Judges 10 - 12 (3rd April)

Judges 10

After Abimelech died, Tola rose to save Israel and he led Israel for 23 years (v 1, 2). Then followed by Jair who led Israel for 22 years (v 3). Then Israel did evil and God was angry with them and for 18 years they lived in oppression and distress (v 6 – 9). Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help and God could not bear Israel’s misery (v 10, 16)

Judges 11

Jephthah was a mighty warrior but was driven away because he was born by a prostitute (v 1, 2). Then the Ammonites came to wage war against Israel and the elders of Gilead went to look for Jephthah for help to lead the army and to be the head. Jephthah vowed to the Lord that if God give the Ammonites into his hands, whatever came out of his house to meet him when he is back from triumph, he will sacrificed to God (v31).

The Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah (v29) and of course he won the war. He returned home and his one and only daughter came out to meet him and sure Jephthah needed to keep to his promise with God and he sacrificed his daughter.

Judges 12

Can you imagine, if someone comes up to you and ask you whether you know how to pronounce “Shiboleth”, if you pronounce wrongly, you will be killed immediately. That’s what happened in this chapter where Jephthah and his men had victory over Ephraimite.

Jephthah led Israel for 6 years, then
Ibzan led Israel for 7 years,
Elon for 10 years and Abdon led for 8 years.

Judges 8 - 9 (2nd April)

Judges 8

Right from Joshua to Judges, there were so many battles. Troy and Gladiator were movies I like. But if there are movies on Joshua and all the fights going on in Judges, must watch man. This chapter talks about Gideon pursuit the Midianites until all were killed. In verse 22, the Israelites were happy that Gideon saved them and asked Gideon to rule over the Israelites. Gideon replied was that he will not rule over them but the Lord will rule over them.

Lesson to learn: Do not look to man but look to God. It is God that rules over our lives. Put all your hope in God. The Israelites still looked to Gideon to rule over them and when Gideon died, the Israelites started to go back to worship Baal (v 33).

Judges 9

People said you cannot kill 2 birds with 1 stone. Look at this chapter and you will see Abimelech killed 70 of his brothers with 1 stone. Except one of his brother (Jotham) escaped and later cursed Abimelech. This chapter is all about Abimelech and how he and his troop fight in the battle and in the end woman dropped a millstone on his head and fractured his skull. He was full of pride and did not want to die under a woman’s hand, he get his armor-bearer to kill him instead (v 53 & 54). The curse of Jotham came to pass (v 57).

Judges 6 - 7 (1st April) - Kelvin

Judges 6

Its amazing each time the Israelites cried out to the Lord, He will always send to them a deliverer. This time, Gideon was chosen to set his people free from the powers of the midianites. Gideon was initially unsure whether he was seeing the right thing. But he was wise enough to ask God for signs by giving an offering to make himself sure it was really God’s calling. Then that’s where Gideon begin to grow in faith and believe God. God instructed him to tear down the asherah pole and use the wood for his burnt offering to God.

This is just like our modern day tearing down of religious temples – Only the Spirit filled dare to. Gideon did so and in the end got himself into trouble. The people from the town wants Gideon to die for what he had done.

Over here, I just want to elaborate further in our modern day context. I think this is similar for some of us who are afraid of trouble even though there are some things we as Christians should not compromise with. Are your friends getting you into unright interests? Are your colleagues leading you into tempting activities? God wants you to know that it is perfectly alright to reject the world, lose every favour from the world and follow His decrees. We as Christians must not be afraid to stand our ground!

Then Joash came out to help Gideon and to appease the anger of the people. In the words that he said, I sense great wisdom imparted by the Spirit.

Verse 31 But Joash replied to the hostile crowd around him, “ Are you going to plead Baal’s cause? Are you trying to save him? Who ever fights for him shall be put to death by morning! If Baal really is a god, he can defend himself when someone breaks down his altar.”

The Lord then filled Gideon and revealed to him that Israel would be saved through him. Gideon being cautious, humbly asked the Lord for signs not once but twice to confirm His anointing for him.

Perhaps many of us in our walk with God, we find it very hard to hear God clearly in our future or any other agendas. I believe we can always use the Gideon’s method of communication with God, ask for signs. Of course do not treat this method with contempt and ask with the fear of the Lord.

In this Chapter, there are a few conclusions to it:
1. The Lord loves us even when we know that we are not worthy for Him.
2. Be humble, God chose Gideon because he was not proud.
3. Obey the Lord and He will remain with you.

Judges 7

This a chapter of Miracles.

Gideon led 300 soldiers and fought a Victory against the mighty army of the midianites, amalekites and others. From thirty thousand to 300 men left. God shows us that no matter how strong our enemies are, we are able to overcome them with Him no matter how small we can be. Truly everything is possible with God. Though Gideon’s initial method of battle seems to be foolish ( holding trumpets and jars to war ? ), it caused confusion in the enemy’s camp and that’s where God gave them the Victory.

A point to note here would be, are we willing to do foolish things for God to use us?

