Statutes and Ordinances Deuteronomy March 24, Proverbs 28:19. To show partiality is not good yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread.

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1 Statutes and Ordinances Deuteronomy March 24, 2012 Next Week. Deuteronomy Proverbs 28:19. To show partiality is not good yet a man will do wrong for a piece of bread. Wesley's Questions for Class Meetings. #7 Do I give it [the Bible] time to speak to me everyday? What does the Bible Mean? Chapters are a series of chapters that present a series of articles of covenantal policy in broad topical divisions. In general, Chapters are concerned with proper worship and 16:18 to Chapter 18 are concerned with the duties of officials. One might conclude that the laws are dry and sterile and have no value for modern life. This reaction is superficial. The laws were meant to govern a small, agrarian people early in the civilization process. Yet the laws deal with covenant faith and governance. They are concerned with exposition and motivation for obedience. Christians must be concerned with the law. In Matthew 5:17-18, Jesus said, Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the law until everything is accomplished. Jesus says that we must be motivated by the law. There are practical benefits to the law. We need to know what God wants us to do. Religion needs a system to emphasize the right points. We need to know the principles by which God works and to which we must conform for our very lives. A stated law demands obedience. Deuteronomy 12:1-32 Read. 12:1-7 When the people occupy the land they are to completely or utterly destroy every single cultic object and place of pagan origin. Israel must not worship like the pagans do to various gods and in many places. They must not even worship as Israel did in the wilderness where they worshiped as each one sees it as every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes. The text goes on to specify that in the land over the Jordan, the people will rest from the enemies around them and they will live in safety. Then God will choose a place in which God will dwell. There the people will bring their burnt offerings and sacrifices, tithes and special gifts and your freewill offerings and the firstborn of the herds and flocks and they will rejoice before the Lord. They may eat meat in their own cities but not the blood. But the offerings are to be presented to the Lord at the

2 designated place. When you dwell in the land, don't even inquire about the gods of the dispossessed people or you may be ensnared. The former peoples even burned their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices. The people must do as God commands and not add to or take from it. Do some worship commands apply only to Israel and not to Christians? Which ones? Why? What pagan shrines and gods are in today's culture? How is our worship in but not of the world? How holy are holidays today? Chapter 13 deals with worshiping other gods. We should not listen to prophet or dreamer who calls us to follow other gods. False teaching is a temptation. God is testing us. Idolatry or leading to idolatry call for the sentence of death. The evil must be purged from the people's midst. The rules apply to false prophets, to family members and to cities where evil practices are conducted. Temptation is a Wesley Core Term. Sin usually comes from someone or something common or acceptable. It is practiced by people we like and trust. It seldom comes from overt wickedness. We fall into sin because our acts do not appear to be sins. Chapter 13 warns us to be careful regarding the influence of those around us. How can we know that preaching and teaching is from God? Read. Deuteronomy 14: 1-2 Many cultures practiced mutilation of the body to worship the dead. Israel is not just holy. They are children of God. They are God's creation. Unnatural disfigurement or misuse of the body was outside of God's will. How should we view body covering tattoos and unnatural piercings today? Verses 3-21 prohibit the eating of detestable or abominable foods. They may eat animals with a split hoof divided in two and that chews the cud. They may eat things of the water with fins and scales. They may not generally eat predatory birds. They may not eat anything that dies naturally. They may not boil a kid in its mother's milk. Verses concern tithes. The people must tithe. Part of the offering goes to the Levites. In a three year cycle the tithe goes to the Levites and the aliens, the fatherless (orphans) and the widows so that they may eat and be satisfied, and so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. The people are to reverence the Lord with the fruits of their labor.

