Our ministry is sure to be blessed by God. (2) If we continue to celebrate this Feast by giving a freewill offering to God, we can share more blessing with others. God will keep on using us to bring more and more people to Christ. If we ignore this Feast of Weeks, we may lose focus in harvest and backslide. Many people have forsaken the Lord and go back to the world just like Demas.
\nV. 13-15: After we have had a harvest, we celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles.
\nFor the Lord has blessed us we must joyfully share the blessing with others. But the most important thing is to live with the Lord. Whatever joy we have on the earth is temporarily. Follow the example of Jesus. He always retreated to a mountain by himself after he did great wonders. There he spent time with Father and enjoyed living with Father.
\nV. 16-17: Three times a year we must keep these Feasts to God. It is to show our gratitude to the Lord and to repay His kindness.
\nNo man should appear before the Lord empty-handed. We must bring a gift in proportion to the way God has blessed us.
\nV. 18-20: Seek Justice and justice alone, so that we may prolong our lives.
\nAppoint judges and officials for God\u2019s people to judge fairly. Only those who listen to God\u2019s words and put them into practice are qualified to be judges and officials in church. Do not pervert justice. Do not judge by appearance. Do not accept bribes. Follow justice and justice alone. Do not have two differing weights and differing measures. The Lord hates them both because it is injustice. Injustice cannot last long.
\nV. 21-22: Do not set up any wooden idol beside the Altar. Nor erect a sacred stone for oneself. The Lord hates them.
\nAlways lead people to follow all the commands of the Lord. See no one but Jesus alone.<\/p>\n
\nIf that is our case, we should humble ourselves and pray to the Lord for healing by faith. Follow the example of that man of leprosy. He humbly begged for healing. Jesus said, \u201cI am willing.???Then Jesus touched him, he was healed. Also that sick woman when she touched the Lord\u2019s clothes by faith, she was healed from 12 years of bleeding.
\nV. 2-7: When we find people doing evil things:
\nIf we find God\u2019s children violate God\u2019s covenant or worship other gods, we must not ignore it. Investigate it thoroughly. If it is true, someone really have done a detestable thing, we must purge this sin from among us. That is why Paul asked the church to expel the immoral brother who married his step-mother. Then Paul openly handed that man over to Satan, so that the sinful nature may be destroyed and his spirit saved on the day of the Lord.
\nV. 8-13: When we find cases are too difficult for us to judge:
\nWe should take these cases to the place the Lord your God will choose\u2014a place has the truth. Inquire of the priests who stand ministering to God and the judge. Then we must act according to the judgment of the truth they give us. For example, when the church at Antioch faced a dispute about whether the Gentiles believers should be circumcised or not, they appointed Paul and Barnabas to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. Finally, Peter and James all came to agreement that they should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who were turning to God. Instead, they decided to just tell them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. (Acts 15\/19-20)
\nWhen we get instructions from such holy spiritual elders, we must follow them. They know the truth well in their heart and they stand before God ministering day and night. The judgment they give us is from God so that we must do as they direct us.
\nV. 14-15: When we want to set a king (a leader) over us.
\nBe sure to appoint over us the king God chooses. We must pray and wait for God to give us the chosen one. The Israelites could not wait for God but demanded a king at once. Therefore, they got Saul as their king. Saul was not the chosen one of God but a permissible leader of men. When Saul reigned, he brought many troubles to them. Therefore, when the house of God needs a leader, a pastor, a deacon or a manager, we should pray to God and wait for His answer. Never set up leaders by man\u2019s opinion.
\nV. 16-17: Three \u201cNo???for a leader.
\n(1) Do not acquire great numbers of horses for himself. Nor make the people return to Egypt to get more horses for his own power. For example, in China there is a special group demands sisters to cover their heads during meetings. Their leader opened a big factory of medicine. He said that it was to help the poor and needy. But what he did had stumbled many Christians. One of them was Mrs. Wu who used to be so zealous about gospel preaching. She was the one who brought me to Jesus. She was influenced by that leader so that she covered her head and stopped preaching gospel. And she started to do business and thought she would make a fortune. But she failed badly, materially and spiritually.
\n(2) Do not take many wives.
\nProverbs 31\/3 tells the leader,\u201cdo not spend your strength on women??? Nor turn your heart away from God to your favorite co-workers or believers. Follow the example of Paul, \u201cMay I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.???Galatians 6\/14) \u201cFinally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus,???said by Paul. (6\/17)
\n(3) Do not store up large amounts of silver and gold.
\nThe downfall of King Solomon was because he violated these three \u201cNo???
\nV. 18-20: Only one thing is needed for a leader.
\nA leader is to read the Bible carefully for himself and keep it in his heart. He is to read the Bible all the days of his life so that: (1) he may follow carefully all the words of the Bible. (2) He may not consider himself better than others. (3) He may not turn from God\u2019s words to the right or to the left. (E.g. Saul)<\/p>\n
\nThey should be content with God\u2019s provision. But when they go to a new place to open up a new ministry, they may have to work for a living since no one knew about them. It should never deprive their full attention to the ministry of gospel preaching. Paul once worked for a living as a tentmaker for a short time so that he could continue his ministry there. He did not work for money. Nor did he work for a better life for himself or his family. God tells His children to give the best to God. In fact, this is the share given to His faithful servants.
\nV. 6-8: Strive upwards in the spirit wholeheartedly.
