Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9 (NRSV)
Read Deuteronomy 4:1-2, 6-9 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 4So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. Verse 2You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the Lord your God with which I am charging you. Verse 6You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" Verse 7For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is whenever we call to him? Verse 8And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today? Verse 9But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children-
Devotion
The wilderness wanderings are at an end. Israel is about to enter the Promised Land. Moses, who led them out of slavery in Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea, cannot go on with them. So he reminds them what it means to be the people of God. “Pay attention,” says Moses. “This covenant road map will guide you and give shape to your community. You will be witnesses to the amazing deeds of God.” He encourages them to remember how God sustained them in difficult times. “Tell the stories to your children,” he says, “because we have a God who is near to us and hears us when we call.”
God delivers us from death to new life in Christ through the waters of baptism. Christ promises us his presence and sustains us through the holy meal of forgiveness and hope. Pay attention, and tell the story.
Prayer
Gracious God, be near to us in our wilderness wanderings. Assure us of your constant care. Deliver us from fears that hold us back. Fill us with your peace. Amen.