Today we begin Deuteronomy Chapter Eleven.
For the Complete Jewish Bible, click here.
For the King James Version, click here.
Let’s get our bearings of where we’re at now in Deuteronomy.
Up to this point, Moses has been reviewing the foundational principles of the Torah.
He has been focused on the broad view rather than any of the specific commands and instructions.
He has also reviewed Israel’s history and reminded this younger second generation that God has chosen them to be His specially set-apart people.
Moses points out that in spite of the many troubles that arose while they were dwelling in the wilderness, their Father in Heaven never failed to care for all their needs.
And because of this, Moses reminds his audience of what their attitude towards God’s proposal towards them should be.
What proposal am I talking about?
I’m talking about the Lord’s gracious offer to Israel…
…that He will be their God AND…
…in turn they will be His people.
This was unparalleled in the history of the universe.
The idea that the very Creator of the Heavens and the earth would come down from heaven and offer to enter into a relationship with a select group of people was unheard of at the time.
This was literally an offer that Israel could not refuse.
Yet if Israel was going to accept God’s offer and enter into a covenant relationship with Him, it would be dependent on two things:
FIRST, they would have agree to the covenant corporately (as a group).
SECOND, they would have to be careful to obey all the terms of the covenant.
This brings me to a rather super significant point that most people just flat out overlook concerning Israel’s acceptance of the Torah.
What am I talking about?
Well, most people mistakenly assume that when God presented to Israel the Mosaic Covenant, if Israel rejected it, they would automatically be subjected to the curses of the covenant.
That is NOT true.
If Israel had decided to NOT enter into a covenant relationship with the God who had called them, they would have simply been tossed back into the generic pool of gentile nations and the Lord would have started over with another people group like maybe the Chinese or some other nation.
God would NOT have punished them for declining His invitation to enter into a covenant relationship with Him.
They would have simply been relegated to gentile status and from that point on viewed as no better or no worse than any of the other millions of gentile folks residing on planet earth.
They would NOT have been cursed.
On the other hand, they would have lost eligibility and access to the special blessings attached to the Covenant.
However, and this is a huuuuuuuuuge “however“, Israel corporately DID accept the Covenant.
And once that happened, you had best believe a new and unalterable dynamic was introduced into the universe that would change the history of mankind forever and for all time.
Once Israel as a nation entered into the covenant, from that moment on they became subject to both its blessings and curses.
Israel would receive great blessings when they obeyed the terms and conditions of the covenant AND…
…conversely be on the receiving end of the curses if they broke the covenant’s terms and conditions.
Remember, the blessings and curses ONLY APPLY to the nation that has entered into a covenant with God.
It ain’t for the gentiles folks.
So why am I telling you all this?
Because a lot of folks mistakenly think that it is those who are not under the covenant that suffer the curses of the Law AND…
…those who are under it receive the covenant’s blessings by default.
That’s not true.
You have to be under the covenant to receive BOTH its blessings and curses.
This brings me to another major and I must admit controversial point.
Do you understand what Paul went to such length to get across to the gentiles, especially in his letter to the Church at Rome?
The main point Paul was trying to get across to gentile believers was that THEY WERE GRAFTED INTO ISRAEL.
Think about that phrase “grafted into Israel” for a second.
Do you understand what that really means?
Let’s get this straight.
To be grafted into Israel means to enter into the very same covenants with God that Israel has entered into.
And this happens once you come to faith in Yeshua.
Are you getting this?
When you came into faith in Yeshua, you were grafted into Israel’s covenants.
And this covenant has terms and conditions that you are expected to obey.
You’re not allowed to pick and choose.
Remember what Jeremiah said about the New Covenant.
“Behold, days are coming,”
declares the LORD,
“when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel and
with the house of Judah.”
-Jeremiah 31:31
Let’s not forget with whom God will enter into the New Covenant with.
It will be between HASHEM and the House of Judah and the House of Israel.
The New Covenant belongs exclusively to Israel and Israel alone.
If you’re a gentile, the ONLY WAY you gain access to the incredible provisions of the Mosaic Covenant is to be grafted in.
Period.
When you come to faith in Israel’s Messiah, then you are brought into the commonwealth of Israel…
…which again simply means you are grafted into the covenants of Israel.
I hope this is pretty clear.
There is no separate covenant for gentiles and there never will be.
Rich- You have hit the nail on the head when it comes to accountability. People want, and probably because that is all they are told about, the rich blessings from Adonai when they accept Yeshua as their Messiah, but they do not want the accountability of now being grafted onto the same tree that feeds Judaism. Or, using another biblical analogy, they become adopted children of Abraham. So, if I am adopted into the family of Abraham, what makes me think that I will not be expected to obey Abraham just as his other children have to? And if I am grafted onto a tree, what will feed me? The tree I was cut from?
I used to teach a Messianics 101 course, and I would ask if people remember the Bugs Bunny cartoon. Bugs is chased into a tree, and is sitting on a limb while Elmer Fudd is at the bole of the tree, sitting on the same limb and cutting off the part Bugs is on. When he cuts through the branch, Elmer and the tree fall and the branch holding Bugs miraculously stays up. I liken this to the general Christian teaching that they are grafted onto the tree of Judaism but not accountable or subject to the same laws. In real life the branch falls when it refuses to be fed from the roots, and we have seen this in Christianity as their doctrine and dogma and traditions lead them further and further away from the proper worship of God, which is the way he told us to worship him…in the Torah.
Great comment Steven. Thanks for sharing. Yes, you can’t have your cake and eat it to. If you’re grafted into the family, one is indeed obligated to obey the rules within that family.