Repent

In Deuteronomy 4:15-28, Moses makes it clear to the Israelites that they are to STAY away from idols and corrupting the clear teachings of how they were to worship and live with God in the promised land.  He also makes it clear, in this section, what the repercussions will be if they OR their children’s children disobey and disregard this warning.

In Deuteronomy 7:1-11, he further stresses the importance of the people to do this, AND he even makes it clear to them they are in no way to intermingle with the people or culture of those with whom they are dispossessing.

Is this relevant to us today and if so, how?

I will quote these next two verses in my posts again and again because I believe they are two of the most important but overlooked scriptures in the New Testament.

“You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life.  These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” (Jesus speaking about the OLD TESTAMENT)

John 5:39-40

“Now these things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the culmination of the ages has come.” (Paul speaking regarding several examples from the Israelites in the wilderness.)

I Corinthians 10:11

The point I am making with these two passages is that the Old Testament has a purpose for us that is primarily to give us profound insights into our pursuit of Christ and how we as Christians are to live.  It is often relegated to the status of second class scripture by many of us, and this is tragic.  OK, back to the Deuteronomy point…..how is this relevant to us?

This relates to the role of repentance and obedience in the life of the believer. The Israelites did not get the promised land BECAUSE of their obedience. Moses makes this clear in Deuteronomy 9:5. It is also made abundantly clear in numerous New Testament passages that we are never to believe that we somehow gained our salvation due to our own obedience.  However, what is made equally clear in the previously mentioned passages and many, many others is the CRUCIAL role that their (and our) initial repentance and obedience plays as each generation lives in the land given to them.

I heard a great analogy about this from a pastor I respect named Paul Mowery.  He gives the analogy of an owner of a strip mall who has leased out the various stores to a certain group.  Over time, this group has taken these individual stores in the strip mall and made them into adult bookstores, liquor stores, strip clubs, businesses that are a front for meth and heroine dealing, and other activities that are increasingly not only counter to the agreed upon terms when the lease was signed but types of business that are patently illegal.  The owner of the strip mall has repeatedly tried to get these tenants to return to the agreed upon usage of this space.  It is located directly in the center of preschools, elementary schools, and high schools, as well as residential neighborhoods.  Finally, after much attempt on his part to get them to simply return to the terms of the lease, their lease is revoked, and the people are removed from the premises by force.  He has adopted some kids.  These kids are not saints by any stretch of the imagination.  They have a history of immoral behavior, violence, and all sorts of crime themselves, but he is seeking to teach them the next step in living a life that is both beneficial to the community that they live among as well as a bright future for them and their families in the future.  He allows them to take over the now vacant shops.  There is one CRUCIAL catch.  They must, must, MUST go in and empty out ALL the corrupting contents and COMPLETELY destroy all remnants of what these stores have been allowed to become. WHY? This question wouldn’t even be asked because the answer is so obvious, BUT I want to take a minute and consider it. The obvious part of the answer is that if they don’t remove these things, they themselves will quickly become tempted by and almost surely begin engaging in the same kinds of immoral activities.  This is especially true given their background.  However, perhaps a more thoughtful reason to ask WHY might be, “Why wouldn’t the owner/adopted father just go himself or send someone else in to clear it out instead of getting them to do it given their existing predisposition for criminal activity?”  My answer to this is that this is a crucial turning point for them.  Consider this.  If they were not willing to do this simple and straightforward task in the face of such an amazing gift when the benefits and reasons to do this are
SO obvious, why would we think that they would have stayed away from the criminal path over the long run?? 

I believe this is a great analogy to help us understand the mandate given to the nation of Israel by God by way of Moses.  It also sheds great light on how we can recognize the crucial role that initial repentance and ongoing obedience plays in our lives as believers.

Just as Moses warned the Israelites, John finishes his book 1^st John with the warning to “…keep yourselves from idols.”  I fear we have largely removed the word repent from its inextricable link with the gospel.