WEBVTT 00:00:06.480 --> 00:00:08.960 Hello everyone, this is Pastor Benjamin. 00:00:08.960 --> 00:00:12.000 You're listening to Sermon Audio from New City, Orlando. 00:00:12.000 --> 00:00:15.439 At New City, we long to see our Father answer the Lord's Prayer. 00:00:15.439 --> 00:00:20.000 For more resources, visit our website at Newcity Orlando.com. 00:00:22.879 --> 00:00:26.160 Stand now for our prayer of illumination and scripture reading. 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:36.399 Give us understanding that we may keep your law and observe it with our whole hearts. 00:00:36.399 --> 00:00:41.039 Lead us in the path of your commandments, for we delight in you. 00:00:41.039 --> 00:00:49.679 Turn our eyes from looking at worthless things and give us life in your ways to Jesus Christ our Lord. 00:00:49.679 --> 00:00:50.640 Amen. 00:00:50.640 --> 00:00:55.600 Our scripture today comes from Deuteronomy chapter 10, verses 12 through 22. 00:00:55.600 --> 00:00:58.719 Please remain standing for the reading of God's Word. 00:00:58.719 --> 00:01:03.840 And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? 00:01:03.840 --> 00:01:17.680 But to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord, which I am commanding you today for your good. 00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:23.599 Behold, to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens, the earth with all that is in it. 00:01:23.599 --> 00:01:32.400 Yet the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. 00:01:32.400 --> 00:01:37.840 Circumcise, therefore, the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn. 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:46.480 For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. 00:01:46.480 --> 00:01:53.200 He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 00:01:53.200 --> 00:01:57.519 Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. 00:01:57.519 --> 00:02:04.319 You shall fear the Lord your God, you shall serve him and hold fast to him, and by his name you shall swear. 00:02:04.319 --> 00:02:10.719 He is your praise, he is your God, who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. 00:02:10.719 --> 00:02:19.120 Your fathers went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars in heaven. 00:02:19.120 --> 00:02:20.800 This is God's word. 00:02:20.800 --> 00:02:23.120 You may be seated. 00:02:25.360 --> 00:02:34.800 Well, history would tell you that the very first heart transplant surgery took place on December 3rd, 1967. 00:02:34.800 --> 00:02:42.479 But in the scriptures, we read that God has been in the business of giving new hearts for thousands of years. 00:02:42.479 --> 00:02:50.800 And sometimes for us, it takes a failing heart to discover just how badly we need a new one. 00:02:50.800 --> 00:02:55.759 Growing up, Ashlyn Moss was incredibly active. 00:02:55.759 --> 00:03:02.080 She was a competitive dancer, cheerleader, and was active and involved in theater. 00:03:02.080 --> 00:03:08.879 But she always noticed that she would quickly and easily get out of breath, more so than her peers. 00:03:08.879 --> 00:03:12.159 Sometime even her lips would turn blue. 00:03:12.159 --> 00:03:22.240 It was just before her senior year of high school that doctors finally discovered why something was seriously wrong with her heart. 00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:29.039 Within just a few weeks, Ashlyn went into cardiac arrest and nearly died. 00:03:29.039 --> 00:03:33.120 By 19, she was in heart failure. 00:03:33.120 --> 00:03:37.120 For nearly a decade, she built her whole life. 00:03:37.120 --> 00:03:47.199 So think about this: college, marriage, friendships, simply ordinary days around a heart that was failing. 00:03:47.199 --> 00:03:53.919 Now, because this uh decline happened gradually, Ashlyn learned how to live with it. 00:03:53.919 --> 00:04:04.240 But eventually she became so accustomed with living with a failing heart that she couldn't recognize how sick she actually was. 00:04:04.240 --> 00:04:14.159 One day, when she walked into a doctor appointment, the doctor essentially said this Ashlyn, you're at the end. 00:04:14.159 --> 00:04:17.360 Your heart cannot keep doing this. 00:04:17.360 --> 00:04:20.240 You have a heart problem. 00:04:20.240 --> 00:04:29.199 You see, when we read the scriptures, it's actually fair for us to see that we have this same diagnosis. 00:04:29.199 --> 00:04:31.279 We have a heart problem. 