In this chapter we can conclude a few points:
1. God uses the weak to overcome the strong.
2. With God, even foolish ideas can work out.

Judges 3 - 5 (31st Mar) - Weiling

Judges 3 – 5

Theme and Message: It is a number of accounts of recurring cycles (apostasy – to abandon one’s faith, oppression, distress and deliverance).
Judges revealed an age when “Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit” (17:6)

Judges were leaders that the Lord raised up to save the people of Israel out of the hands of the enemies. (2:16)

Because of incomplete conquest/ obedience and a turning away from their faith, God said that He will no longer drive the occupiers out. Instead, He will use them to test Israel to see if they would obey the Lord’s commands.

Recurring Cycles
Very often they don’t keep the God’s commands. In a recurring cycle:
1. Apostasy & Oppression.
The Israelites would do evil and provoke God’s chastening. (3:5-7,12; 4:1) One of it was inter-marrying with the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, etc. They ended up serving their gods (3:6)
2. Distress & Deliverance.
When the people faced oppression by the enemies or foreign invaders, they would cry out to God. God would be moved and have compassion on them. He would then deliver them through a judge. (3:9,15; Deborah)

Sadly, the Israelites often sin against God again.

Deborah
Now, to highlight an interesting personality. Deborah was one of the leaders God rose up. She was a wife, a mother (5:7) and had a powerful prophetic anointing. God appointed her and she awoke to His calling.

G12’s vision in rising up women to be leaders and to be all that God wants us to be is very much affirmed in Deborah’s life.

In fact, God also used the hands of another woman Jael, wife of Heber to kill the enemy in a shrewd way. Barak was going to be given the honour of killing Jabin, a powerful king who had 900 iron chariots. However, because he was fearful and said that he would only go if Deborah did, he lost out on that honour. Indeed, the enemy was very intimidating, but we see that somehow Deborah was not fearful. She knows God and hears His voice.

Judges 1 - 2 (30th Mar) - Sylvia

As we look into the book of judges, we also see the transition of how the Israelites began to lose faith and started sinning as compared to when they were under the leadership of Joshua.

Judges 1

1 After the death of Joshua, the Israelites asked the LORD, "Who will be the first to go up and fight for us against the Canaanites?"
2 The LORD answered, "Judah is to go; I have given the land into their hands."
3 Then the men of Judah said to the Simeonites their brothers, "Come up with us into the territory allotted to us, to fight against the Canaanites. We in turn will go with you into yours." So the Simeonites went with them.

Notice in v1-3 how the Lord had commanded the tribe of Judah to go up and fight against the Canaanites yet they did not have faith that God would bring be with them and give them victory.. They asked the Simeonites to go with them to fight.

Thank God for His faithfulness, keeping His promise by giving the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hands.

Moving on, as the Israelites continued to fight the remaining Canaanites, they disobeyed God's word. How did they do so?

Previously in the book of Joshua, they were supposed to drive out their enemies and not ally with them nor intermarrying or associate with them as these people would bring the Israelites down in time to come.

12 "But if you turn away and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations that remain among you and if you intermarry with them and associate with them,
13 then you may be sure that the LORD your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land, which the LORD your God has given you."

Despite the warning, the Israelites did not obey as they never did drive them out completely. Instead they COMPROMISED God's word - they did not intermarry nor allied with the nation YET, but they made them their slaves.

**I mentioned "Yet" because as you read on the following chapters, the Israelites lived among the Canaanites and intermarried, serving their gods... **

It may not had been their intention to disobey God but pride got in the way when they though they were strong enough to handle it.

Application: Dear family, let's take a moment to pause and reflect. How many times have we disobeyed God by compromising His word, trying to do or explain things in a way such that it seems right?

Judges 2

Pride gave way to sin. The Israelites had broken their covenant with the Lord. When the Lord spoke that He would not drive out the Canaanites and also allow them to be obstacles to the Israelites, they repented, offering sacrifices to God.

A new generation of Israelites grew up, not knowing God nor what He had done for Israel. They fell to sin, worshipping other gods. Because of this, God allowed their enemies to take control over them, and whenever they went to battle, they would be defeated.

God had a heart of compassion for His people still, raising up leaders(Judges) to save them yet they would only listen for a short moment, before quickly turning their backs on God again and again.

Notice the cycle of sin:
Israel serves God --> Israels falls to sin and worship other gods -->Israel goes into slavery
-->Israel cried outs-->God gives them a leader(Judge)--> Israel is delivered

They serve the Lord for a while before falling back into sin..

This sparked the Lord's anger.
20 Therefore the LORD was very angry with Israel and said, "Because this nation has violated the covenant that I laid down for their forefathers and has not listened to me,
21 I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died.
22 I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the LORD and walk in it as their forefathers did."
23 The LORD had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua.

Application: Dear brothers and sisters, do we have any cycles of sin in our lives that need to be broken?

Joshua 22 - 24 (29th Mar) - Stanley & Madeline

In Chapt 22 and 23, joshua reminded the people twice... To keep the commandments and the law that Moses gave, to love the Lord and do not bow down to other gods...

