Cut it Out

Deuteronomy 10

 I had this old t-shirt that I really liked a lot. I would wear it almost everyday and it looked like it too. It was falling apart. My wife hated that shirt because it was so dingy and old. She would be embarrassed every time I would wear it in public. It had some holes in the shirt and at one of the Jr. High Retreats someone decided to rip the hole and make my shirt into two. I was devastated because I had to throw it away. Have you ever been told by your parents that you had to throw something out that you did not want to? When you are clingy to something for so long but yet it is not good for you it is hard to throw it away.

In this chapter Moses is reflecting about the time he had to go up on Mt. Horeb and get the 10 commandments again from God. Remember he came down with the first set but he saw the people and how they were acting and threw them on the ground and they broke. He is getting the second set and is up there for 40 days and nights. He is talking to the 2nd generation and as he is reflecting about the past he uses that as a teaching opportunity. 

 It is all about your Heart

 He told them that they needed to circumcise their hearts. It was all about their hearts with God. He tells this, this is what God requires of you. 1) You fear God (Proverbs 1:7). 2) You walk in his ways (Psalm 1). 3) You serve him with all your heart and soul. 4) You keep his commandments. 5) Know that God chose you, Israel. These are some application points that Moses is going over with Israel, so they can be spiritually ready for the Promise Land. He talks about how they need to cut the bad stuff or the unclean stuff from their hearts and the same can be said about us.

We can do the actions, like Israel who did sacrifice after sacrifice. We can be good by however you define good but truly it does not matter. God looks at the heart. We too need to cut off the bad stuff from our heart. Colossians 3:5 tells us to put to death what is earthly. We need to cut off the stuff that is not of God. Just like Moses told Israel to cut it off and asked, “How much longer will they be stubborn with their old ways.” We need to cut it off and not be stubborn with our old ways of sin. May we desire to cut off the stuff that clouds our hearts and minds and focus on the redeeming love of Jesus Christ our savior. He died for us so we can live. Our hearts have been washed clean. Just like my t-shirt that I loved needed to be thrown away because it was disgusting. It was hard and I did not do it until it was ripped. Sin is ripped from you because of Christ. Throw it away and run the race without looking back (Hebrews 12:1-2).