Fallout
“say not to yourselves, ‘The LORD has enabled us to possess this land because of our virtues’, . . .” Deuteronomy 9:4
Virtues – Why does God bless? Do you think His blessings are the result of your goodness? Do you think He provides for you because you have been more obedient than others? I have often heard people say that because they tithe or because they attend church regularly or because they give to charity, God will bless them. Watch out! This kind of thinking is laced with heresy. We do not obligate God. Moses had to remind the people that God’s blessing was the result of God’s purposes, not their spiritual uniqueness. In fact, the possession of the land came about because God disposed of the wicked, not because Israel earned the right of occupancy.
“It’s not because of our virtues,” says Moses. The Hebrew is tzedakah. We could translate this as righteousness. Our righteousness doesn’t buy us anything. It is God’s plan and purpose that changes the course of history. We need to remember this. It’s just too easy to start thinking God will do what I want Him to do because I have been so good. Didn’t the prophets tell us our righteousness is as filthy rags? They also remember us of the arrogance of virtuous assertion. Moses’ warning must constantly echo in our ears. I may be blessed simply because God is taking care of someone else’s unfinished business.
We in America are most susceptible to the sin of manifest destiny. We have been blessed. We have also leveraged that blessing at the great expense of many others. Yet we expect God will reward our land because we have done so much for Him. What arrogance! I wonder if we ever considered the fact that our blessings might just be the accidental left-overs from something God was accomplishing in other nations. The mix of nationalism and religion is a potent source of hubris. No Torah-observant follower of the Lord can allow himself such egotism. God works among the community of all men and in executing His plan, some rise and some fall. It is not their righteousness that brings success or failure, gain or destruction. It is God’s hidden hand that turns the hearts of kings. The punishment of the wicked may result in accidently blessing to others.
Realizing that blessings come from fallout helps us remain humble, grateful and obedient. Only the most foolish will ever think their good deeds produce divine favor. God is no man that He might be bribed by my conformity or appeasement. I am a fool to think so. Nevertheless, God does make promises, doesn’t He? He promises if I give to the poor, it will be counted as a loan to the Lord and He will repay. He promises if I live according to His instructions, He will use me for His purpose (and care for me so that I might act as a magnet for Him). He promises I will be an object of His concern, He will never abandon me, I will be conformed to His character and someday His justice will prevail. But, of course, none of these promises really depend on me. They are all ultimately about who He is, not about what I earn.
Today we may need to be reminded that fallout produces blessings. We may need to be reminded that I am not so wonderful that I can command God’s favor. God is doing things beyond me that affect me. Today might be a good day to get some perspective.
Topical Index: blessing, virtues, tzedakah, Deuteronomy 9:4
<>
This is on the “don’t” list. “Don’t” say it is because of our strength, wisdom, prowess, influence, etc., that we have been “blessed” at all. Now.. let’s “flip it” and look at the “do” list. It is because Hashem (the Compassionate One) has given us this land to possess. We will remember “G-d so loved, that He gave”. G-d is our Lover and G-d freely gives us all things (to enjoy) that pertain unto life and godliness. We remember (zakar!) life is a gift from above. Our very breathing is His gift to us. We are one “air bubble” away from being a babbling idiot or DOA. (With a quick nod in the direction of Rick Warren!)- It is not about us; but rather-it is about Him. He is the One who initiated the covenant with Abraham. He is the One who builds the house. He is the One who delivers my feet from death and my steps from falling. Praises to HaShem, the holy One. Praises to HaShem our Deliverer. Songs of praise belong unto our great G-d and mighty Savior who has bought us with His own blood, and calls us to Himself. It is G-d that worketh in you, both to will and to do of His own pleasure. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this. G-d waits to hear our “yes”, before He starts construction. Surrender to His will and obedience to His instructions (revealed in Torah!) was and is the path of Yeshua, the living and abiding ONE. The LORD has enabled us.. He is the ONE. His name is ONE. He is HaShem. Glory to His name.
Does anyone know of a book or books that would be best to use in teaching high school age students that focus on history according to the Bible? Preferably a book that would aid them with Bible studies and simple enough to understand? I am working with students who are struggling in traditional schools and/or drop outs. So much to learn!
Hi Donna,
I’m not sure exactly what you want to teach them, but Biblical history (History of the Jews) is extraordinarily complicated and difficult to understand IMO.
I think it would be important to start with the Bible and then try to understand the stories.
You might want to consider purchasing Rabbi Gorelik’s audio files; listening to his “lectures” is fun and they are fairly easy to understand.
To say that they are great “learning tools,” would be something of an understatement.
If you are looking for something that might appeal more to American Christians, check out Rick Warren’s, The Purpose Driven Life, which starts at the absolute beginning of time and tells the rest of the story in 40 days. I think it would be fun to teach to kids with learning issues.
