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Daily Devotion: Deuteronomy 28:1-2

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Deuteronomy 28:1-2   "And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command thee this day, that the LORD thy God will set thee on high above all nations of the earth:  (2)  And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God."

What makes a nation great?   We hear so much concerning this question lately.  Maybe it is more of a statement than a question in these modern times. There is much debate and, quite honestly, much bragging as to who is the greatest nation in the world. But in my estimation, people use the wrong standards as far as measuring greatness.  Who has the greatest technology? Who has the greatest military might? Who is the richest in oil and other natural resources?   When those standards are used, the nation with the greatest of all these things is considered to be the greatest; yet, that is not the standard used by our Heavenly Father.

You can be assured of the absolute truth of the matter when God speaks the words, "And it shall come to pass."  We can know for a certainty that God will have the last word concerning greatness and He does not use the same standard as humans.  Our God is able to swallow the enemy under the same water through which He had just brought His people on dry land.  Our God is able to confound the enemy to the point they are swallowed in fear and return from whence they came. Our God is able to confound the enemy and cause them to turn upon each other. These are things, among many other instances, where God has caused it to "come to pass."

In our text today, He tells us how to truly have a great nation. These verses today are another one of the "if and then" promises from God.  Eternal life is not an "if and then" promise. Eternal life is a certainty because our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ secured our home in heaven for us with no conditions placed, whatsoever.  BUT, in order to experience the joys and pleasures of living in the Kingdom of God here on earth before we reach our heavenly home, there are conditions that are laid down for us to obey.  Today's verses declare to us "If" we do something, "then" we will be blessed.  If as a nation, we follow the direction of God's Word, then He has promised to set us "on high above all nations of the earth."

You might say that was given specifically for the nation of Israel. Yes, it was given directly to them, but the same principle applies to us today.  If we will "hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God and to do all His commandments," then there are blessings to be enjoyed both individually and nationally. Some might wonder if God still speaks to us today. I say, yes He definitely speaks to us through His Word. Every time we pick up our Bibles, God will speak to us if we are seeking to hear from Him.  Greatness can only be measured by humble obedience to the Word of God. Greatness has no boasting to be found in the individual; rather, all boasting is pointed toward the greatness and majesty of the Almighty God, our Heavenly Father.  

I love the words of verse two: "And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee."  Nations compete against one another and as we see in the news these days, they attempt to overtake another nation.  God says, "If you will hearken to me and do what I tell you, then blessings will overtake you."  What a great promise has been given to us!  I pray for our nation to become great in the sight of God and according to His standards and then to experience being overtaken by God's blessings.

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