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.