I typically don’t pay much attention to this kind of literature, but picked it up in Costco a few years ago and couldn’t put I down. I stood there and read it in about three hours. It is impressive.
But a simpler more concise statement of this view can be found in Skip Moen’s, Words to Lead By, which I like to think of as the One Minute Manager’s Guide to Leading Like Jesus. It would be easier for the students to understand and an inspiration to them as well, coming as it does from the Master 🙂
Hope this helps,
Mike
Thanks, Mike! I have been using some of Skip’s TW with one young man I am working with and he actually asks to read them:) I read The Purpose Driven Life several years ago. A long range goal I have with a school that is developing is to incorporate Hebrew into the lessons so that they get a deeper understanding of the Word.
God bless!
Donna
Wow, that’s great! Sounds like fun!
Most of my friends, who are kind, loving, and educated about most things, tend to look at me like I’m from another planet when I start talking about Skip’s TW 🙂
Bless you and your students.
Mike
Gee, I hope that’s not because they can’t understand what I am saying.
Hi Donna,
Another book I would recommend for ease of teaching/sharing, and it was my “only” book on Jesus for a long time, is The Essential Jesus, Original Sayings and Earliest Images, by John Dominic Crossan. It is designed to be read as a book of poetry IMO.
Here is an example from page 44:
Look at the birds above your head
they neither plant nor reap
they neither store nor hoard
yet day by day God gives them food
Look at the flowers beneath your feet
they neither card nor spin
they neither sow nor weave
yet King Solomon shone less brightly than they
So why worry about your life
what you will get to eat
what you will have to wear
Skip, of course you had no clue my struggle with pride last night and into this morning. Although I asked the Lord’s restoration, I do believe He used this TW to remind, me once again, that “man proposes, but God disposes” and my thoughts and plans are not to be constructed and timed without the absolute surrender it takes to trust in God’s purpose being fulfilled. The Lord laid it heavily upon my heart to collect food items (staples) from our church folks and distribute them, first to those within the church who may be in need or know someone who needs food. Then, we offer it to anyone who comes to the distribution. We don’t advertise, we want to target those right within the community. This is small potatoes and we are no “Feed the Children” or “Operation Blessing”. BUT, I struggle with the lack of laborers, and in so doing, I am apt to fall into the same pit of the prophet Elijah after he shamed the prophets of Baal. If the Lord is not doing anything else, He is teaching me humility and OH, how I need to be reminded that I do not know how to serve Him, worship Him without humility.
Andrew Murray was a very prodigious writer in his day. Over two hundred books bear his name. He is known especially for “Absolute Surrender” but I believe his opus work to be “Humility.” This book was written at the end of a productive and well-traveled life of service to the Master. Crippled by arthritis, it was dictated by brother Murray and written by his daughter’s hand. If you have not yet read this tremendous resource I would say to you and all reading this.. run, don’t walk to a bookstore near you and purchase a copy for yourself. Think of the manner of the birth, life and death of our Master and you will see humility written in flesh from start to finish. Abba’s blessings to you, sister Mary as we daily live to serve our Savior.
Thank you, brother Carl. You have made many comments that have touched my heart and also challenged me. I appreciate your suggestion and immediately turned to a trilogy on sanctification by Andrew Murray entitled “Walking With God”. This work is actually 3 books in one-“Waiting on God”, “Working for God” and “Be Perfect”. Good for the soul reading, as is our brother Skip’s daily messages!
I’ve read “Humility” a number of times and even carried it in my purse for about one year and during a season of prayer and fasting. I distinctly remember….”lower down, down lower…to all aspects to find humility before others and before Christ. It was always the condition of my mind and heart…I had to go lower down!
Todah rabah Carl. I have located a copy of “Humility” and the message is awesome and powerful. Oh, what joy to be a part of a community that walks with humility!
I have heard this sort of thinking throughout the course of my life but I have heard it in several different contexts that go something like this:
1. America has stood by and behind Israel, therefore, God has blessed and will continue to bless America so long as America stands by and behind Israel.
2. America, given the weight of history and understanding that even when its motives or agendas have been less than pure, has been the supreme example in our world of goodness and beneficence to those who have been oppressed (coming to their aid), feeding the poor, fighting AIDS, clothing the destitute, rebuilding nations we conquer etc. Therefore, God has blessed America and will continue to bless America so long as we continue to be “good”.
3. America, because it was founded on Judeo-Christian principles and in large measure and though corrupted, still maintains many of these Judeo-Christian principles, God has blessed and continues to bless in spite of ourselves.
I wonder how these concepts of God’s favor play into this matter of turning the page and becoming arrogant in our virtues, i.e. to think that we somehow “dug our own cisterns?” (ala Israel). And is it ever possible to take God’s favor (blessing) and turn it into something it was never intended to be – because in essence, God’s grace is turned into entitlement? Ken Boa has a great comment on this: “Grace given time will almost always turn into entitlement.”