In Chapter 24, Joshua gathered the high authorities of Israel and reminded them of the goodness of God from the beginning of their generation. Again, he was reminding them to serve, obey and love our God Almighty only.

Just wonder... Why does Joshua have to be so lor soh? The people had heard and seen the miracles & promises of God. Why does he have to keep reminding them? Are they so forgetful? Is the worldly temptation overwhelming?

I'm just very grateful after Christ's sacrifice, we live by and in grace, not by law. We have the Holy Spirit, whom constantly keep us in God's presence. We do not need to solely depend on memory and will power although these are important. Let's be thankful to the Holy Spirit who is our constant reminder to love and obey God. Let's count of blessings and remember His
goodness to us and our forefathers.

Let's say together, "But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord"

Joshua 19 - 21 (28th Mar) - Jason

“The Lord is giving you rest and has granted you this land”
- Joshua 1: 13

Joshua 19

The land was divided amongst the Israelites tribe by tribe.

Joshua 20

The Lord spoke to Joshua to set up ‘safehouses’ for people fleeing the avenger of blood because of accidental or unintentional killing. Such a person is to stay in protective custody of the town elders until he is able to stand trial.

Joshua 21

The Levites receive free housing and pasture for their herds sponsored by the other tribes as instructed by the Lord through Moses. The service of the Lord was the Levite’s inheritance, as they were well provided for regardless of physical inheritance.

v42 “Each of these towns had pasturelands surrounding it.”
v44: “The Lord gave them rest on each side, just as He had sworn to their forefathers.”
V45: “Not one of all the Lord’s good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.”

I was pondering about the identity of God in John 1:1 (“in the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the Word was God.”) and realized that God’s identity was seen in His word. And that if He promises something, He’ll make sure He’ll get it done.

We’ll know that He is Lord when we see His word come true in our lives not only when God answers our prayers, but as the Israelites came to know, the character of God was beyond a promise. It was beyond the physical land, as time and time again God delivered nation after nation to them. It was that living relationship where God spoke to his people through Joshua. In short, God’s promise must be lived out.

Today as we go about our daily lives, I’m sure God has a promise for our lives, but it takes a step out in faith to be bold and courageous like Joshua and the Israelites did to see those promises fulfilled. Where rest in Joshua 1: 13 means having a spiritual direction in life and not having to worry about the end point. To borrow Pastor Khong’s words also borrowed from Einstein “we live in a world of perfected means, but confused endings”.

Today, let us rest on God’s purpose for our lives.

Joshua 16 - 18 (27th Mar) - Josh

Joshua 16-18

Israel is in the midst of their conquest of the promise land. Chapter 16-18 marks the division of land for the tribe of Manasseh and Ephraim. They were too numerous a people and Joshua challenged them to conquer more land for themselves. Some practical lessons on inheritance to help us believe and achieve more.

Fight for your inheritance.

The response of the people of Joseph was interesting. "Why have you given us only one allotment and one portion for an inheritance?" -Joshua 17:14

Joshua's reponse was "You are numerous and very powerful... though the Canaanites have iron chariots, and though they are strong, you can drive them out." - Joshua 17:18.

In the midst of war, the sons of Joseph saw inheritance as a "given" and shun at opposition (v16). Joshua's challenge defined inheritance. It is to be fought for.


Envision your inheritance.

He further stressed his point in chapter 18, when he gathered the tribes and said "How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you?" He went on to organize reccee teams to map out the land and command each tribe to plot out the land they are to inherit. What they could see, they could inherit.


It's a familiar sound to listen to an inheritance sermon or read an inheritance word but fail to fight and claim the inheritance of God in our lives. God has promised to lead us in triumphant possession always, spreading everywhere the fragrance of Christ. Envision and fight for your inheritance. For me at work, it is to believe God to make me a successful advertiser and brand consultant and that my people will grow deeper and reach out!

Joshua 12 - 15 (26th Mar)

Joshua 12

This chapter covers a list of kings that were defeated by the Israelites. 2 kings from east of Jordan and 31 kings from west side of Jordan were all defeated by Israelites.

Joshua 13

Though the Israelites conquered many land but yet there were still land not conquered (v1). Then further in this chapter, it talks about the land on the east side of Jordan to be divided with the tribe of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh. The Levites were not given any inheritance because the Lord is their inheritance (v14, 33)

Joshua 14

This chapter is the continuation of the division of the land. But this chapter is the division on the west of Jordan. Also from v6 onwards, it talks about Caleb. Caleb was 85 years old and he is still strong as before (v10, 11). Caleb asked Joshua for the hill country and Joshua blessed and gave the hill country as Caleb’s inheritance.

Joshua 15

This chapter talks about all the land that was given to the tribe of Judah. This is a big piece of land.

Joshua 14:9 - 'The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the LORD my God wholeheartedly.'

God always wanted us to claim back the land for His glory. So wherever you go, wherever you set your foot on, pray and ask God to claim back the land for you so that His name be glorified. Go pray and claim your school or your workplace for the Lord and follow the Lord wholeheartedly.

