Be Repentant • Deut. 30:1-4, 6-8, 15-20 • Feb. 19

Introduction: Can you command someone to love another? God commands us to love Him! That will take a person who is willing to Be Repentant and turned to obedience. But, why wouldn’t a person love the Lord? As some say, “what’s not to love?”

1. Be Repentant, Obey the Lord’s . . Call to Return. Deut 30:1-4
What is the cause of a nation’s or individual’s need to repent? Very simply stated it is, “sin.” All of us sin but many do a daily kind of repentance. If we recognize our sin causes us to grieve the Lord we want a quick repentance, if not immediate. How sad that many people get tangled in a pleasurable kind of sin (Heb. 11:25), and try to turn a deaf ear to the Lord. After some sad revelations of a pronounced sin I heard some Christians men say, “But for the grace of God there goes I.” Now today, if you go to Israel, you will see placards all over the place stating that God will call his people to Israel and gather them from the ends of the earth. They are making His call to return a geographical kind of call and neglecting it as a call to Be Repentant.

2. Be Repentant, Submit to the Lord’s . . Circumcision of the Heart. Deut 30:6-8
If the Lord circumcises our hearts, it would seem we would be obedient. In the text the Lord promises to bless and protect those He performed this act upon. Of course this is a symbolic act but all should understand its design for purification of the heart for devoted followers. It should cause a commitment before and after the work of the Lord. You would think this commitment would cause one to be even more obedient in keeping the commands of the Lord. What allures you and I to be drawn to the world rather than submissively obeying the commands of the Lord? I knew a minister who was being considered for the pastorate of a larger and more prominent church, but then it became known that he had been questionably involved with another women. They did not wait for a full report but dropped this man’s name.

3. Be Repentant, Follow the Lord’s Love . . Commands. Deut 30:15-20
The text gives a very simple solution to a godly life. If we follow the Lord’s commands, He promises to bless. If we reject His commands and do not obey; He allows the curses of disobedience to permeate our life. How can we bow down to other gods. Some may have a lengthy list of degrees and be very gifted people with all the abilities to be greatly used of God, but fail miserably. How can that happen? They disobey the commands of the Lord. That truth is very simply placed before us in the text. All it takes for the blessed life is to Be Repentant. Amen? Amen! (For a more detailed outline. go to: (http://www.preachhim.org/SundaySchoolIndex.html.)

Be Positive • Deut. 33:1-5; 34:1-12 • Feb. 26

Introduction: How easy is it for you to be positive? I don’t know if I am always positive but I am not very often negative. I do believe it is better to be as positive as we possible can. I believe God and His Word will help us to Be Positive.

1. Be Positive and Remember the . . Blessing of the Lord. Deut. 33:1-5
Moses will not be around as the people go into the promised land. So his words are prophetic. This portion of Scripture has some discussion and debate about how to translate it. The term, “man of God” is used for the first time in this chapter. Is Moses this man? He will not be allowed into the promised land. But nowhere does the term need to be applied to only a perfect man. So Moses is qualified. In verse five who became king? Three newer translations, ESV., TLB., AMP., all say it speaks of God and not Moses. One commentator says Moses is nowhere else called a king, but the arrangement of the words with Moses’ name give support that it is speaking of Moses. If you do not want to say it is Moses you need to give some support for that view.

2.  Be Positive but Remember the . . Consequences of Disobedience. 34:1- 4
Many people can give testimony to the consequences of sin in their life. Moses does not qualify as a notorious sinner but he took a serious matter into his own hands and God’s penalty dictated He would not allow Moses to enter the promised land. God did allow him to see the promised land and that must have been a joyous occasion for him. I think Moses also registered regret as he remember his sin.

3. Be Positive Remembering the . . Care God Gave to Moses’ Burial. 34:5-8
It can correctly be said, God buried Moses. If you go on the Internet, you will see many who have tried to identify Moses’ grave site. I think it is best to just let it rest. I think we can say God caused his death and buried him where He wanted him buried. It would help us if we concerned ourselves about those who do not know Christ and where their eternal home will be.

4. Be Positive Remembering What God Did in the . . Past. 34:9-12
For the people of Israel God took many miraculous actions to get His people into the promised land. He replaced Moses with Joshua. Moses placed his hands on Joshua and God granted unusual wisdom to him. The people believed Joshua to be the choice of God to be their new leader and they followed him. Great and flattering words are used to describe Moses. One commentator stated Moses is the greatest person of the Old Testament. He is certainly one to help us Be Positive. Amen? Amen! (For a more detailed outline, go to: (http://www.preachhim.org/SundaySchoolIndex.html.)