Friday: Further Thought ~ The Resurrection of Moses
Further Thought:
“When they angrily cried, ‘Must we fetch you water out of this rock?’ they put themselves in God’s place, as though the power lay with themselves, men possessing human frailties and passions. Wearied with the continual murmuring and rebellion of the people, Moses had lost sight of his Almighty Helper, and without the divine strength he had been left to mar his record by an exhibition of human weakness.
Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com
The man who might have stood pure, firm, and unselfish to the close of his work had been overcome at last. God had been dishonored before the congregation of Israel, when He should have been magnified and exalted.” — Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 418.
“Upon the mount of transfiguration Moses was present with Elijah, who had been translated. They were sent as bearers of light and glory from the Father to His Son. And thus the prayer of Moses, uttered so many centuries before, was at last fulfilled. He stood upon the ‘goodly mountain,’ within the heritage of his people, bearing witness to Him in whom all the promises to Israel centered. Such is the last scene revealed to mortal vision in the history of that man so highly honored of Heaven.” — Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 479.
Discussion Questions:
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Well, we have come to the end of our study of Deuteronomy and we have to ask ourselves the question What have we learned?
In one sense, Deuteronomy is the story of God trying to hammer into a fledgling nation some fundamental principles of living. We look at Deuteronomy with our 21st Century Christian eyes and try to make sense of it on our terms. We find ourselves continually in the grace/works dilemma. So much of Deuteronomy is about obedience, yet we claim that we are saved by grace.
The Israelites problem was: We are God's people; he has told us that he will love us forever, so we can do what we like.
The Papacy's problem was that it believed it was the chosen representative of God on earth and the end justified the means.
Protestant churches have fought one another with the notion that they are right and everyone else is wrong.
The Seventh-day Adventist Church ...
It appears to be easy to fall into the trap that we are chosen by God and after that, we justify what we do and the way we do it.
One of the issues I have with the current lesson is that it is very easy to fall into the trap of self-vindication. Our view of God; our view of history; our view of salvation. yet, all that seems so self-centred.
When I read Deuteronomy for the second time in the middle of the night, I get the impression that a fair bit of what is being said is that the Israelites responsibility was to make a difference to the nations around them. This was not so much about their own salvation but the salvation of others.
And I have to ask the final question: What are we doing to reveal the character of God to those around us?
I offer my input as complementary to Maurice's thoughts, not in competition with them.
At the beginning of this quarter I invited that we intentionally try and look at Deuteronomy with fresh eyes - to see if we could see things we might have previously overlooked and/or see things to a deeper level. Did you find anything fresh and new?
I find that Deuteronomy's core theme is summarised in Deuteronomy 30:15-20 where God, via Moses, outlines the nature of reality. There are but two options for life and we each and all will select one of those two options by the way we live our lives - life or death. That God would inform us of these two options and of our freedom to choose one or the other says something critically important about he nature and character of God.
If we claim to be 'Christian', we are unavoidably claiming to be a representative of God - and the way we live to be representation of God's ways. I am not saying this to in any way suggest we need to be literally 'perfect' or else - because that is not going to happen this side of mortality putting on immortality (1 Corinthians 15:54). Rather, what I am opening up for your consideration is that if we call ourselves Christian, then we are reflecting a certain picture of God to others by the attitudes, thoughts and behaviours we display towards them.
So I would ask, what picture of God are we revealing to those around us? Are we reflecting a God who deeply desires and therefore does everything possible that people will choose life based on 'informed choice', yet who also respects their decision to choose otherwise (Matthew 23:37)? A God who does this as an expression of abundant compassion rather than dismissive disinterest? Or are we at risk of reflecting a God who is authoritarian, coercive and punitive?*
As we move from Deuteronomy into the study of Hebrews, we carry the theme of the nature and character of God forward to a still deeper level of exploration. Consequently, what we have studied this quarter is not so much coming to an end as much as it is just beginning...
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* Have you noticed a world-wide rise of these dynamics this past year - authoritarian, coercive and punitive?
Dear Brother Maurice,
Liked what you said about
"The Seventh-day Adventist Church ..."
Did not the Master says "And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye?"
We SDA today doing what we like not what the Bible says,Lord of mercy.
How we gonna reconcile that when we must reveal the character of God to those around us.
If Christ had decided not to die, when he came to earth, what would have happened to Moses and Elijah also Enoch?