Joshua 9 - 11 (25th Mar) - Ivy

Joshua 9

In this chapter we see how Gibeonites deceived the leaders of the tribes and obtained a treaty of submission to Israel. Mostly motivated by fear, the Gibeonites trick Joshua into allowing them live by making a treaty.

Note Verse 9:14 ‘They did not inquire of the Lord’
The Israelites did not inquire of the Lord with regards to the Gibeonites.

Reflections: How many times did we inquire of God before we enter a new job? Taking a new course of studies? Entering a new relationship? Or even do anything? Its really a good ‘practice’ to learn how to inquire of the Lord with decisions in life and we’ll never miss out on God’s timing and blessings!

And since the oath has been taken, the Israelites are ‘obligated’ and therefore can’t harm them.

Joshua 10

In chapter 10 we see that the Israelites are obligated to help the Gibeonites when they are in trouble. Mah fan…

Verse 7 "Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you."
I thought this was really comforting to know, that God has already defeated our enemies, we don’t have to be afraid.

In verse 26, we saw that Joshua killed and hung the 5 Amorite kings on the trees and left them over night. Looking back at Dt21.22, the Lord instructed that they were not allowed to do so.

Joshua 11

We see that although there a some ‘minor disobedience’ the Lord was still merciful and continues to fight for Israel. There are a lot of fighting but God’s assurance upon Joshua can be see in 11:6 ‘The Lord said to Joshua, Do not be afraid of them’.

Verse 13 says: ‘Yet they did not burn any of the cities…’ The Lord did instruct them to destroy and burn. But the Israelites did not do so. There is a later consequence to this ‘act of mercy or negligence’.

Nevertheless, God is faithful. He has been the one who is fighting for them.
See verse 23 says: So Joshua took the entire land, just as the LORD had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions. Then the land had rest from war.

I find it really comforting to know that God is fighting for us in our live situations. Even though we maybe stumbling along the way, His love and faithfulness never fails. However, we’ll later find out that, the disobedience does have its consequences in the long run. I want to summarise these passage with:

Let us inquire of the Lord for minor and major decisions. Be assured of our God who protects and fights for us. Be assured. Senior Pastor has already given the call for ‘volunteers to enter the army’. How would you respond knowing that God will fight and is fighting for you?

Joshua 5 - 8 (24th Mar) - Sylvia

From these few chapters, we can really learn many things..

Faith and Obedience

In continuation from Chapter 4, God had dried up the Jordan River just as what he had done to the Red Sea, for the Israelites to cross over.

Joshua 5: 1 “Now it came about when all the kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan to the west, and all the kings of the Canaanites who were by the sea, heard how the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan before the sons of Israel until they had crossed, that their hearts melted, and there was no spirit in them any longer because of the sons of Israel.”

The Israelites were obedient and had faith, trusting in the Lord to lead them through no matter what. When the enemies of Israel saw God’s mighty power displayed, they become fearful to the point of having no spirit in them – they had lost their confidence in the battles against the Israelites.

Application: This is a reminder of how God will always be there to lead us through our spiritual battles. Romans 8:31 “ If God is for us, who can be against us?”

An Act of Consecration

Joshua 5:2 “At that time the LORD said to Joshua, "Make for yourself flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time."”

The Lord commanded for the Israelites to be circumcised again. Why was this so?
Remember back in Numbers 20, because of the people’s lack of faith and disobedience, they were left to wander in the desert and not allowed to enter into the Promised Land.
Well, in their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, a new generation had been raised up to enter the land flowing with milk and honey (led by Joshua) – and they had yet to be circumcised.

Circumcision is actually an powerful act of consecration to the Lord where we are telling Him “Yes Lord, I am yours.” It is whereby we are renouncing the flesh, dying to self to living to God.

Dear family, shall we then die to self and give ourselves to God?

Power of Prayer Walking

Before we enter into any battles or any unknown places, its important for us to seek the Lord in prayer, to dedicate everything to Him. So we need to prayer walk and take hold of the place for God. Another thing to notes is that Jericho was a most important Canaanite fortress city in the Jordan valley which obstructed the Israelites’ path to victory. (They were to defeat the Canaanites as you would find out in the later chapters)

Joshua 6: 3-5 "You shall march around the city, all the men of war circling the city once. You shall do so for six days. Also seven priests shall carry seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark; then on the seventh day you shall march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. It shall be that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people will go up every man straight ahead."

The Israelites were able to take the city of Jericho because they listened to God’s voice and walked with Him – Faith and Obedience!

Are there any strongholds in our lives that we need to deal with before there is victory?

Note: Jericho had been cursed after its destruction. God’s Word is POWER – Don’t play play..

Joshua 6:26 “Then Joshua made them take an oath at that time, saying, “Cursed before the LORD is the man who rises up and builds this city Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates."”

True enough as we see in 1 Kings 16:34 when it was rebuilt by Hiel of Bethel in the time of King Ahab.