00:04:31.279 --> 00:04:45.600 If we were to go and look at verse 16 in the text itself, we might describe our heart problem like this: our stubborn hearts love idols more than the God who loves us. 00:04:45.600 --> 00:04:48.560 But what does this actually mean? 00:04:48.560 --> 00:04:57.279 The Reformed theologian John Calvin described it like this: the human heart is a perpetual idol factory. 00:04:57.279 --> 00:04:58.800 But here's the truth. 00:04:58.800 --> 00:05:03.680 I don't think any one of us wakes up in the morning and says, you know what I would like today? 00:05:03.680 --> 00:05:07.439 I would like a new idol to give my heart to. 00:05:07.439 --> 00:05:10.480 But here's how this actually plays out in life. 00:05:10.480 --> 00:05:24.639 If we're single, or even if we are married, we might look at our marriages and think, if I just had that, then I would be loved the way that I have always dreamed of. 00:05:24.639 --> 00:05:34.800 We might look at success and think, if I had success the way they do, then finally I would matter the way my heart longs for. 00:05:34.800 --> 00:05:44.319 Perhaps we might look at wealth and think, if I had wealth, then finally I would be secure and I could begin to focus on giving my heart to God. 00:05:44.319 --> 00:05:56.160 Or we look at pleasure and think, if I had that, then truly and finally my heart would be satisfied. 00:05:56.160 --> 00:06:02.399 Whatever our idols of choice are, here's what they all have in common. 00:06:02.399 --> 00:06:04.000 This is what idols do. 00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:08.800 They overpromise and they underdeliver. 00:06:08.800 --> 00:06:16.480 Where are we at here in the book of Deuteronomy, where there's been a rehearsal of Israel's history? 00:06:16.480 --> 00:06:25.680 And if we look at earlier in Deuteronomy chapter 10, essentially here's what we find out: Israel gave their heart to another idol. 00:06:25.680 --> 00:06:29.920 Yahweh has remained faithful to Israel. 00:06:29.920 --> 00:06:36.399 And now here is the question on the table in Deuteronomy 10, 12 through 22. 00:06:36.399 --> 00:06:48.639 What kind of life does this God who remains faithful to you, even though you gave your heart to other idols, what kind of life does he deserve from you? 00:06:48.639 --> 00:06:58.000 You see, here's what I believe we learn here in the text this morning in Deuteronomy chapter 10, verses 12 through 22. 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:05.199 Yahweh alone is worthy of all of our hearts and all of our lives. 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:11.839 One more time, Yahweh alone is worthy of all of our hearts and all of our lives. 00:07:11.839 --> 00:07:17.839 And this morning, as we unpack the text, I think we're going to see that in these three points. 00:07:17.839 --> 00:07:21.839 First, God wants all of your heart. 00:07:21.839 --> 00:07:26.240 Second, look at the God who wants your heart. 00:07:26.240 --> 00:07:31.600 And third, give your heart to the God who gives his heart to you. 00:07:31.600 --> 00:07:33.920 God wants your whole heart. 00:07:33.920 --> 00:07:41.199 Look at the God who wants your heart and give your heart to the God who gives his heart to you. 00:07:41.199 --> 00:07:43.600 Let's go ahead and jump in. 00:07:43.600 --> 00:07:47.120 God wants all of your heart. 00:07:47.120 --> 00:07:50.000 So a little bit of context work needs to be done. 00:07:50.000 --> 00:07:54.079 I've referenced it, but where are we at here in the book of Deuteronomy? 00:07:54.079 --> 00:07:56.879 Uh, for lack of a better term, this is my language. 00:07:56.879 --> 00:08:00.399 What's going on here is a DTR. 00:08:00.399 --> 00:08:06.079 Now, if you are uh not a millennial or younger, I might need to explain what that means. 00:08:06.079 --> 00:08:12.720 DTR is an acronym that simply means this: define the relationship. 00:08:12.720 --> 00:08:14.639 Define the relationship. 00:08:14.639 --> 00:08:24.639 You see, if we were to go back and read verses 1 through 11, there's a retelling of a very significant moment in Israel's and Yahweh's history. 00:08:24.639 --> 00:08:26.240 What was this moment? 00:08:26.240 --> 00:08:28.959 Well, it's the story of the golden calf. 00:08:28.959 --> 00:08:40.159 You see, if we were to go back into the book of Exodus, we would read how with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, Yahweh rescued and delivered Israel from their slavery, from their bondage. 