WATCHWORD:
Song of Moses
1 Give ear, O ye heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O earth, the words of my mouth.2 My doctrine shall drop as the rain, my speech shall distill as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: 3 Because I will publish the name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God. 4 He is the Rock, his work is perfect: for all his ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is he. Deuteronomy 32:1-4 KJV
He found him out in the wilderness, in an empty, windswept wasteland. He threw his arms around him, lavished attention on him, guarding him as the apple of his eye. He was like an eagle hovering over its nest, overshadowing its young, then spreading its wings, lifting them into the air, teaching them to fly. God alone led him; there was not a foreign god in sight. God lifted him onto the hilltops, so he could feast on the crops in the fields. He fed him honey from the rock, oil from granite crags, Curds of cattle and the milk of sheep, the choice cuts of lambs and goats, Fine Bashan rams, high-quality wheat, and the blood of grapes: you drank good wine! Deuteronomy 32:10-14 The Message
Meditation:
Honey from The Rock?
Think about this. For nearly forty years, Moses had led the Israelites, back and forth, in futile wanderings in the wilderness of their own disobedience, unbelief and constant complaining. God was angry with their attitude and allowed an entire generation to die in the desert and not enter His promised land. Now the nation stood at the Jordan River, looking across at the site of Jericho and up to the heights of what would be called the Mount of Olives and the Temple Mount.
The time arrived for Moses to pass the reins of leadership to Joshua. To help God’s people remember His never-failing faithfulness, he taught them the ‘Song of Moses’… to both encourage them in the days ahead and as a constant reminder that God’s work is perfect, His way is righteous, His laws are just, and His faithfulness lasts from generation to generation.
So, it was with new leadership and a new song that the Israelites entered into their new life, in the promised land. The nation that filed out of Egypt, across the Red Sea and into the wilderness, was not the same people that waded the Jordan to accept God’s promised gift, with the Song of Moses imprinted on their hearts. Only Joshua was there to bear witness, from beginning to end.
Do we, individually, have our own “Song of Moses”? You know, the scripture passage that has become our “favorite”, to the point where we may wear it on a bracelet on our wrist, or perhaps on a little medallion around our neck, inscribed with a symbol or a word that reminds us of the message from God.
That favorite verse may begin with “Our Father, Who art…” Or maybe “Rejoice in the Lord always…” or, “I can do all things through Christ…” Maybe your favorite begins with “What does the Lord require of me…” and that causes you to think again, what does the Lord require of me this day?
What is the attraction? It may not be the words, or even the sentiment. It may be the knowledge that it is God speaking to me, personally, as if I am His child. Yes, His Child. I like that. I need to be reminded of the fact that I am His, as I face the day.
Of course, we know that some of the Psalms are songs, poetic and touch us where we live. Some of the King James passages are demanding and instructional. Then you come to a passage like the one above, and you can almost step into the place of the one found in the wilderness.
There have been times when we are in the midst of a darkness in our life, and, finally, we come to Christ, and the light shines, and the arms of Christ encircles us, and we learn to fly, on eagle’s wings. A spiritual peace that lifts us.
That peace is the “honey” from the “rock”, the Word of God. We could listen to hundreds of sermons, and read one devotional after another, and not capture “the honey”, that sense of Presence that comes when we call on Christ and surrender. Song of Moses, not so much. Song of God. Yes. Amen.
Closing Prayer:
Heavenly Father, there are so many lessons to learn from the song that Moses sang to the children of Israel. I pray that I may never become complacent in my Christian walk and always remember Your never-failing faithfulness towards all Your children. Thank You for the Word of truth and the many lessons it contains. I pray that I may honor and obey You in thought, word, and deed, and not rely on my own limited understanding or trust in my own fleshly strength. This I ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.
