Stiff-Necked No Longer

"Indeed heaven and the highest heavens belong to the LORD your God, also the earth with all that is in it. ¹⁵ The LORD delighted only in your fathers, to love them; and He chose their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day. ¹⁶ Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart, and be stiff-necked no longer."

Deuteronomy 10:14-16

Many times in scripture God referred to the children of Israel as "stiff-necked."  God was gracious to choose the Jews as His inheritance, honouring the covenant He made with Abraham.  God did not choose them because they were the greatest, and they were not the most stubborn.  Like all people they inherited the sin nature of Adam which leads to sin and death, and all people today share this in common.

When we say we have a "stiff neck," it is typically a reference to tightness in our physical neck.  Being "stiff-necked" presented a picture to the Jews in ancient times we might not consider in modern western culture.  A calf would be called "stiff-necked" when it was unaccustomed to and resisted being in a yoke.  Calves must be broken before they are useful for work.  When male calves are young they will be castrated and halter-trained to respond to verbal commands.  The master gently trains the calf which will quickly grow to be a powerful ox.  After learning the basics, the ox is fitted with a training yoke.  At first the calf will strain and push against the yoke because it feels foreign to him.  In time he will become accustomed to wearing the yoke and with training can work in tandem with another ox.

God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt and so birthed a nation whose God was the LORD.  He led them gently with His physical presence, provided for their needs, spoke kindly to them, and protected them from harm.  But they were stiff-necked, meaning they were not accustomed to His commands and refused His directives.  God gave His people the Law through Moses and bid them to hearken to all He said.  The generation God brought out of Egypt perished in the wilderness because they refused to hear and obey His commands.  The potential of being "stiff-necked" did not die with that generation but has continued naturally in all people to this day.

This picture of the well-trained ox is beautifully presented through Christ's invitation to all people in Matthew 11:28-30:  "Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."  Satan and sin are cruel taskmasters before whom all people must yield and results in beatings and death, but Jesus Christ provides an alternative:  He offers us a yoke where we discover rest and life at His side.  His yoke is not a terrible burden but a joy for those redeemed through the Gospel.  Before we can be Christ's yoke-fellow we must first be broken for our sin, repent, and be born again.  As we are led by the still small voice of the Holy Spirit we are empowered to obey through Christ who strengthens us.  In choosing Christ's yoke we discover a depth of love, belonging, and purpose we could not experience elsewhere.

The Longing of God

"Oh, that they had such a heart in them that they would fear Me and always keep all My commandments, that it might be well with them and with their children forever!"

Deuteronomy 5:29

This verse shows the heart of God longs to bless those He greatly loves.  He is not a cosmic killjoy intent on ruining the lives of people, nor does He deny fun out of selfishness or spite.  We do not argue the fact on earth what goes up must come down, that there exists natural laws which govern gravity our opinion cannot influence.  It is fine for a scientist to tell us why the force of gravity as it stands is important to sustaining life on earth, but this provides little comfort for the one who falls down.

The force of gravity is not the only law God has established on earth.  There are spiritual laws the wise consider in addition to physical ones.  Deuteronomy 5:29 shows there is a clear correlation between obedience to God and blessing which endures.  The source of the problem with God's people was in their heart.  Their hearts were filled with sinful desires and affections, and they often resisted the Spirit of God.  God said through the prophet in Micah 6:8, "He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?"  God provided His law so people could begin to comprehend the lofty standards of God's righteousness and their inability to measure up.  God longed that people would fear and love Him, for such would obey Him.  For them it would be "well with them and with their children forever."

See what God also declared in Deuteronomy 7:9-11, "Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments; ¹⁰ and He repays those who hate Him to their face, to destroy them. He will not be slack with him who hates Him; He will repay him to his face. ¹¹ Therefore you shall keep the commandment, the statutes, and the judgments which I command you today, to observe them."  People are hardly faithful or constant, but God is the faithful God who always keeps His Word for a thousand generations!  Since Jesus has come, the covenant of Law has been trumped with the new covenant established by the shed blood of Jesus.  This new covenant is personally appropriated by repentance for sin (having broken God's Law) and placing faith in Jesus Christ as LORD.  Jesus said in John 13:34, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another."  Those who love Him will obey!

In every heart there is a hunger for God's love and there are many poor imitations of the real thing.  God loves people and longs for opportunities to reveal this love to those joyful to receive it.  The fear and love of God will bring blessing to you and future generations by God's grace.  God is not a means to blessing for He is the blessing Himself:  there is no other.  He receives those who receive Him, and those who refuse Him He will repay to their face, though His heart is always to bless.

God Of War

It may not be easy to read genealogies in the Bible, but the impact of them cannot be ignored.  Included in the Bible are reckonings of generations from Jesus all the way back to Adam the first man created.  Every name is a link in the chain which validates the creation of the world, man, and every living thing by God.  Though the names are hard to pronounce and may seem to have little significance to us personally, the fact genealogies exist and can be confirmed by secular sources is awesome.  For those who read them there are wondrous truths nestled in them, like coming across a tree loaded with ripe fruit when hungry.