“In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho; he laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his first-born, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of The Lord, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.”

Joshua 7 – 8

In Joshua 7, because of just ONE person’s sin, the whole community suffers the Lord’s wrath.

“But the sons of Israel acted unfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban, for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things under the ban, therefore the anger of the LORD burned against the sons of Israel.”

But in Joshua 8, praise the Lord for His grace and mercy. He is JUST indeed. After meting out the due punishment, He RESTORES!

Joshua 8: 1-2 “Now the LORD said to Joshua, "Do not fear or be dismayed Take all the people of war with you and arise, go up to Ai; see, I have given into your hand the king of Ai, his people, his city, and his land. You shall do to Ai and its king just as you did to Jericho and its king; you shall take only its spoil and its cattle as plunder for yourselves. Set an ambush for the city behind it."”

This time, the people obeyed and did it God’s way.
Result: They defeated Ai just as they had conquered Jericho.

Application: When our walk with God is right, blessings will simply come our way.

Dear brothers and sisters, please do not let the community suffer because of one person’s sin. Get right with God.

Agape. =)

Joshua 1 - 4 (23rd Mar) - Li Juan

(1) I urge all of us livingstones to continue reading the bible daily,
in Joshua 1:8 “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.”
Let the word be the most essential thing in your life! (More important than oxygen!)


(2) God performed many many miracles. One of it is recorded here when Israel crossed Jordan on dry ground! Why did He show us the miracle?
Joshua 4:24 “He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.”
Did God show you any miracles before? Take some time to reflect and think. I’m sure there are, always remember them!


(3) “BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS”

This phrase appeared umpteen number of times in these few chapters, and it really caught my attention when I read it. What is the Holy Spirit saying to you when you read it?

Personally, Joshua 1:9 is my key verse for the year. “Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

It always motivates me to strive on and overcome all fear and anxiety because our God is always with us. This year is definitely not going to be an easy year since it is a year of VICTORY. Spiritual warfare is ever present and is getting more and more intense, simply because Mr S wants us to just give up before victory comes. However, we claim it in faith NOW that there WILL be victory!

My fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, let us strive on and never give up! Always Victorious!

Deuteronomy 32 - 34 (22nd Mar)

Deuteronomy 32

A song written by Moses. In this song it talks about God.

God protects us. V10 – shielded & guarded us as the apple of His eye.
God leads us. V12 – led.
God lifts us up. V13 – made us ride on the heights of the land.
God provides. V13 – fed us with the fruit of the field.
God strengthened us. V14 – nourished

Deuteronomy 33 & 34

Moses blessed the tribes before he died. Moses died at 120 years old and he died strong (34:7). Joshua took over the leadership and was filled with the Spirit of wisdom because Moses laid his hands on him (34:9)

Pray and ask the Lord to fill you with Spirit of wisdom.

Deuteronomy 30 - 31 (21st Mar)

Deuteronomy 30

Obey the Lord and He will prosper you. This is the theme of this chapter,

V2 & 3 - obey him with all your heart and with all your soul according to everything I command you today, 3 then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes

V5 & 6 - He will make you more prosperous and numerous than your fathers. The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live.

V8 & 9 - You will again obey the LORD and follow all his commands I am giving you today. Then the LORD your God will make you most prosperous in all the work of your hands and in the fruit of your womb

V9 & 10 - The LORD will again delight in you and make you prosperous, just as he delighted in your fathers, if you obey the LORD your God and keep his commands and decrees that are written in this Book of the Law and turn to the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul.

V16 - For I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the LORD your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

So let us love the Lord with all our heart and obey all His command and you will be blessed.

Deuteronomy 31

Moses summoned Joshua and told him to be strong and courageous and do not be afraid. The promise is that the Lord will go before Joshua and be with him. God will not leave Joshua nor forsake Joshua (v8). This is also a promise to us that God loves us and will not forsake us.

When I read v20 – 21, it saddens me. God brought the Israelites to a place flowing with milk and honey and when they eat of the land, they turned to other gods. Many times, we failed to give thanks to the Lord for all the blessings and successes He gave us. We took it into our own hands and forgotten that it was God who blessed us. God will test us in this area. I remember what SP said that if you want to test a man’s heart, give him success. How we manage success will determine our walk with the Lord.

Remember, God give and God will take. Nothing belongs to us and everything belongs to God.

Deuteronomy 28 - 29 (20th Mar) - Karen

Deuteronomy 28-29

In chapter 28, it is just so wonderful reading about God’s blessings for us when we obey Him and when we follow all of His commands. Yet, we also see the flip-side that when we disobey God and fail to follow His commands, curses will ensue when we disobey.

The next chapter talks about Moses calling upon the Israelites and urging the people to honor the contract they had previously made with God. He is calling for their commitment to God – Knowing God’s Word is not enough, we need to obey His commands.

40 Years ago, God and Israel had made a covenant at Mount Sinai: God promised to bless the Israelites by making them the nation through whom the rest of the world could know God. In return, the Israelites promised to love and obey God in order to receive physical and spiritual blessings.

