LEGACY Deuteronomy Lesson for February 25-26, 2012 Scott Susong. [TEACHERS: Please keep in mind that this is the STEWARDSHIP LESSON]

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1 LEGACY Deuteronomy Lesson for February 25-26, 2012 Scott Susong [TEACHERS: Please keep in mind that this is the STEWARDSHIP LESSON] INTRODUCTION Suppose that you knew you were going to die in a few days. You don t have time to complete a bucket list. What would you do? Who would you want to be with you and what would you say to them? Where would you want to be? Would you want to plan the details of your funeral? What and who would you leave behind? There is a man in the Bible who knew the time and place of his death. God told him and gave him instructions as to where to go and what to do. His name was Moses and we can read about his legacy in Deuteronomy BIBLICAL/HISTORICAL CONTEXT Today we conclude our study of Deuteronomy. Moses and the Israelites had been wandering for 40 years since being released from slavery in Egypt. A new generation had grown up and Moses had been teaching them the Law to prepare them to enter the Promised Land. The teaching was over; pre-game preparations were done; the hay was in the barn they were ready to cross the Jordan River and take the land that God had promised them. But, there was one more piece of business. Moses was not going. He had broken faith with God a while back and God would let him see the Promised Land but he could not go in. God instructed him to go up on top of a mountain, get a panoramic view of the land and then be be gathered to your people (Deut. 32:50). He was repeating a command he had given to Moses in Numbers 27: Before he died he left his legacy. What is a legacy what does it mean? The American Heritage College Dictionary defines legacy as 1. Money or property bequeathed to another by will. 2. Something handed down from an ancestor or a predecessor or from the past. (p.774) Notice the terms: will, ancestor, predecessor those all imply that the legacy is left behind by someone who has died. What was Moses legacy to his people? More importantly, what will your legacy be? What will you leave? Walt Whitman wrote in Leaves of Grass, That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be? Lesson Idea: Our legacy is not what we take away but what we leave here.

2 What did Moses leave? The Legacy of Moses I. A Blessing II. Joshua, His Disciple III. The Word of God I. MOSES LEFT A BLESSING, Chapter 33 The tone of the book of Deuteronomy is of a dying father giving instructions to his sons. That is what is happening in Chapter 33 in the form of Moses prophetic blessing to the tribes of Israel. This type of blessing in the culture of Israel was of the utmost importance it was not just a formality. Meredith Kline writes, In the ancient Near East, a dying father s final blessings spoken to his sons were an irrevocable legal testament, accepted as decisive evidence in court disputes Moses pronounced his blessings on them just before he ascended the mount to die (Deut. 33:1), and thus his words constitute his testament. [Kline, Deuteronomy, p. 201, in the Wycliffe Bible Commentary] Verses 1-2 After a brief introduction, Moses starts with speaking of the Lord. Imagine the amazing miracles of God that Moses saw during his lifetime: the burning bush, the plagues of Egypt, the parting of the Red Sea, receiving the Law on Mt. Sinai he had seen and experienced God s Glory! Moses wants his extended family to see God as the source of all blessings. He uses the figure of the sun dawning and shining on God s people. Verse 3 Moses moves from God s power and glory to God s love. Throughout the Book of Deuteronomy Moses emphasizes God s special love for Israel and His grace & mercy in choosing them to be His special people. In Deut. 7:6 and 14:2 God calls Israel His own possession which means special treasure! For 40 years the Israelites had experienced God s direct care for them in the wilderness: food, water, protection, instruction, the Law, etc. APPLICATION: We need to see that everything we have (money, possessions, family) and everything we are (gifts, abilities, talent) come from the Lord. He is our source of supply. We also need to see and begin to grasp how much He loves us. We are His special treasure and He demonstrates His love & mercy to us every single day. In verses 6-25 Moses blesses each tribe. Then, in verses he closes by directing their attention once again to the Lord. Verse 26 The Lord is not a silent idol like the other nations worship He rides the heavens and He rides to help them! In the rest of this passage Moses uses some wonderful word pictures for the Lord and what He does for us

3 a dwelling place compare Psalm 90:1, which was written by Moses. the everlasting arms the shield of your help sword of your majesty. Remember, Israel was preparing to enter the land and take it and it would be a difficult journey. She needed encouragement and the assurance that the Lord would be with her all the way. Moses delivers that message! Jack Deere states, If Israel would only serve her incomparable God she would be an incomparable people in blessing and invincible before her enemies. [Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament, page 322] APPLICATION: God has not called us to a playground, garden party or country club. He has called us to follow Him no matter what. Sometimes that includes being in fierce, difficult battles. Jesus said, In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world (John 16:33). So, Moses left his people a very meaningful blessing. II. MOSES LEFT JOSHUA, HIS DISCIPLE, Chapter 34 The first time in Scripture that Joshua is mentioned is Exodus 17:9. Moses instructed Joshua in prep for the battle with Amalek. In verse 10 it says that Joshua did as Moses told him. APPLICATION: In a nutshell, that is the essence of discipleship: be a learner, an apprentice to the Lord and to whomever the Lord places in your life to disciple you. Be teachable and coachable! At the end of Moses life Joshua is there he is still with him as his faithful disciple. In Deut. 34, after it describes the death of Moses, verse 9 begins with Now Joshua the son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom for Moses had laid his hands on him God s program did not end with Moses he passed on his mantle to his disciple, Joshua. Warren Wiersbe states, Moses had begun his ministry as a lonely shepherd, caring for his sheep near Horeb and now he would end his ministry leaving his sheep with Joshua and going up Mount Nebo alone to meet God. [from Wiersbe s commentary on Deuteronomy called Be Equipped, page 196] An account of Moses being instructed by God to commission Joshua is found in Numbers 27: APPLICATION: When I was in seminary, my favorite professor, Dr. Howard Hendricks, occasionally would ask us, Where are your guys? We knew exactly what he meant. In the midst of studying theology, Greek and Hebrew he was reminding us that discipleship is of the utmost importance. We should always have at least 1 or 2 guys into whom we were pouring our lives. So, I ask you, Where are your guys (gals)? Moses had his guys and Joshua was #1. A major part of your legacy: the people you leave behind who will disciple others the process never ends. We do not accumulate knowledge and wisdom to keep it to ourselves pass it on! We are not to live the Christian life in a vacuum.

