Hearts

This Sabbath reading portion, which includes Deuteronomy Chapters 29 through 31, titled Nitzavim-Vayelech, comes just before the new Hebrew calendar year begins, which will be year 5782, and right before the Feast of Trumpets, one of the appointed fall feasts commanded by the LORD. Therefore, I believe that this Sabbath portion has a great significance in this new beginning, and this season of the LORD's appointed feasts. In this Sabbath reading, Moses was preparing to depart life at the age of 120 (Deut. 31:1-2), and he was imparting to Israel, some important things to remember in their relationship with God. Moses knew that these things would make the difference between Israel's success or failure, even their life or death. One part of the two-part title of this reading is Vayelech meaning "Then he went out". Moses was speaking to these people whom he had led for over forty years as a leader and a prophet whose time was nearly up. Moses called all of Israel to assemble in order to enter into covenant with God for the keeping of His commandments, and God's covenant with them establishing them as a people for Himself (Deut. 29:9-13). The other part of the two-part title for this Sabbath portion is Nitzavim which means "Are standing". Not only was all of Israel to stand before the LORD in this assembly of covenant, but also anyone else who was in the camp as a stranger or a laborer. However, this assembly was not limited to those physically present. Moses said: "I make this covenant and this oath, not with you alone, but with him who stands here with us today before the LORD our God, as well as with him who is not here with us today..." (v. 12-15). This perpetual covenant of obedience is not only with Israel and her generations to come, but with the future stranger and laborer in the camp also. In the same manner, as we stand before the LORD, we represent not only ourselves before Him, but those who are yet to come. It is easy to forget that those people who have not yet appeared are "in us" (see also Isa. 66:8-11, Heb. 7:9-10). As Moses prepared the people before his death, he stressed the importance of their covenant of love for God (Deut. 30:16), which is expressed in obedience to God and His Word. Although there was a curse associated with the breaking of this covenant of obedience to the commandments of God, Moses promised that the LORD would reverse the curse (example: the scattering of the people of Israel to foreign nations) if "...you return to the LORD your God and obey His voice, according to all that I command you today, you and your children, with all your heart, and with all your soul...And the LORD God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants, to love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live." (Deut. 30:1-2, 6). Then the people will again obey the voice of the LORD, causing them to prosper, abound, and increase (v.9). The Word of God, Moses said, was not in some unattainable place, "But the word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may do it." (v. 14). Jesus said, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good, and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks." (Lk. 6:45). This is about the contents and work of the heart, not about a set of religious obligations. The treasures of our hearts must contain the love of God, and therefore the love of His Word, Jesus (Jn. 1:1-3, 14). From this treasure, our words and obedient actions will flow. It seems that trying to be religiously obedient to God's Word without the necessary foundation of love for Him, not only results in eventual spiritual error, but is without value to God (Isa. 29:13-14, Mt. 15:7-9, Ezek. 33:31). How do we view the commandments of God, and how do we relay this view to others? The type of relationship that Moses was urging to all of Israel, also leads us to a prophecy in Jeremiah. In the haftarah portion for this Sabbath, Jeremiah wrote of a "new covenant" that would reflect this type of heart relationship with God (Jer. 31:31-33). The Words of God, Jeremiah wrote, would be written internally in God's people...not just to do but to be. Moses took this relationship even further as he described the blessing or the curse that flows from whichever treasure we keep in our hearts regarding the love of God, and obedience to His Word: life and good, or death and evil (Deut. 30:15). "...I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live; that you may love the LORD your God, that you may obey His voice,, and that you may cling to Him, for He is your life and the length of your days..." (v. 19-20). In his last days, Moses is imploring Israel to love God, not only to love Him, but to cling or cleave (dabaq - "to cling, to stick to, to be joined together, follow closely, pursue hard) to Him as spouses cleave to each other (Gen. 2:23-24). With these words, Moses was calling Israel to a marriage relationship with God. This is the only thing that will preserve them. The LORD prophesied through Isaiah in another haftarah portion of this sabbath's reading regarding the marriage relationship He has with His people. He prophetically called them "The Holy People" and "The Redeemed" (Isa. 62:12). Righteousness and salvation shine from these people like a burning lamp (v. 1). He will call these people and their land by a new name: Hephzibah, meaning "My delight is in her", and Beulah, meaning "to marry, to be lord (husband) over, married wife, take a wife, dominion" (v. 4). We can see that the purpose of the LORD for His people is that they should be in a loving marriage with Him. Jesus also, as the worthy Lamb of God, is the Bridegroom in marriage to His prepared Bride (Rev. 19:6-9). Here is an interesting point in reading Isaiah's prophecy regarding the use of the word Beulah, or "married. The word which has been translated as the word, Beulah in the verse from Isaiah, is the Hebrew word, ba'al. We also know Ba'al to be a false god whom Israel worshipped as an idol. Jezebel, the evil queen's name, means "Ba'al is husband to". The worship of Ba'al, in its demonic twisting of the true purpose, involved sexual impurity, perversion, and the use of both male and female prostitutes in worship. This is the corruption of God's concept of His marriage to His people. While the Beulah marriage with God brings forth offspring who are worshippers, the relationship with the demonic idol, Ba'al, calls for the sacrifice of children. The concept of marriage to God is so vital and powerful, that the counterfeit opposition to the holy concept still presents itself today. We cannot assume that we are immune to its influence. As John heard and saw the glory of the marriage of the Lamb to His Bride, he immediately fell down in worship of the one who revealed it to him. He was severely scolded for this by the one who identified himself as "of the brethren" (Rev. 19:10). The spirit of idolatry is quick to seek to corrupt this powerful revelation of God in order to destroy it, before we even realize that we have been susceptible to it. May we come to this time of new beginnings of the year, and the appointed fall feasts of the LORD, by allowing some of Moses' last instructions to bring us to a new understanding and determination to love the LORD with all our hearts and all our souls. If you would like to enter into this kind of relationship with the Lord, you can pray: "Dear Father in heaven, I come to You and to Your Son, Jesus, with the desire to establish myself in the love of God. I want a personal and intimate relationship with You, loving You with all of my heart and soul, and I want Your Word to be the treasure of my heart from which my obedience flows. I know that You loved me so much that You gave Your only Son for my sins. You raised Him from the dead so I would not have to know death. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit to teach and quicken me in my loving relationship with You. I ask these things in Jesus' name. AMEN."