Today’s Reading: Deuteronomy 31:1-8
Deuteronomy 31:8 — It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.
God promises to always be with us. Moses had led the people of Israel out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, to camp at the foot of Mount Sinai where God spoke to Moses and made a covenant with Israel. Moses led the people of Israel for forty years and brought them to the border of the land God had promised to them hundreds of years before. The people were afraid to enter the land without Moses because they had relied on him for so long.
Moses spoke God’s promise to the people, the same promise that Moses had received four decades before. “He will be with you.” When Moses had been afraid to return to Egypt and lead the people, he had asked God, “Who am I?” God replied, “I will be with you. I AM THAT I AM.” God told Moses that his new identity was “I will be with you.”
This is such an interesting and beautiful identity. Moses could say, “I am the one that God is with.” There is amazing security and significance in that identity. I do not need to be afraid or dismayed, for God is with me. I am incredibly honored and blessed, for God is with me.
Now Moses is passing along that identity to Joshua and saying that God will not leave or forsake him. Moses passed that identity along to the people also. They did not need Moses to lead them to victory because God would personally fight and deliver the land into their hands.
Who you are as a believer is found in Christ in God. You have been made in God’s image and you are being made in Christ’s likeness. What does that mean? That is something for you to investigate in your Bible along with all of your brothers and sisters in Christ. But never doubt that God is with you, since that is part of your identity in Christ. He with you today.
…03/25/2024
Devotional
“You have been made in God’s image and you are being made in Christ’s likeness.
When I started my career, my father advised me three things: to be clean when it comes to man, and always be careful about money issues. Never give in to any other god other than the Word of God. These three things serve as a guide to becoming more like the Lord for the rest of my life.
Don’t be afraid I am with you!
Thank you Jesus!