00:08:40.159 --> 00:08:54.559 He parted the Red Sea, he crushed Israel's enemies, he brings them to Sinai, he enters into a covenant relationship with them, promising to be their God and calling them to follow him. 00:08:54.559 --> 00:09:06.320 And then there's a moment of time where Moses goes up into the mountain and he's receiving instructions from Yahweh, and the people have to wait for a little bit. 00:09:06.320 --> 00:09:18.399 They have to be patient for a little bit, and at the first opportunity, they betray their covenant vows and they give their hearts to an idol. 00:09:18.399 --> 00:09:32.399 You see, verses one through ten retell this story, what happened previously, and then we arrive here in verse 12 and look at these poignant words, and now Israel. 00:09:32.399 --> 00:09:34.799 You see what's going on here? 00:09:34.799 --> 00:09:37.039 The shot clock is running. 00:09:37.039 --> 00:09:44.879 There's less than 15 seconds on the clock, and the question is this what is going to be the play? 00:09:44.879 --> 00:09:52.000 Well, how is Israel going to respond to the God who remains faithful to them? 00:09:52.000 --> 00:09:56.559 Well, what we're going to see here, what does God actually call for? 00:09:56.559 --> 00:10:03.679 Well, he calls for vows from Israel, but he gives them a good motivation. 00:10:03.679 --> 00:10:08.320 He calls for vows, but he gives them a good motivation. 00:10:08.320 --> 00:10:15.120 So going forward, what is this relationship with Yahweh meant to look like? 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:16.799 In one sentence. 00:10:16.799 --> 00:10:20.799 All of life allegiance. 00:10:20.799 --> 00:10:23.440 All of life allegiance. 00:10:23.440 --> 00:10:25.759 Let's read verse 12 again together. 00:10:25.759 --> 00:10:44.960 And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you but to fear the Lord, to walk in all of his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the Lord. 00:10:44.960 --> 00:10:46.639 Did you notice that? 00:10:46.639 --> 00:10:56.000 Five imperatives fear me, walk with me, love me, serve me, keep my statutes. 00:10:56.000 --> 00:11:00.480 This is a descriptive way in speaking to what? 00:11:00.480 --> 00:11:03.519 In speaking to all of life. 00:11:03.519 --> 00:11:10.399 The way that you worship, it belongs to me. 00:11:10.399 --> 00:11:13.039 The way that you work, it belongs to me. 00:11:13.039 --> 00:11:25.679 The way that you parent, the way that you are in community with one another, your joys, your highs, your lows, all of them, all of life belong to me. 00:11:25.679 --> 00:11:31.519 All of us need all of Yahweh for all of life. 00:11:31.519 --> 00:11:39.279 And why might this be significant in light of the history that has just been rehearsed? 00:11:39.279 --> 00:11:50.000 You see, Deuteronomy, it's leading up to a new chapter, a new season, when Israel will no longer be wandering, but they will enter into the promised land. 00:11:50.000 --> 00:11:52.000 And here's the truth. 00:11:52.000 --> 00:12:00.639 When Israel enters into the promised land, they are going to experience the same temptation that they experienced at Sinai. 00:12:00.639 --> 00:12:04.320 There will be times where God will seem distant. 00:12:04.320 --> 00:12:10.559 There will be times where seemingly he isn't meeting their first their expectations. 00:12:10.559 --> 00:12:20.320 And the first time they are let down, they don't get to return to idols to satisfy their heart's longing. 00:12:20.320 --> 00:12:23.600 What does God demand for in these vows? 00:12:23.600 --> 00:12:28.720 He demands all of life, allegiance. 00:12:28.720 --> 00:12:32.960 But again, he gives a good motive behind this. 00:12:32.960 --> 00:12:43.519 Verse 13, uh, which I am commanding you to uh which I am commanding you today for your good. 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:49.759 Again, he gives the five commandments fear me, walk with me, love me, serve me, keep my statutes. 00:12:49.759 --> 00:12:50.720 Why? 00:12:50.720 --> 00:12:52.720 For your good. 00:12:52.720 --> 00:12:59.039 A couple weeks ago, when we were looking at Deuteronomy 5, we see this is how the laws of God work. 00:12:59.039 --> 00:13:04.879 They're not arbitrary, they're not meant to hold us back from life, they're meant to give us life. 00:13:04.879 --> 00:13:09.840 Or as verse 13 tells us, it is for our good. 00:13:09.840 --> 00:13:16.159 God's commands aren't an attempt to keep us from flourishing. 00:13:16.159 --> 00:13:18.399 You see, this is what idols do. 00:13:18.399 --> 00:13:23.440 Lesser gods or idols, they promise to give us the good life. 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:25.120 But what do we see here? 00:13:25.120 --> 00:13:35.360 God, Yahweh, knows what the good life actually is, and in relationship with him, he gives this to us. 