\nIf a servant of God understands God\u2019s heart and he is willing to move on to wherever sends him to, he will receive more share of benefits. He who labors more in God\u2019s kingdom will receive more. And he will bear more fruit for God\u2019s kingdom. Our Lord desires us to spread gospel widely, do not hold back. For example, after Silas arrived at Antioch, he never went back to Jerusalem but joined Paul to preach gospel everywhere.
\nV. 9-14: Do not learn to follow the detestable ways of the Gentiles. Be blameless before the Lord.
\nV. 15-19: God will raise up a faithful servant. He will tell us everything God commands him. If anyone does not listen to His words, God will call him for account.
\nV. 20-22: Put to death the false prophet who speaks in the name of other gods.
\nWhat the false prophet says by himself will not come true. In the time of prophet Jeremiah, there were some false prophets saying that God would bring back the captives in two years. But Jeremiah pointed out that they were lying and warned God\u2019s people not to believe them.
\nEven if their false prophecies come true, they will be ashamed at the end. A brother in Beijing was very blessed by God. Later he was put into jail for the sake of Jesus. But when he was in the jail, he was deceived by a man possessed by the evil spirits. He wrote down many prophecies from that man which had come true. That man was associating with the devil but he thought it was God speaking to him. After he was released from jail, he came to the mountain to see us. He prophesied that sister Zhang would soon go abroad and I would stay in China. But it turned out to be the opposite. This proved that the spirit speaking to him was not the Spirit of truth but the evil spirit.<\/p>\n
\nV. 11-13: But if a man hates people and lies in wait to kill him, he shall be put to death. Show him no pity.
\nV. 14: Do not hurt others for our own interests. Never remove a neighbor\u2019s boundary for enlargement of our land.
\nV. 15: A matter must be set up by the testimony of two or three witnesses. One witness is not enough to convict a man accused of any crime.
\nV. 16-21: If a malicious witness takes the stand to accuse a man of a crime, we must purge the evil from among us. Show no pity to him, eye for eye.
\nIn all, this chapter reminds us to save people. Do not hurt, harm or kill anyone.<\/p>\n
\nDo not be terrified by the great army of the enemies. For God is the one who goes with us to fight for us. God gives us victory.
\nV. 5-9: Anyone gets involvement with civilian affairs or is afraid can go home.
\nAnyone who has concerns about his house, his vineyard (ministry) or his fianc\u00e9e can go home. Is any man afraid? Let him go home. What God wants is an army of volunteers who do not love their own lives.
\nV. 10-11: First of all, make an offer of peace.
\nWe preach gospel of peace. If they accept the gospel, we have won over their souls to God.
\nV. 12-15: If they refuse the gospel, we lay siege to them.
\nIf they refuse the gospel, we must focus our prayers on them. It is just as the Israelites marching around the Jericho until its wall collapsed. We must pray on them until God delivers their souls into our hand. Then put all \u201cthe men???to sword. It is just like Paul\u2019s teaching, \u201cDemolish arguments and every pretension that set itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every though to make it obedient to Christ.???2 Corinthians 10\/5) As for the women, the children and everything in it, we can take it as plunder. This is rules for towns far away from where we live.
\nV. 16-18: But totally destroy the Canaanites in our land.
\nThe Canaanites, the enemies of God, are full of evil and wickedness and they want others to follow them. Destroy them totally. Otherwise, they will teach us to follow all the detestable things. We will sin against our God.
\nV. 19-20: When we lay siege to a city for a long time, do not destroy its trees by an ax.
\nDo not lose control and cut its tree by our own will when we lay siege to the city for a long time. We can eat their fruit. We may cut down trees that we know are not fruit tree. And use them to build siege works until the city at war with us falls.<\/p>\n
\nIt is important to know that we are responsible for the salvation of people nearest to us. If we have never preached gospel to them and they die, we are guilty of shedding their blood.
\nV. 10-14: Lead a recent convert to separate from sins completely before you marry her.
\nShe must shave her head, removing all of the worldly vanity. She also must trim her nails, cleansing from all the inner or hidden sins. She must put aside the clothes she was wearing when captured\u2014she must abandon her sinful ways of life and behaviors. Then she should mourn her parents for a full month\u2014a complete repentance of her old self. After all these, you may marry her. King Jehoshaphat ignored this and married daughters of the house of Ahab. Jehoshaphat brought deep troubles to his house.
\nV. 15-17: Act in justice. Do not act in favoritism.
\nWhen a man has two wives and wants to set up his last will, he must not give the rights of the firstborn to the son of the wife he loves. He should give a double share to the actual firstborn son. King Jeroboam violated this rule.
\nV. 18-21: Do not cover the sins of your own son for kinship.
\nTake the case of Eli as a warning. He did not punish his two sons when they sinned greatly against God. He respected his sons more than God. As a result, his whole household was forsaken by the Lord.
\nV. 22-23: Be sure to bury the body hung on a tree that same day.
\nGod says we must put to death a man of a capital offense and hang his body on a tree. The first meaning of \u201changing his body on a tree???is to warn people not to make the same offense. Apostle John called attention to the church not to follow what wicked things Diotrephes had been doing. (3 John\/9-10)
\nSecond application of it is: we are encouraged to confess our own sins in public. It shows our faith and determination to cut off from sins and to do right. When we confess our sins openly by faith, we believe that we are dead to this sin. Then, we bury our sinful body with Him on that same day. From that time on, we live a new life by faith.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"