In chapter 29, Moses reviewed this covenant because while God was still keeping his part of the bargain, the Israelites were already neglecting their part. Moses restated the covenant to warn the people that if they did not keep their part of the agreement they would experience severe discipline.

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Just as the people in Israel did not notice God’s care for them along their journey, we sometimes do not notice all of the ways that God takes care of us. All our daily needs have been supplied and we have been well fed and well clothed. Sometimes, we even mistakenly take the credit ourselves for being good providers instead of recognizing God’s hand in the process.

Take a moment to ask ourselves: What is the best way to prosper in life?

For the Israelites, their first step was to keep their part of the covenant: They are to love God with all their heart, soul and strength. Likewise, we too, are to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33), then true success in life will follow as a blessing from the hand of God.

Disobedience comes from an act of the will, and not a lack of knowledge. Through God’s word we know enough about Him to be saved by faith and to serve Him. We must not use the limitation of our knowledge as an excuse to reject His claim on our life.

Dear family, let’s reflect on our choices we have been given each day, and choose wisely how we live each precious day of our lives. =)

Deuteronomy 24 - 27 (19th Mar) - Vivien

Deuteronomy 24 - 25
It continues with the other miscellaneous laws that the Israelites need to follow. And you will notice the laws go into such details like divorce, marriage, loan, crime, diseases and disputes. There are a few main people that the Bible used the laws to protect: the poor and needy, the family (and offspring) and the innocents.

There are at least 3 characters that we should possess from these 2 chapters:
1) Generous
2) Honest
3) Merciful

There is a verse which I thought it is very sweet of God to put it under the law:
Deut 24:5: If a man is recently married, he must not be sent to war or have any other duty laid on him. For one year he is to be free to stay at home and bring happiness to the wife he has married.

God is concerned with healthy family life! God told us to multiply and be fruitful (Gen 1:28)! Moving forwards to this era, both men and women are in the workforce. I think Deut 24:5 does not just apply to men, but also women. We must not be filled with work the entire time and forget about building family. By not following the law, we can see the consequences that are happening now. Delay marriages, small families, low replacement ratio, aging population and etc. Strike a balance between work and family.

Deuteronomy 26
When you bought an exotic snack, who would you want to share it with? Or if after spending hours of effort and finally you have composed a song that you are happy with, who do you want to share it first?

Most probably that first person that you share will be one who you love or/and respect most. It is the same thing here. God does not need people to give him tithes and offering or the firstfruits, it is the meaning behind the offering. The very fact that if we love God with all our heart, mind and strength, we will definitely not forget Him when we have something good. It will be a natural act, because we love Him. However, as we could not physically see God, we tend to forget about His Presence and share with someone else the “firstfruit”. Do you tend to be forgetful?

Pray: “O Lord, thank you for all that you have blessed us with. We are sorry that sometimes we forgot to share our 'firstfruit' with You. Holy Spirit, forgive us. Help us to be mindful of Your Presence and to give thanks and offer up our 'firstfruit' to You. May Your Name be praised forever and ever. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen. "

From verse 16 to 19, it is God’s promises when we obey the laws.

Deuteronomy 27
God had called His people to build an altar on Mount Ebal where the laws are to be written. He is very careful with the instructions. He specifically commanded that they do not use iron tools on that altar, as will not violate the law that was passed down that no handmade idol is to be made to worship God.
The 12 tribes were assigned roles to play. 6 tribes to bless the people, 6 tribes to pronounce curses. And the curses were pronounce in the rest of this chapter.

Deuteronomy 21 - 23 (17th Mar) - Ivy

Deuteronomy 21

How detailed God is in giving instructions and law to His people!!

Atonement for an Unsolved Murder
In this we see that God gives specific instructions in how to deal with an unsolved murder case. A heifer is to be sacrificed to the Lord as atonement of sins of the people. Definition of Heifer - A young cow, especially one that has not yet given birth to a calf.

Marrying a Captive Woman
God indeed has mercy with woman. He gives the captive woman free will to chose wherever she wants if her husband is displeased with her.

The Right of the Firstborn
I find this really amazing. It is like there is a special favour upon the 1st born in a man’s family. The man is not to disown the son even if it comes from the wife that he does not love. God protects the first born from favouritism!

A Rebellious Son
Wow….can you imagine being stoned due to rebellion?

Various Laws
Verse 22 say: If a man guilty of a capital offense is put to death and his body is hung on a tree. Capital offense! Corruption? Theft? Stealing? Very serious case!


Deuteronomy 22

I want to bring your attention to this 2 verses:
4 If you see your brother's donkey or his ox fallen on the road, do not ignore it. Help him get it to its feet.
5 A woman must not wear men's clothing, nor a man wear women's clothing, for the LORD your God detests anyone who does this.

God’s instructions even from old testament days, we are to help our brothers and sisters, which also means our neighbours! Notice this, God detest people who cross dress! Probably cross dressing for a wrong purpose.
Ladies, is your dressing manly or unfeminine? Man, are you dressing in a manly manner? I hope no one wears skirts at home!

