Have you ever read an Old Testament passage and thought, “These people are really messed up…and I’m just like them!”?
Suppose you read Deuteronomy 31, where Moses is about to die. To prepare Joshua and the people to enter the land and walk in faithfulness to Yahweh, he does two things. First, he encourages Joshua regarding the Lord’s presence (Deut. 31:7–8). Second, Moses calls the people to the regular reading of the law (Deut. 31:10–13). That should work—trust God and read the Bible!
But then you notice a grand peculiarity in the context. Deuteronomy 31 assumes Israel’s catastrophic failure to be faithful to Yahweh. In fact, the bulk of the chapter predicts this failure and prepares for Moses to teach the people a song as a witness against them when they inevitably fail in the land (Deut. 31:20–21).
The ensuing storyline shows Yahweh was precisely right. The people failed. As you continue to read, perhaps you get the sense you are reading your own story. You too have been given a mission—making disciples—with Christ’s presence as the foundation (“And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” [Matt 28:19-20]). In spite of this charge and assurance, you fail to consistently make disciples and live in light of His presence.
Likewise, as you consider the necessity for the people of Israel to keep the Word in front of them, you remember similar charges in the New Testament. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Col. 3:16). “Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching” (1 Tim. 4:13). You read the Bible as often as you can, and yet it has not led to infallible faithfulness in your life.
You’re left to conclude, “I’m just like the Israelites.” Maybe worse, you think, “Am I really a Christian?” Worse than that, “If I’m just like them after all these years, is this stuff even true?”
Certainly, most of us have had similar thoughts when reading the Bible. I’d like to challenge that thinking briefly so that we are all able to read the whole Bible with the right perspective and expectations.
Is it really the case that you are exactly like the Israelites?
Consider the bigger picture storyline. The OT people of God were on a slow trajectory of increasing estrangement from God. In spite of all the blessings of the law, the ordinances, the priesthood, etc, their deadness in sin only took them further and further into sinfulness and idolatry. On occasion, under strong leadership, they would take temporary steps toward God, but then rapidly decline further (Jdg 2:16-19). It was a story of one step forward, two steps back…one step forward, three steps back…
In fact, this consistent downward trajectory is one of the indications that something radical needed to take place in order to reconcile men to God. Man needed a heart transformation, which is what the New Covenant provided in Christ (Jer 31:31-34; Luke 22:20).
The New Covenant brought a new reality in two ways quite pertinent to the passage in Deuteronomy 31. First, it provided for God not only to be with us, but in us by the indwelling Spirit, empowering us for obedience (Eze 36:27; John 14:17). Second, it provided for the Word of God to be written on our very hearts, hearts desirous to love and follow God (Jer 31:33).
So, if we are truly followers of Christ, we should have a different long-term storyline than the long-term storyline of the OT people of God. Rather than a steady progression toward increasing idolatry, we should show a slow—sometimes frustratingly slow!—progression toward more faithful worship of God and greater Christlikeness. That progress might be inconsistent. I might look like two steps forward, one step back…two steps forward, two steps back…three steps forward, two steps back… But there is forward progression toward faithful worship and godliness.
We might wonder, why the ups and downs if the Spirit lives inside us and the Word is written on our hearts? There may be many reasons, but one significant one is that while Christ defeated sin and death on the cross 2,000 years ago, we still await the fulness of that victory to be realized on this earth. Until Jesus returns, we continue to contend with the world, the flesh, and the devil (1 John 2:15; Gal 5:16-24; Jas 1:14; 1 Pet 5:8). The apostles, while calling us to faithful obedience, assumed that we would continue to struggle with sin (Jas 3:2; 1 John 2:1). However, we have been promised ultimate victory through faith in Christ (1 John 5:4) and in spite of the continued opposition, we continue to be transformed into His image (2 Cor 3:18).
So, if you look at all your years since you professed faith in Christ, is there a downward progression toward more pervasive apostasy? If so, perhaps you could say you are just like the Israelites. In that case, the solution is simple. Repent and turn to Christ in faith.
Or is there an upward progression toward greater worship and godliness, albeit slow and sometimes inconsistent? If so, you are not just like the Israelites. You are just like the average believer in Christ. Do three things: (1) Don’t become complacent, but press on for greater growth. (2) As you read the Old Testament (and the New!), be grateful for the New Covenant resources in Christ that prevent you from being just like the Israelites. (3) Look forward to the full expression of Christ's victory at His second coming!
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