3 This section is an example of presenting motivation for following the law. The purpose of the tithe might have been just ritualistic requirement It's the law! But here the appeal is to brotherly love. Human need is the appeal for particularly the triennial offering. The human need even extends to the alien which is a break in the barriers of race and national origin. The tithe was a portion of the produce of the fields. The underlying purpose of the tithe is to return a portion of what the Lord has given. It keeps our thinking straight and keeps us humble. We need to give more than God needs our gifts. The qualities of spirit which generous giving develops lead to greater usefulness and greater reward. Tithing is a Wesley Life Application Topic. He says that tithing is part of the process of transformation renunciation of sin and participation in God's grace. Although tithing is giving it is an occasion of rejoicing. Deuteronomy 15 is a series of specific laws dealing with agricultural needs and relational truths that God wanted to put into the mindset of Israel. The chapter begins with the cancellation of debts every seven year. The law features deep concern for the welfare of all in the community. The principle behind the law was to every man his due according to his need not his importance. The poor, the weak, the defenseless were protected. Debts (including collateral) were released every seven years the Year of Jubilee. The text includes many calls to right motivation. Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought. Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart;. be openhanded toward your brothers (relatives, friends, colleagues, fellow citizens) and toward the poor and needy in your land. 2 Chronicles 36:21 says that the exile was a result of the nation's failure to keep this law. What do verses 1-11, say to us? What causes us to have a tight fist? Can or will we become more open handed? Chapter 15:12-18 deals with protection of kinsmen slaves who were ones who worked to pay off debts. They were to be freed on the seventh year and to be liberally equipped from the owner's substance. Israel is to remember her own slavery in Egypt. Verses deal with the firstborn male domestic animals. They are holy and are to be taken to the central sanctuary presumably at Passover or Pentecost. They are to be without blemish. As Christians, have we been freed from slavery? Does this freedom influence our care for others? What do the verses about firstborn male domestic animals say about God's priorities for our property? Chapter 16: 1-17 deals with the details of the laws for the three main festivals in the religious calendar Passover, the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) and the Feast of Tabernacles (Booths). All Jewish males were to attend each annually. Note that one should not appear before the Lord empty-handed.

4 Read. Deuteronomy 16: Justice and justice alone is from God. God's people should always be just. The desire for justice is a basic drive of mankind. The role of judges was to administer justice and to maintain the principles of justice. Partiality and bribes pervert and blind justice. Read. Deuteronomy 16: The Asherah pole or tree was a feature that the Hebrews took from the Canaanites. It causes a constant struggle against an ancient foe and spiritual purity. The divided loyalty to the pole and the Lord debased the people's relationship with God. Why are religious holidays important? What are our Christian holidays? What have we learned about God from our Christian holidays? Chapters 17 and 18 concern the offices of priests and prophets. Chapter 17 begins with the warning that the sacrifice to the Lord of an animal with blemish is an abomination to the Lord. The chapter continues with the prescription of a very harsh penalty for anyone who has worshiped or served other gods or the sun or moon or any of the host of heaven (signs of the Zodiac?) On evidence of two witnesses they are to be put to death. The first hand in the execution is to be from the witnesses. The theme continues to deal with the difficult case of deciding between one kind of homicide and another or one kind of assault or another. The case should be taken to the priests at the place God chooses. The people are bound by the decision of the priests. Real respect for the law, as opposed to endurance of the status-quo, requires a proper attitude toward authority and an efficient judiciary. Consent of the governed requires publicly accessible and in-corrupt judiciary. Kingship is defined in terms of religion God had been Israel's only King. An earthly king was by no means necessary but what he should be is patterned from God's Kingship. He should not consider self better than his brothers. He shall write out the law and daily and diligently read it. The pattern is good for anyone holding public office. The ruler's first obligation is to God. Then a response from the people is best. The standard is sought in the Book of Common Prayer, A Prayer for the President of the United States, and All in Civil Authority. Almighty God, so rule the hearts of thy servants The President of the United States and all others in authority, that they, knowing whose ministers they are, may above all things seek thy honor and glory; and that we and all the People, duly considering whose authority they bear, may faithfully and obediently honor them. Are the guidelines for justice outlined here at work today in church and state?

5 Does power corrupt? Chapter 18: 1-8 deals with the support for the Levites. They have no ownership or inheritance. They receive specified portions of the sacrifices and first fruits. Verses 9-14, warn against imitating the detestable ways of the nations who occupy the land that the Israelites are about to enter. Sorcery is absolutely condemned and an abomination to the Lord worthy of death. Four practices ordeal by fire (sacrificing one's son or daughter in the fire), divination, magic and necromancy (the practice of claiming to foretell the future by alleged communication with the dead. Black magic. Sorcery). Superstitions are factors today. Fortune tellers, astrology, spiritualist seances are common. These are an enemy of true religion. Today, should the clergy put laity first or visa versa? What is our inheritance from God? Are we to share it? Verses 15-22, make up the only passage in the Law which establishes prophesy as an institution. A prophet like Moses will be raised up from among Israel's brothers. Is this a prophet any prophet? It is likely Jesus. Listen to him. The prophet would not presume to offer any teaching that strayed from the central truths that Moses laid down. God's words would be in the prophet's mouth. He is a herald of God. There are also false prophets. The test is the verdict of events. A false prophet is to be put to death. Are there prophets in the biblical tradition today? Chapter 19, deals with criminal justice. Homicide is a major concern including motive, weapons and places of refuge. There is a prohibition against moving a boundary mark to steal property. There is a requirement for two witnesses. There is the penalty for false witness or perjury. The law requires no pity. It is life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. Do the terms of justice, mercy and human life in these verses apply today? How does false witness affect our life with God, self and others? How can we help eradicate gossip and false accusations among God's people?