Deuteronomy 32:44  And Moses came and spake all the words of this song in the ears of the people, he, and Hoshea the son of Nun.
45  And Moses made an end of speaking all these words to all Israel:
46  And he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law.
47  For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it.

We cannot determine success by numbers, if we are saved. We are very much influenced by numbers. Jesus warned of the danger of this method of evaluation in Matthew 7. The broad way has many people on it. That way leads to destruction. The narrow way has few people on it. That way leads to life. The Bible also tells us that we are all born as lost sinners. Thus we are all going the wrong way from our birth.
Since the fall of man God has given us many examples of the folly of rebellion against Him. Adam found out he was naked and unable to cover his nakedness when he sinned against God. God provided coats of skins to cover the nakedness of Adam and Eve.
They were not just physically naked, but they were now spiritually naked. Their physical nakedness was not a problem for them prior to their fall. Afterwards it was a problem but their spiritual nakedness caused them to be separated from God. They were fearful of God rather than looking forward to being with Him.
In Genesis 4 Cain and Abel had a desire to be in touch with God. Cain defied what he knew to be right and he chose to bring a bloodless sacrifice.
Abel took a firstling of his flock and prepared that as a sacrifice before the LORD. He shed the blood of that sheep and brought the appropriate sacrifice before the LORD.
Cain was a self-made man and he wanted to impress God with what he had chosen for him. Abel took the firstling of his flock. He was not concerned that this was the firstling and might have been better to keep to build his flock. He did what he knew to be right and God had respect to his offering. God sees the heart. He saw what was in Cain’s heart and he also saw what was in Abel’s heart. They both had the same exposure to truth, but they chose a very different path.
I John 3:12 described Cain as “that wicked one”. God saw his heart and it was not right with Him. A right heart will produce the right fruit. Abel’s blood cried out from the ground and God knew what had taken place. He praised Abel and accepted him into his resting place. Those who are saved will be in heaven with righteous Abel. Cain chose rebellion and he is in torment in hell now and will be for all eternity.
Noah chose to listen to God and because he put his faith in God, he found grace in God’s sight. He was able to build an ark to the saving of his family. That ark is a picture of salvation. Noah did not design that ark by himself. He was given very clear instructions on how to build it. That ark could have sat there empty when the rains came, but Noah believed God and he entered into that ark along with his family. God brought the needed animals into that ark. None of those animals became wild and fought against God. God shut the door when everything was ready and those in the ark were spared and those outside the ark perished.
In our text, Moses was nearing the end of his life. He was chosen by God to lead the nation of Israel out of Egypt and into Canaan. Moses was able to lead them out of Egypt and through the wilderness, but he could not take them into Canaan. He had spoiled that for himself. However, he was not going to allow that failure to keep him from teaching the nation of Israel a song of praise to God. God forgave Moses. That forgiveness did not mean there were no consequences for his sin. He had the privilege of speaking with Jesus on the mount of transfiguration. His body will be resurrected one day and he will be in heaven with his glorified body.
In verse 46 we read that the nation of Israel needed to set their hearts unto all the words that God gave Moses for them. It is the heart of man that needs to be changed. Many people have a Jesus, but it is not the Jesus of the Bible. When the heart of man is changed by God, it will affect the life. It will be evident for all to see.
God’s law was not their means of salvation for the nation of Israel. It was the evidence of their being in the family of God. Many of them did not allow God to change their hearts and they rebelled against His law and they perished.
In verse 47 we read that obedience to God’s law was not a vain thing. It was their life. Following God’s way will keep a person from sin. Only those who walk in the fear of the LORD will have an interest in walking in obedience to God’s Word.
As we look at our world today, the few that are saved will see life much differently than the many that are lost. Those who are saved might get discouraged and think that we have no impact on society because we are so few. God does not need us. We need Him. His Word will impact society.
Moses was reminded here to teach the people to observe God’s law because it was their life. Eternal life begins with salvation. The way of blessing is to continue to walk in the Light after salvation. There are many serious problems facing our world. Most people blindly follow their imaginations to try to resolve the problems. Yet the problems keep getting bigger. There is only one solution and that is to turn to the true God and know His forgiveness and peace. Then we can make wise choices that will have a positive impact on others.
Israel was about to move into the land of Canaan. They would need to know how to live in that pagan land in such a way as to not be infected by the paganism that was all around them. We know they were not very successful in that because they did not see the value of God’s laws.
We live in a wicked world. Those who are saved have been given life. That life cannot flourish under pagan influences. The Bible warns of the danger of allowing the world to infiltrate our lives. We, those who are saved, need to choose carefully and wisely in order to grow in the Lord and be able to help others to know Him as well.
Pastor Bartel