Today I read of valiant men of the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh who went to war.  1 Chronicles 5:20-22 says, "And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all who were with them, for they cried out to God in the battle. He heeded their prayer, because they put their trust in Him. ²¹ Then they took away their livestock--fifty thousand of their camels, two hundred and fifty thousand of their sheep, and two thousand of their donkeys--also one hundred thousand of their men; ²² for many fell dead, because the war was God's. And they dwelt in their place until the captivity."  In the battle the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, and He helped them because they trusted Him.  These capable warriors did not trust their weapons, training, or strength to defeat their enemies but cried out to God in the battle.  This is a good lesson of what true valiance looks like.

The men of Israel prevailed "because the war was God's."  The KJV phrases this in a slightly different way, saying:  "For there fell down many slain, because the war was of God."  I suspect Christians are more familiar with the concept that the "battle is the LORD's" (1 Sam. 17:47) rather than any war could be "of God."  The spectre of war is truly gruesome and horrible, yet this passage shows us God not only heeds the cries of people who trust Him in battle but also shows some conflicts are ordained by God which accomplish His purposes.  War at times must precede peace, and war is also required to keep peace.  In Ecclesiastes 3:8 wise Solomon said there is a time for war and a time for peace, and the order is significant.  Exodus 15:3 says, "The LORD is a man of war; the LORD is His name."  There is no one mighty like God and at the same time He is no warmonger, for He can easily resolve conflicts without a shot being fired.  Victory is His sovereign domain.

God is with His people not only in global wars or in violent skirmishes but in every personal battle we face.  Jesus came not to wage war on sin by raising an army but defeated and overcame it by putting Himself in the line of fire.  He spoke words of life and peace, but those who opposed Him were for war and death.  Jesus has provided an example for us that the war we wage today as overcomers through Him is not a war fought primarily with sword or spear but through unwavering faith and obedience to Him.  It is written in 1 John 5:4, "For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith."  Our battle is not against flesh and blood but is of a spiritual nature (Eph. 6).   Should our spiritual defences fail we will not be able to stand in any conflict.  But thanks be to God:  when we find ourselves in a battle, it is glorious to have God on our side.

It is not by might, nor by power, but by God's Spirit a mountain can become a plain.  Only God can bring the victory to the valiant.  We can rejoice in God regardless if our victory involved plundering enemies or crucifixion because God has overcome and we are in Him.  Take to heart the victory Christ has already accomplished as 1 John 4:4 says, "You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world."

The Whole Bible

When it comes to things of God, the natural man is unable to comprehend (1 Cor. 2:14).  Misconceptions and errors abound in the haphazard approach unbelievers and even Christians can take to the Bible.  Because it is compiled of sixty-six individual books written by different people inspired by the Holy Spirit there is perfect unity.  Perhaps due to being organised in Old and New Testaments people can view the Old as outdated and the New as more relevant.  No scripture can be wrenched from the context of a chapter without reconciling it with the book and the overarching truth and themes of scripture.

Context is key to understanding or interpreting anything, and it is amazing how easily this practice is ignored in the quoting of scripture.  People quote scriptures to support their position or oppose others without even knowing when, why, or to whom it was spoken in the first place.  Sceptics produce countless of these tired chestnuts to accuse, and sadly many believers who respect the Word of God use it as a cloak to shield themselves from the very truth they profess to believe.  God has given us the whole Bible so we might know, worship, and serve God in truth.  The Bible is not a treasury of anecdotes or stories for our amusement but the Word of God for our salvation.

Alan Redpath wrote these simple and profound words concerning the Bible in the preface to his book, Victorious Christian Living:  "Once we regard the Bible as a whole it begins to take on a new meaning.  The Old Testament is preparatory to the New.  The New cannot be understood apart from the Old, nor can the Old be appreciated apart from the New...It has been my profound conviction for some years now that the greatest need of the Christian Church is a revival of the New Testament standard of Christian living.  There seems to be a very wide gulf between what we believe and how we live, a marked contrast between our position in Christ and our actual experience.  Too often do we claim to believe our Bibles from cover to cover, but fail to live out its truths in daily conduct.  Before we can ever see a real movement of the Spirit of God in blessing to the world in our day, surely the church must face afresh the New Testament pattern, the whole revelation of the Word of God, in its claims on holiness of life and ethical conduct." (Redpath, Alan. “Victorious Christian Living: Studies in the Book of Joshua.” Redpath Family, 2013, pp. 13–14.)

Here Redpath touches on a key point:  it is one thing to explain historical context or expound upon the scripture, but it is all meant to be practised.  If we believe the Bible is the Word of God, it will impact our conduct, choices, relationships, words, and deeds.  If we will not practise it, what is the point of reading or even quoting it?  If it has merit - and nothing ever written is more true or profitable for men - then it ought to be responded to with praise and obedience.  The Jews wrongly used the Law to approve themselves of righteousness before God when it only condemned them, and Christians can do the same with knowledge.  Knowledge is not righteousness, but the more a man knows makes him more accountable to God for what he knows and does not do.  Choosing ignorance is not safe either, for what man who heartily approves of God's truth hides from it?  Only a man who knows better.

Is it time to start reading the Bible from the beginning and continue all the way cover to cover?  You would never read only the last third of a novel over and over without starting at the beginning.  Instead of reading favourite or known portions over and over, how about reading all God has written?  There is great blessing to graze over familiar and comforting passages, but God knows we need more than that.  I encourage you also to pray over and put into practice the truth of God's Word as led by the Holy Spirit.  God will never lead you astray!  We need the whole Bible to understand and become all God would have us be.