Romans 8:28-29 came to mind as I read your post. The “good” that all things are working together for is “that he might be the firstborn among many brethren”, i.e., preeminent, receiving all the glory. We receive the wonderful blessing (or fallout, as you say) of being conformed to His image, and experience the benefits of His preeminence, but all because of Him, not us.
Thank you for this great reminder.
Donna, I have spent a week-end in an intense Christian Women’s program. Part of the experience for me, was to recall the learning experiences the Lord has put me through my past adult life ( I am 76 years old-much to recall!). My over-all prayer objective, was to be able to evaluate and pass the valuable things that God had taught me down to others seeking.
When I read this teaching, which I liked a lot, and then saw your question, and knew that I wanted to write you, although I had other things that I planned to write on the program I was involved in.
About 35 years ago, I was teaching in a Christian School, where we had the M.D.’s, lawyers, merchants, & Indian chief’s children. In other words the rich kids whose parents did not want them in public schools. They did not care that we taught them God’s Word each day in the class room though. Two of our younger girls went to school there with me. Our oldest daughter & her friends, in their teens, were getting excited about studying the new comtemporary Bibles, paraphrases– such as ” The Living Bible”, “Good News Bible- Today’s English Version, some even had stick figures that were so neat. I had jumped in with these teens, as they were so happy to read God’s Word. ” Look at this, listen to what this says”, as they read orally for long periods of time. Starting often with the Proverbs, or Psalms–something practical & relavant for them.
The lovely church educational facility the school leased from the Church during the week, only had very old Bible Story Books, and K.J. Bilbes, and no Bible Curriculum. After a year of using those, I could see that a change was needed. I talked to our Principal, and we agreed that I could write a Bible Curriculum. It was a rather simple outline that lent itself to the school year. Everyone had the same version of the Bible, we chose the “The Living Bible”, as it was a hard back cover.
We started with the beginning: them handling their wonderful book! This is to be full of life ( you are alive!) God has given you this life!, The names of the Old Testament ( the meaning of the word Tesatment, Covenant agreement, etc.-) all the names used ( no Hebrew words to start with, but the words: Jew, Jewish, Israel,God’s Chosen people, –they memorize and learn to spell the words. Are you getting the picture? God will let you develop your own for your group. — I used some of Genesis, then we moved to Moses–, learned the plagues,— illustrated some of whatever suitable for art projects. I worked in according to the weeks we had, how many stories we could get in before Christmas holidays arrived, that we would be in Luke 2 , and memorize the entire story from Luke 2. Do our art project with contemporay art manger scenes, etc.
Donna, Sorry, I lost it, back again–cont. from above:
Did I mention that our memory verse each week was a verse or so, from each part of that we were studying.? By the time the New Year came, we moved on into the New Testament, and continued— by Easter, we were ready to do a “small stage production of the Easter Story” In the lovely chapel, and invite parents.
The children (whatever age) so loved doing this! I had one of the sons of a minister of another large church in Houston. On Monday morning after Easter, he came in the class room so excited, and said, “Mrs. Billings you are not going to believe this! And of course, I said, “What Tim?” He said Sunday, my father preached on our play!” —– I think he had never actually listened to his father’s sermons before! It began to connect. No matter what age children, you just move it up or down to their level of teaching. God is so faithful to let you use the things you have learned to teach others!
The next year, the teacher can start anew, and add on more material as needed. It takes many teachings ( and never ends) for humans to grasp and hold on to God’s wonderful Word. Make it alive, exciting, real, and fun. What a privilege you have! I am so excited for you. L.B.
P.S. You, personally, do not forget to pray orally in front of the children, they will hear the prayers of a prayer warrior, God will anoint it to them, Keep it direct, and short. ( of course There are times that they may pray, too.)
I will never forget when a mother that was not a church goer or a verbal praying person, came to me toward the end of a year, and told me after the loss of the father of a classmates, that her daughter wanted to pray for her friend. She said, she was surprised, but agreed. She said I had never heard such a beautiful prayer. Then she added, I knew my child had learned to pray from hearing you pray.—– You never know how God will work when you speak with His love, joy, and compassion! L.B.
Thank you, LaVaye, for sharing your beautiful memories! I am so very encouraged by your words! Another long range goal of the school is to use an arts-integrated curriculum so when you mentioned how you integrated the arts I was very moved! I pray you will continue to bless others with what you have learned and you will be blessed for sharing!
Donna
“Gee, I hope that’s not because they can’t understand what I am saying.”
Hi Skip,
No, they can understand the “meaning” of what you are saying; it just has a lot more “significance” to me than it does to them.