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“ Summary, Part 4 (final) ” CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS [49:05]. 1. Deliverance from physical slavery—as in the case of Israel’s deliverance from Egyptian bondage—is powerless to make a person a true worshiper of God. Miracles alone don’t save. We see miraculous deliverances of non-Christians, and even they may even see God’s hand in it, yet they will return to their old ways because they never mixed what they saw with repentant faith. Christ’s miracles did not automatically deliver the Jews. 2. Those whom God has redeemed are not free to devise methods of worshiping Him (cf. Col 2:23, Ps 25:4-5). 3. Redeeming grace leads Christians to worship God as He has commanded. God’s grace and truth will propel the grateful, perceiving heart to true worship, and He will want nothing else. Creative worship is a plague on the church today. What motivates them, remembrance of God’s blessing or boredom? Ps 119:45 – David links liberty with God’s precepts (cf. Jas 1:25).
Ian Migala (9/1/2015)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 3 ” III. [37:03] Once Israel entered the Promised Land, not only were they not to adopt the idolatry of the nations God would destroy before them, but they were not to defile the pure worship of Jehovah by adapting it to the pagan practices of those nations (Deut 12:28-32). LESSONS [39:52]: 1. Worship that is “good and right in the sight of the Lord” requires careful inclusion of all and only what He has appointed in His worship (v. 28). 2. Those who worship God in a way that is “good and right” in His sight are promised His continual blessing (v. 28). God delights to honor those who honor Him. 3. God’s destruction of His enemies is a clear indication of His displeasure with pagan worship (implied) (v. 29). 4. The Lord not only forbids His people to worship their pagan neighbors’ false gods, they must not intrude any of the elements of pagan worship into His worship (v. 30). He forbids all creative worship. 5. God abominates all forms of worship that He has not commanded (v. 31). Jer 7:31 is a negative expression of this idea. 6. Worship that is “good and right in the sight of the Lord” includes only those things that God has appointed (not simply excluding what He has expressly forbidden) (v. 32). Deut 4:2 is a positive expression of this idea. Cf. LBC 22.5.
Ian Migala (9/1/2015)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 2 ” 3. As a liberated slave who delights to worship the God who delivered you from your sin, you agree with the Lord that idolatry and false worship deserve the wrath of God. We must think God’s thoughts after Him. Does our gift bring us to greater love for the giver? II. [24:30] (Deut 16:12-17). The Bible further teaches that most former slaves who have been delivered by God should be the MOST careful of worshipers as well as the MOST joyful and the MOST generous. LESSONS [28:09]: 1. The worship of former slaves delivered by God should be careful, delightful, deliberate, and generous. God organizes our worship for specific and helpful reasons. This alone should bring us joy. Do we rush to church in a disorganized way or do we plan ahead to engage in our worship? And do we give back to Him who gave us eternal life? 2. Former slaves do not consider God’s worship to involve unhappy inconvenience but principled, joyful commitment. Does the Lord’s Day seem to keep coming out of nowhere? Do we set all else aside for that day or do we fit it into “our schedule”? Once you’re at church, do you like being there?
Ian Migala (9/1/2015)
from Minneapolis, Minnesota
“ Summary, Part 1 ” The remembrance of our deliverance will exert a profound influence on how we worship God. Our deliverance from spiritual slavery will endear us to our liberating master: we love God because He first loved us. We are motivated by God’s gift of His Son: not just His life, but His atoning death. After all of this, we should preoccupy ourselves with proper worship: how HE commands it. If we love Him, we will worship Him as He pleases. I. When He delivered the Hebrews from Egypt, He had to teach them proper worship (Ex 13:3) [starting at 11:17 of the audio]. The prohibition of leavening bread pictured their readiness to leave Egypt in a hurry. Deut 6:10-15 – Moses exhorts Israel to never forget their Lord’s giving hand in times of blessing. Tolerance leads to approval, which leads to imitation. If they forgot Him, He would treat them as His enemies and eventually destroy them. LESSONS [20:06]: 1. God joins gratitude for His gifts, remembrance of His deliverance, and the worship of His name. What God has joined, let no man separate. 2. God loves His people with a jealous love. He doesn’t want us flirting with other gods. Anything we love more than God is our idol. Is He enough for you?
