Deuteronomy 8:1-4
God put the Israelites in the desert for forty years after rescuing them from Egypt. The Israelites could have gone through the Philistine territory to arrive at Canaan earlier. So why not let them arrive earlier.
We have to go through suffering and hardships. It is a truth shared by all. Being a Christian does not exempt us from hardships, and we endure these tough times for different reasons.
And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.
Deuteronomy 8:2 ESV
We have not yet been perfectly transformed and still need training just as the Israelites needed training. They had to develop their faith and spirituality. God needs to make us humble. This is because an arrogant person cannot fully accept God as their creator and savior.
God gave food and water when the Israelites were humble and submitted to God. When the they were proud and felt entitled to food or water, God showed them their true relationship to God. The result was the Israelites better understood that they could not live without God.
Even though we may profess and truly believe in God, we might need to be humbled by God. Our relationship sometimes needs to be shaken so we understand what has happened.
But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
Matthew 4:4 ESV
And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
Deuteronomy 8:3 ESV
God also needed to give a message. In fact, we need to hear the messages of God. We are taught that God's word is our bread. Without the word of God, we will starve. His word will guide us and sustain us.
Not only do we need to know God's word, we need to practice it. God needs to test us to see if we would keep his commands. We can study and talk about God's word, but if we do not practice it, we are fake followers.
Our spiritual battles can only be won if we follow God's commands. God knows what is best for us and wants to train us to succeed and do what is right and pleasing to Him.
When we are going through difficult times, we can be assured that God is with us and wants us to be humble and rely on Him. Let us draw closer to Him in the good times and the bad.
2023-02-19 Worship Songs
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