Marriage Violations
Reading this reminds me of some old Chinese movies. If a man and woman commits adultery, they are to be put to death. Let us honour the Lord with our sexuality! God is gracious but don’t take it for granted. If you have not kept your body pure for the Lord, repent and approach your leaders! Allowing the sin contaminates the entire body of Christ!! Be pure!

I am so swarmed by the various laws that God has given to the people of Israel. However, I just felt that, hey, God really love His people. Like a loving parent who loves and wants to protect.
Sometimes our leaders may get a bit ‘naggy’, but hey, isn’t that love? We love that’s why we remind and rebuke. Our reminders are out of love and protection not trying to run or control your live. Just like how the Lord gave specific instructions to His people. His only purpose is that His people are kept pure and blameless before God. Thank God for your leader today. He or she really love you.

Love you with the love of Jesus.

Deuteronomy 17 - 20 (17th Mar) - Ezra

Deuteronomy 17

This passage shows us that, God has appointed leaders over every nation, and not just nation, over our lives to.

Who are these leaders?
They are the governments. Church pastors and leaders, etc…

Why do we have these leaders over our lives?
They are all God’s appointed leaders.
- For the governments: so that the law will be in place.
o 11 Act according to the law they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left.
- For church, pastors advices, sometimes with guidelines so that we won’t go astray and fall into a dark pit.
o 15 be sure to appoint over you the king the LORD your God chooses.
o 16 The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the LORD has told you, "You are not to go back that way again."

Deuteronomy 18

This chapter shows us the submission we have to give towards our spiritual leaders and not to imitate the world out there.

Spiritual leaders that God has placed over us; we must submit to them and support them in ministry.

Recently, the young arrows survivor camp just ended and before that, during that weekend was the Encounter Weekend headed by our tribe. Some of the family was at the encounter helping Pastor and also preaching, and some of us were at / going in and out of the survivor camp supporting these ministry.

Many of pastor’s 12 have and always took time off from their work, rest, personal time, etc… to be present for tribe activities.

In the same way as written:
3 This is the share due the priests from the people who sacrifice a bull or a sheep: the shoulder, the jowls and the inner parts.
4 You are to give them the firstfruits of your grain, new wine and oil, and the first wool from the shearing of your sheep,
5 for the LORD your God has chosen them and their descendants out of all your tribes to stand and minister in the LORD's name always.

And as versus nine puts;
9 When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there.
That’s where you can learn to really appreciate your spiritual father or mother when you are heading the wrong direction, in the direction of the worldly view, they will be the ones to direct you back to God’s view.

Deuteronomy 19

These instructions and laws are put across in this chapter to show us that God is a God who watches over us and wants the best of our every character.
He places these laws so that men can live in righteousness and without hatred for one another. This chapter also tells us that God is a merciful God, He understands situation and He will make a way for us.

4 This is the rule concerning the man who kills another and flees there to save his life—one who kills his neighbor unintentionally, without malice aforethought.

Not to escape, but to learn from our mistakes so that we will grow more in Him as He molds us, our character and attitude.

9 because you carefully follow all these laws I command you today—to love the LORD your God and to walk always in his ways—then you are to set aside three more cities.

Deuteronomy 20

We are at war, spiritual war.

You know, when you are a solider, you learn how to be tactical so that the enemy will not spot you. You are thought to engage an enemy when his attacking you. You also learn and train to take over territories and secure it so that enemies will not take over it.

Sounds fun huh?

Well, it’s exactly the same with our own lives. What you read in this chapter is not just about going to fight a war and killing the enemy.

13 When the LORD your God delivers it into your hand, put to the sword all the men in it.

When you have overcome your past or whatever that distracts you, put an end to every accusation from the evil one that tries to remind you of the badness you use to be.

16 However, in the cities of the nations the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes.

18 Otherwise, they will teach you to follow all the detestable things they do in worshiping their gods, and you will sin against the LORD your God.

If you have overcome the distractions in your life, you must make sure that, that area of you life does not breathe again. Which means, your past, the kind of person you use to be, these all must not breathe again in your life.

You may not be able to overcome this alone, but your spiritual parent / leader is around for you to be accountable to.

Deuteronomy 14 - 16 (16th Mar) - Ezra

Deuteronomy 14

Clean and unclean food. I thank God that now all food that goes into our mouth is clean, because we say grace. Anyway, I would like to extract out something about this passage. As most of us know, we feed upon the word of God; that is clean food. Feeding ourselves with unwholesomeness from the material world; that is unclean food.
3 Do not eat any detestable thing.

Tithes. Do we give them regularly? How many of us really give regularly?
Some questions are; give tenth of our earnings; is it only our wagers? What about if we get ang bao during CNY?
Answer: It is still an earning…

22 Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. 23 Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the LORD your God always.

