Four Weeks Before...
Open your Trip Bible, mark it with your
trip highlighter, Deuteronomy 11:1-32
Open your Trip Bible, mark it with your
trip highlighter, Deuteronomy 11:1-32
Personal Bible Study: 4 Weeks Before Our Visit to Israel and Egypt...
"Trust and Obey" Open your Trip Bible to Deuteronomy 11:1-32
"The Land of Israel - God's Testing Ground of Faith"
A. God's Expectations (11:1-12)
1. God expects us to love and obey Him because of what He has done
for us in the past (11:1-7)
God rehearses Israel's history from their bondage in Egypt, through their
deliverance at the Red Sea . . . to their judgment in the wilderness.
2. God expects us to love and obey Him because of His promises to us for
the future (11:8-12) God vividly describes the Promised Land to a nation
that has not yet seen it.
a. It's a land of promised blessing (v.9)
b. It's a land unlike anything experienced before (v. 10)
c. It's a land under God's care (vv. 11-12)
B. God's Response (11:13-21)
1. God will bless those who trust and obey (11:13-15)
a. God will provide the needed rain (vv. 13-14a)
Rick Ricart, President of Imagine Tours, just returned from Israel on January 28. The next day he told me
the local residents were rejoicing in the heavy rains they had while he was there – January rains have
been very rare in recent years and the Sea of Galilee water level is low. Israel's technical “rainy season”
runs from late November to early March, but in a rare, good year the rains begin in October and extend
into April. While the terms "early rain" and "latter rain" usually refer to their "springtime" rains and
"autumn" rains, they are sometimes used to describe these rare extensions as well. They signal
abundant rainfall, a filling of the Sea of Galilee, early greening of the Galilee area, and good harvests!
b. God says He will provide needed food for the people and for their animals (vv. 14b-15)
"Grain" refers to wheat and barley, Israel's main food source. The "wine" comes from the vineyards,
and the "oil" from the olive tree. Theses are four of the seven main species of the land that God
promised Israel (see Deuteronomy 8:7-8)
2. God will judge those who turn from Him (11:16-21)
a. God's warning against turning from Him (vv. 16-17)
b. God's remedy for turning from Him (vv.18-21)
1. Know His Word (v. 18)
Orthodox Jews today take this literally, binding phylacteries on their arms and foreheads when praying.
2. Teach His Word (v. 19)
3. Exalt His Word in the home & in the city (vv. 20-21) Orthodox Jews take this literally too, placing a
mezuzah (small box containing a portion of God's Word) on the door frames of their homes, their
businesses and on the gates of the city of Jerusalem. You'll also notice them on your hotel room door.
C. God's Reminder (11:22-32)
1. God reminded the people of His promises before they entered the land. Not a bad idea for us. (22-25)
a. Obedience brings victory over opposition (vv. 22-23)
b. Obedience brings victory over limitations (v. 24)
c. Obedience brings victory over obstacles (v. 25)
2. God commanded the people to remember His promises after they entered the land (11:26-32)
Israel fulfilled this command in Joshua 8:30-35.
Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim today stand guard over the Arab city of Nablus.
The Bottom Line:
The land of Israel was God's "testing ground of faith." From Moses’ and Joshua’s day, God expected His people to move ahead by faith, to do their part to take the land He had promised them, by His power to achieve the victory, and for them to celebrate His faithfulness!
But their walk of faith was not to end once the land had been entered, or even conquered.
Throughout intervening history, and even today, God wants His children to live out His command to "trust and obey." As the Bible shows, and the hymn-writer says, “there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus.”
Our tour will be an unforgettable trip through the lands of our faith. It can also be a pilgrimage of personal faith for you. Place after place, site after site will remind us of the wisdom of trusting and obeying the Lord.
[My thanks to the unknown author from whom I've drawn the ideas and adapted these studies! -David]
"Trust and Obey" Open your Trip Bible to Deuteronomy 11:1-32
"The Land of Israel - God's Testing Ground of Faith"
A. God's Expectations (11:1-12)
1. God expects us to love and obey Him because of what He has done
for us in the past (11:1-7)
God rehearses Israel's history from their bondage in Egypt, through their
deliverance at the Red Sea . . . to their judgment in the wilderness.
2. God expects us to love and obey Him because of His promises to us for
the future (11:8-12) God vividly describes the Promised Land to a nation
that has not yet seen it.
a. It's a land of promised blessing (v.9)
b. It's a land unlike anything experienced before (v. 10)
c. It's a land under God's care (vv. 11-12)
B. God's Response (11:13-21)
1. God will bless those who trust and obey (11:13-15)
a. God will provide the needed rain (vv. 13-14a)
Rick Ricart, President of Imagine Tours, just returned from Israel on January 28. The next day he told me
the local residents were rejoicing in the heavy rains they had while he was there – January rains have
been very rare in recent years and the Sea of Galilee water level is low. Israel's technical “rainy season”
runs from late November to early March, but in a rare, good year the rains begin in October and extend
into April. While the terms "early rain" and "latter rain" usually refer to their "springtime" rains and
"autumn" rains, they are sometimes used to describe these rare extensions as well. They signal
abundant rainfall, a filling of the Sea of Galilee, early greening of the Galilee area, and good harvests!
b. God says He will provide needed food for the people and for their animals (vv. 14b-15)
"Grain" refers to wheat and barley, Israel's main food source. The "wine" comes from the vineyards,
and the "oil" from the olive tree. Theses are four of the seven main species of the land that God
promised Israel (see Deuteronomy 8:7-8)
2. God will judge those who turn from Him (11:16-21)
a. God's warning against turning from Him (vv. 16-17)
b. God's remedy for turning from Him (vv.18-21)
1. Know His Word (v. 18)
Orthodox Jews today take this literally, binding phylacteries on their arms and foreheads when praying.
2. Teach His Word (v. 19)
3. Exalt His Word in the home & in the city (vv. 20-21) Orthodox Jews take this literally too, placing a
mezuzah (small box containing a portion of God's Word) on the door frames of their homes, their
businesses and on the gates of the city of Jerusalem. You'll also notice them on your hotel room door.
C. God's Reminder (11:22-32)
1. God reminded the people of His promises before they entered the land. Not a bad idea for us. (22-25)
a. Obedience brings victory over opposition (vv. 22-23)
b. Obedience brings victory over limitations (v. 24)
c. Obedience brings victory over obstacles (v. 25)
2. God commanded the people to remember His promises after they entered the land (11:26-32)
Israel fulfilled this command in Joshua 8:30-35.
Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim today stand guard over the Arab city of Nablus.
The Bottom Line:
The land of Israel was God's "testing ground of faith." From Moses’ and Joshua’s day, God expected His people to move ahead by faith, to do their part to take the land He had promised them, by His power to achieve the victory, and for them to celebrate His faithfulness!
But their walk of faith was not to end once the land had been entered, or even conquered.
Throughout intervening history, and even today, God wants His children to live out His command to "trust and obey." As the Bible shows, and the hymn-writer says, “there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus.”
Our tour will be an unforgettable trip through the lands of our faith. It can also be a pilgrimage of personal faith for you. Place after place, site after site will remind us of the wisdom of trusting and obeying the Lord.
[My thanks to the unknown author from whom I've drawn the ideas and adapted these studies! -David]