Read: Deuteronomy 9:1-10:22; Luke 8:4-21; Psalm 69:19-36; Proverbs 12:2-3
God went to great lengths to let the children of Israel know that they were not getting the land because they were so righteous, but because the people who lived in the land at the time were so wicked. Moses reminded the people how many times they had rebelled against the Lord in the wilderness and how he had spent 40 days and nights repenting for them.
Moses had to get the law twice because they had broken them before Moses could deliver them to the people. Moses threw the first tablets down and broke them out of anger. If you have children, you can relate with Moses’ frustration. But, after all their rebellion, it was still the Lord’s will to lead them into the land.
Moses gave them God’s will in a nutshell: fear him, walk in his ways, love him, and serve him with all their heart and soul. He reminded them that the laws God had given them were for their good. Then he told them to love the alien. These two commandments were the ones that Jesus gave the Pharisee who asked him what the two most important commandments were in Mark 12:29-31.
In Luke, Jesus gave the parable that all the parables hinge on. It is the parable about the seed and the sower. It tells of four different soils that the seed fell on: the path, the rock, the midst of thorns, and the rich soil. The only soil that the seed prospered and survived in was the rich soil. He explained to the disciples that the seed was the Word of God and the soil was the heart of man. Whether the seed prospered depended upon the condition and receptiveness of the heart. Those who had rich soil in their hearts would receive the word and act on it. If they didn’t understand this parable, none of the others would make any sense either.
Lord, help us to open our spiritual eyes and hearts to understand your mysteries and parables in our own lives.
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