Sermon Notes; a Daily Devotional

Psalm 122:1&2 "1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. 2 Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem." We are studying the acrostic GRACED : G o to God in prayer daily. R ead God’s Word daily. A ttend worship regularly. C onnect in a study group. E ngage in service. D edicate yourself to the tithe and beyond. Last week we focused on “Read God’s Word daily.” We dedicated ourselves to making the reading of God’s Word a daily habit. Binding it to your hands and your head can take the form of jewelry, a challenge coin, a T-shirt, or anything else that keeps the Lord at the forefront of your thinking. Keep a Bible on your phone. Use technology for good and read it anywhere. Display God’s Word in your home; hang verses and crosses on your walls. Let all who see it know how important it is to you. Sanctify your life with God’s Word. You will be glad you did. This week we study “Attend worship regularly.” We begin by reading from the Psal...

Deuteronomy 11:23 "Then will the LORD drive out all these nations from before you, and ye shall possess greater nations and mightier than yourselves." Wrapping up our reading from Deuteronomy, today’s verse elaborates God’s conditional promise within the Mosaic covenant: if Israel obeys His commandments, He will drive out the nations inhabiting Canaan so that the Israelites may possess land occupied by peoples greater and mightier than themselves. Key elements of the verse Condition of obedience . The promise depends on the people carefully keeping the commandment to love the Lord, walk in His ways, and hold fast to Him (Deuteronomy 11:22). Divine intervention . Victory is not won by human strength but by God’s power to dispossess stronger enemies. Theological significance . Spoken as Israel stood on the brink of the Promised Land, the assurance was meant to encourage faith and trust in God’s ability to fulfill His word despite overwhelming odds. Christian interpretation . Ma...

Deuteronomy 11:22 "For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him;" Today’s verse God presents diligent obedience as the condition for blessing. Keeping the commandments is summed up in three marks of devotion: love the LORD your God, walk in all His ways (live by His law), and cleave to Him (stay loyal and close). This is the prerequisite for the promise in verses 23–25: if Israel remains faithful, the LORD will drive out the nations then occupying Canaan and give His people victory over enemies greater and stronger than they are. Theologically, the verse teaches that true faithfulness is more than rule-keeping. It is a wholehearted relationship with God; intentional obedience joined to unwavering loyalty.

Deuteronomy 11:20&21 "20 And thou shalt write them upon the door posts of thine house, and upon thy gates: 21 That your days may be multiplied, and the days of your children, in the land which the LORD sware unto your fathers to give them, as the days of heaven upon the earth." God’s Word is living and active; it both invites and provokes us. In the verses just before these, God commands His people to take His words to heart and soul, to bind them as a sign, and to speak them in the ordinary course of life. His teaching is not a single lesson but a practiced habit, passed from one generation to the next, so that His people will love and obey Him always. In today’s verses He commands Israel to write those words on the doorposts of their houses and on their gates. The law is to be a constant, visible reminder of the covenant and a public confession of faith. Divine instruction is meant to mark private rooms and public thresholds alike, so that God’s presence and guidance st...

Deuteronomy 11:19 "And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up." We started the week with Jesus’s words about the authority of Scripture. God’s Word is living and active; it invites us and it provokes us. Yesterday we turned back to Deuteronomy, words written more than three thousand years ago, about how we should respond to God’s Word. God commands His people to internalize His words: to fix them in heart and soul, and also to wear them outwardly as a sign. God’s words are not meant to remain mere intellectual assent. They are to fill the inner person; affections, mind, and motives. Binding them on the hand pictures deeds; binding them on the forehead pictures thought, worldview, and public identity. Today’s verse calls for a lifestyle of constant, conversational faith: not a single lesson, but an ongoing, natural practice of speaking God’s truth into...

Deuteronomy 11:18 "Therefore shall ye lay up these My words in your heart and in your soul, and bind them for a sign upon your hand, that they may be as frontlets between your eyes." We have already read the words of Jesus that teach daily dependence on God’s will, the authority of Scripture, the difference between physical and spiritual life, and more. We often call the Bible “the bread of life.” God’s Word is living and active; it invites us and it provokes us. John 1:1 tells us that the living Word is Jesus; the written Word is Holy Scripture. God spoke, and all things came into being. John 1:14 shows that His plan from the beginning was our redemption. Jesus later named Himself the Bread of Life (John 6:35). So when we pray for daily bread, we are asking not only for what feeds the body, but for the Word that feeds the soul, one day’s portion at a time. Today we turn back to Deuteronomy, words written around 1406 B.C., just before the Israelites entered the Promised Land ...