4 So, Moses left (1) a blessing (2) his disciple Joshua and III. MOSES LEFT THE WORD OF GOD A major component of Moses legacy is something we can hold in our hands today: the first 5 books of the Bible. The Spirit of God inspired Moses to write Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In addition, Moses wrote Psalm 90. Jesus Himself confirmed that Moses wrote those books see Matthew 19:7-8; Mark 10:3-5 and John 5: APPLICATION: Obviously, we can t write additional books of the Bible. However, we do have a story to tell that others need to hear. Do not ever sell yourself short. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ and are walking with Him by faith, you have a story that others need to hear. You are more of a blessing to others than you can possibly know. Here are some suggestions You may not be a writer. So tell your stories verbally to others: wife, husband, children, grandchildren, friends, co-workers, etc. You never know what might strike a chord with someone! Something that you say could literally change the course of someone s life. Write down your stories/experiences with the Lord. The discipline of writing forces you to really think about your experience. Who knows your little scribblings may someday develop into an article or book that will bless thousands of people. You don t know how God may use you. But, if you don t write it or tell it you for sure will never know. IV. YOUR LEGACY,YOUR STEWARDSHIP As stated earlier, Moses also wrote Psalm 90. In it, he writes about the eternal God and mortal men; that life is fleeting. The superscription calls this Psalm a prayer of Moses, the man of God. Verses are particularly poignant (read). teach us to number our days This does not mean to literally count the days but to realize how few days we have when compared to eternity. Read also Psalm 39:5-6. So, Moses prayer is that he would grasp the brevity of this life and make the most of it with his legacy to honor the Lord. What about your legacy? What will your verse be? There is one area that we have not discussed but is mentioned in the last phrase of Psalm 39:6 referring to man, He amasses riches, and does not know who will gather them. (NASB). The King James says, he heapeth up riches and knoweth not who shall gather them. The Psalmist mentions money. The money we earn/receive and what we do with it is a major part of our legacy. In Psalm 90:12 Moses says So teach us to number our days, That we may present to Thee a heart of wisdom. We realize the brevity of life which should motivate us to be about the business of presenting to the Lord a heart of wisdom. A major component of what we present to the Lord is how we use our money.

5 When we trust Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord we become His stewards. A steward is one who manages money and property that belong to someone else. The steward is not the owner he is the manager. Our money and possessions are given to us by the Lord to enjoy and to manage. But, someday there will be an accounting, a reckoning for what He has entrusted to us. As we have looked at the legacy of Moses, all 3 areas were part of his stewardship The blessing he gave to the tribes of Israel. His disciple, Joshua. The word of God the 5 books plus Psalm 90. Moses was a good steward of the time and abilities given to him by God. Here s a good way to think of stewardship: the Lord entrusts us with 3 Ts : TIME TALENTS strengths, abilities, etc. TREASURE money, possessions, financial resources. We are stewards or managers over these areas. 1 Corinthians 4:2 says Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful. (NIV) For the phrase those who have been given a trust the NASB uses the word stewards ; the KJV also uses the word stewards. The concept of stewardship is sometimes confused with giving. Actually, giving or tithing is only a small part of stewardship. The Lord is the owner of everything we have: our time, energy, possessions, abilities and our money. One day we will give an account of our stewardship to Him. It is not a matter of 10% belonging to the Lord and the rest is ours. No it all belongs to Him. Once a year we are asked by Dr. Young and our church leaders to make a pledge to the church for the coming fiscal year. It is called pledge weekend. Our pledges are used for planning and budgeting purposes. It is called pledge weekend but in reality every day in the life of a Christian should be pledge day in which I pledge everything I have to Him and His Kingdom purposes. CONCLUSION The theme for 2012 in our church family is Happiness is Counter-Cultural. Countercultural living results in true happiness and transforms every area of our lives. Jesus said, He who wishes to save his life will lose it. Our culture says save your life by: clinging to my life, my priorities, my time and hoard all the money I can. Jesus says whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel s shall save it. When we give it all up for Him we find true life meaningful, abundant life and true happiness! Our beloved Dr. DeLoach said to me just the other day, I have never known anyone who tithed consistently who later said that they were sorry they did it. A very wealthy man died. Two of his friends were leaving the funeral service and one asked the other, How much did he leave? The other replied, He left it all. Our legacy is not what we take away but what we leave. What will your legacy be?

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