You know, in New Zealand, 1 cow can cost you a house. A firstborn of the herds / flocks can cost about the price of 2 houses and a Mercedes-Benz.
During those times, sacrificing the firstborn of the herds / flocks is really a big thing. Imagine burning your most expensive purchased product that you’ve saved up money for. E.g. Alvin’s Mazda 3 1.6 or James’s Hyundai Sonata.

So in the same way, we should not just limit our tithes to just 10%, but we should be willing to give above that 10%.
God will bless you with greater things when you give with a grateful heart.

Deuteronomy 15

Here it shows us that, wherever we are; may it be school, work or army, how much we get per month for allowances or wagers we are all not poor.
4 However, there should be no poor among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you,
5 if only you fully obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commands I am giving you today.
6 For the LORD your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.
If you read carefully in the passage above; in the present, the land that God has given us is our ministry, not just in church, but our schools, offices and army camp. We are all pastors in wherever God has placed us in; schools, offices or army camp.

As we read on, it also shows us that those of us that holds a certain position in school, work or SAF; supervisor, manager, teacher, prefect, student counselor, officer or sergeant; we have to remember that we are ministers for the Lord and so, we also have to be Christ like at school, work or in army camp. In this way, God will bless us and enlarge our territories.
18 Do not consider it a hardship to set your servant free, because his service to you these six years has been worth twice as much as that of a hired hand. And the LORD your God will bless you in everything you do.
The passage above shows us that, as people with higher positions in school, work or army, the Lord will bless greatly when we chose to do things His ways. Not just for people with a supervisory or leader position, but also the workers. As an employee, student or solider, we also must be a blessing to our bosses or superior above us and pray that the Lord will bless them too.
Deuteronomy 16

Sacrifice and Rejoice unto the Lord. As we go on in our daily lives, studying, working, training, resting and ministering; we sometimes miss the point of why must we sacrifice the things we love most that draws us or distract us from drawing nearer and deeper I the Lord. Some can be hobbies, friends, girlfriend, boyfriend, family, sleeping, playing, computer games, etc… these are the yeast in some of our lives which distract us.
We sacrifice these things so that we avail ourselves to let God work in us and grow in us.
2 Sacrifice as the Passover to the LORD your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the LORD will choose as a dwelling for his Name.
3 Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left Egypt in haste….

Many of us sometimes enjoy the blessings the Lord has blessed us with, and forget to thank the Lord and left up praises and rejoicing up to Him. For some, grumble to much and pondering upon all the unpleasant situation in life until giving thanks to God for those situations is so difficult to articulate.
10 Then celebrate the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the LORD your God has given you.

11 And rejoice before the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name….

13 Celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor and your winepress.

14 Be joyful at your Feast….

As the passages has projected it for us to see. In those days, this is how much the really give glory to God and honor Him.

Deuteronomy 11 - 13 (15th Mar) - Ezra

Deuteronomy 11

In this chapter, it’s very clear cut on what God has instructed Moses. The command of the Lord is to OBEY His words.
As it is written: 8 Observe therefore all the commands I am giving you today, so that you may have the strength to go in and take over the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, 9 and so that you may live long in the land that the LORD swore to your forefathers to give to them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey.

The lands that we are going to over take are the hearts of the people out there; winning the hearts of pre-believers; showing them God’s love in our lives.

13 So if you faithfully obey the commands I am giving you today—to love the LORD your God and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul-
14 then I will send rain on your land in its season, both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine and oil.
15 I will provide grass in the fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied.

Deuteronomy 12

God is our Father.

In this chapter, it’s really wonderful as you read it. It’s like a father telling and teaching his kids about the ways of life, the values and principles of life.

Likewise, God is teaching us about serving Him. We do not have to follow the ways of the world, but follow God’s ways. As we follow His ways, He will bless us and enlarge our territory.

31 You must not worship the LORD your God in their way, because in worshiping their gods, they do all kinds of detestable things the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daughters in the fire as sacrifices to their gods.

Deuteronomy 13

Our God is a jealous God, but merciful God.
4 It is the LORD your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him.

As we look deeper into every versus, you will realize that there is an Egypt in most of our lives that God has brought us out.

Well, a very short testimony:
My Egypt was when I was in ITE all the way to my motorbike accident. Wasn’t living the way a Christian should be, wasn’t talking the way I should be, wasn’t portraying a Christ like attitude. Because of this childishness, I got myself into trouble outside, but thank God, no records. I was a slave to my bad attitude, harsh mouth, bad temperedness and pride. God had to break my life to bring me out from Egypt.
5 That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he preached rebellion against the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery; he has tried to turn you from the way the LORD your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you.

This chapter also speaks about the family. As brothers and sisters, we should be supporting one another in the word of God, growing deep in Him together and not encouraging one another in evil thoughts or actions.
6 If your very own brother, or your son or daughter, or the wife you love, or your closest friend secretly entices you, saying, "Let us go and worship other gods" (gods that neither you nor your fathers have known,
7 gods of the peoples around you, whether near or far, from one end of the land to the other), 8 do not yield to him or listen to him. Show him no pity. Do not spare him or shield him.