Remember It was God Deuteronomy 26:1-11
1. The Scripture passage from Deuteronomy, the Israelites are to remember how they came to be here
• they are to remember and recite the story of how they were given their land.
• They are to remember Jacob (Israel) "A wandering Aramean was my ancestor," the vulnerable, destitute, landless ancestor who had sought refuge from famine in the land of Egypt.
• Remember how "he went down into Egypt and lived there as an alien, few in number, and there he became a great nation, mighty and populous" (Deuteronomy 26:5).
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2. Their Ancestors Sufferings become their sufferings. When our children suffer we suffer!
• "When the Egyptians treated us harshly and afflicted us, by imposing hard labor on us, we cried to the Lord, the God of our ancestors" (vv. 6-7).
• Notice the shift: The people say, "When the Egyptians treated US harshly and afflicted US, by imposing hard labor on US." The Israelites are not talking about Jacob anymore, they are talking about themselves. Even though none of these residents of the promised land experienced any of this affliction themselves,
• Note they remember it, and when they remember it, they make the pain of their ancestors their own. By remembering, they bring an event from the past into the present, and they do it in such a way that it has a powerful effect on the here and now.
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3. Remember it was, it is, and it will be the Gifts God has given us that will sustain us
• This nation is a precious gift from God, one with priceless freedoms and responsibilities and opportunities and resources, are we like the song I am proud to be an American where at least I know I am free
• How should we respond to the gifts God has given us?. The Deuterogamist says, You shall set your offering down before the Lord, "Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you" (vv. 10-11).
4. Remember it was God who prevailed over the enemy :
• The enemy was the Egyptians they mistreated us and made us suffer, putting us to hard labor
• We asked for Help 7Then we cried out to the LORD, the God of our fathers, and the LORD heard our voice and saw our misery, toil and oppression.
• God Prevailed over our enemy 8So the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror and with miraculous signs and wonders.
5. They are to Remember it was God who brought them out
• The Israelites said, when they cried to the Lord, "the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with a terrifying display of power, and with signs and wonders" (vv. 7-8).
• Don’t forget The people of God are never alone in their affliction.
6. They are to Remember that it was God who brought them in
• After God them out of bondage they recall that it was God who brought them into the Promised Land, "a land flowing with milk and honey" (v. 9).
• Remember you came in to a precious inheritance Their land has come to them as a gift, and they are to treasure it and care for it and protect it as though it were a precious inheritance.
• Do we treasure the gift God gave us a Church Are we treating it as a valuable gift, or are we taking it for granted? Are we treasuring it, or are we abusing it? Are we caring for it, or are we neglecting it? Are we protecting it, or are we ignoring it?
