Proper 15 (OT)

Deuteronomy 8:1-10

“The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers. ² 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. ³ 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. ⁴ Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. ⁵ Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the Lord your God disciplines you. ⁶ So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. ⁷ For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, ⁸ a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, ⁹ a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. ¹⁰ And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.

The Lord delivered his people from the hardship in the land of Egypt. Moses tells the people about the Land into which the Lord is taking them. He explains to them the joys and riches they will find there. But he does this while reminding them of how the Father has taken care of his people. He fed the people in the wilderness. He kept their clothing from falling apart. He took care of his people.

The Lord commanded his people with proper ways to act and treat one another. He tested his people repeatedly concerning how much they trusted him. The Lord continues to test each of us. How much do you trust the Lord? Do you worry about what you will eat or what you will drink? Do you worry about what you will wear or if your shoes will wear out?

The Lord your God is taking you to a new land. God will bring his people to live with him in a promised land. God has delivered his people from slavery. Jesus Christ has washed his bride clean and clothed her with perfect garments. He has redeemed his people from their sins. The Lord is leading all his people into the promise Land, which is far greater than this land described. It is perfect. There is no sorrow, pain, or wickedness, but the Lord is there comforting his Holy eternal Bride.