On Friday and Saturday we read two contrasting accounts of how the Israelites could live their lives. We read of the horrors caused by failing to keep God’s laws and then we read of the compassionate and all-loving Father who delights in those who try to live their lives in keeping with his instructions. God punishes the first kind of behaviour and rewards the second. Moses is now 120 years old and he has been told that He will not enter the Promised Land because of disobedience. So, Joshua is to succeed as leader and together Moses and Joshua go to the Lord for his commissioning. Joshua is not commissioned by Moses but by God himself. Our leaders may be raised up from amongst us but it is God who appoints them. In our ordination service, we call on the Holy Spirit to fall on them in power. God Himself therefore gives the authority and ability for office.

So, Moses’ journey is over. He has to hand over the reins of power to Joshua, who will witness a great falling from grace within the people. God predicts it. The Israelites will become attracted to the gods of the foreigners in whose land they will live.

Moses is instructed to write the laws which are then placed in the Ark of the Covenant, to travel for ever with them. Every 7 years in the year for cancelling debt, the law is to be read. So, everyone from a tiny child to the oldest citizen hears the law and knows the implications of not keeping it. There’s no excuse: “we didn’t know it”, “we forgot it”, “we didn’t think it meant us”.

Why should they keep the law? 31:13 says that the young children who hear it being read, “learn to fear the Lord”. We spoke a lot yesterday about fear but this is not about being afraid of the circumstances of our lives which come along to extend and develop us. This is a different fear. Possibly “awe” is a better word, and we should cultivate this when we worship and pray. I personally have a problem with calling God “my friend” as I think that the friend relationship is one of equals and we should never fall into this view about God. If we mean, however, the kind of relationship with a friend where we honour one another, walk alongside one another and seek out the very best for one another, I feel happier about relating this to God. We bow down and worship Him as our Lord, our Creator, our Sustainer …..

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Lord, please teach me to approach You in awe today.