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:41.679 It is for your good that you would give me all of life's allegiance. 00:13:41.679 --> 00:13:51.360 There is a beautiful book that has some choice language that I commend to you called How to Stay Married. 00:13:51.360 --> 00:14:06.080 You see, in this story, Harrison Scott Key, he believed that he knew the woman he built his life with, Lauren, his wife, the mother of their three daughters, a woman who had spent virtually her entire life in the church. 00:14:06.080 --> 00:14:07.919 He thought he knew her. 00:14:07.919 --> 00:14:16.799 But then on an ordinary autumn day, it was revealed that the marriage he thought he had wasn't the marriage that he actually had. 00:14:16.799 --> 00:14:23.120 You see, Harrison discovered that Lauren was having an affair with a family friend. 00:14:23.120 --> 00:14:31.600 Now he chose to forgive her and fight for their marriage, but forgiveness didn't end the story. 00:14:31.600 --> 00:14:41.759 You see, as the story goes on, more confessions come, more betrayals surface, and eventually the question wasn't simply, can I forgive her? 00:14:41.759 --> 00:14:50.080 The question became, after everything that has happened, how much of myself can I possibly give her again? 00:14:50.080 --> 00:15:02.480 Harrison eventually tells Lauren that he will forgive her, but that he recognizes forgiveness cannot simply return them to the marriage that they had had before. 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:04.720 Too much had happened. 00:15:04.720 --> 00:15:10.960 Whatever comes next necessarily will be different. 00:15:10.960 --> 00:15:16.000 In that sense, his forgiveness becomes almost a promise. 00:15:16.000 --> 00:15:23.440 Lord, even though you betrayed me, I'm willing to go forward with you, but we are not going to go backward. 00:15:23.440 --> 00:15:31.360 If there is going to be a marriage on the other side of this, it will have to become something new. 00:15:31.360 --> 00:15:41.039 The question becomes whether they can move beyond merely preserving the covenant and actually entrust themselves to one another again. 00:15:41.039 --> 00:15:47.039 And that's what makes their eventual reconciliation so startling. 00:15:47.039 --> 00:16:03.840 You see, they don't simply recover the marriage that they had before the betrayal, but it is through mercy, forgiveness, suffering, and the long work of reconciliation that something new begins to grow between them. 00:16:03.840 --> 00:16:22.080 Harrison doesn't merely remain married to Lauren, he gives himself to her again, and their story becomes a picture of the difference of simply remaining in a covenant and once again giving someone your heart. 00:16:22.080 --> 00:16:26.320 See, that's what is here on the table. 00:16:26.320 --> 00:16:28.799 Yahweh is the one who was betrayed. 00:16:28.799 --> 00:16:34.879 Yet Yahweh is the one who says, I will remain faithful to you, Israel. 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:36.480 How could I not? 00:16:36.480 --> 00:16:45.919 I love you, I choose you, but what our relationship looks like going forward, it must be different. 00:16:45.919 --> 00:16:50.799 What do we learn here in Deuteronomy chapter 10? 00:16:50.799 --> 00:16:57.120 Yahweh, the Lord, he takes our vows seriously. 00:16:57.120 --> 00:17:12.240 So the first question then is if God wants all of your heart, and if God takes our vows seriously, the first question that we are called to ask is, do we? 00:17:12.240 --> 00:17:15.759 New city, do you take your vows seriously? 00:17:15.759 --> 00:17:20.079 The vows in your marriage, the vows in your workplace. 00:17:20.079 --> 00:17:23.440 What about the vows in your church membership? 00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:28.000 Yahweh takes them seriously, and he calls us to. 00:17:28.000 --> 00:17:38.319 You see, if Yahweh wants all of my heart and all of my life, here's the next question, then, that the passage will continue to unfold. 00:17:38.319 --> 00:17:45.519 It's this can I trust him with all of my heart with all of my life? 00:17:45.519 --> 00:17:48.400 What kind of God is Yahweh? 00:17:48.400 --> 00:17:51.759 And here is truly the beauty of this passage. 00:17:51.759 --> 00:17:59.359 You see, Moses doesn't simply give another argument for why they can and they should trust Yahweh. 00:17:59.359 --> 00:18:02.960 He shows them who Yahweh is. 00:18:02.960 --> 00:18:04.960 New city. 00:18:04.960 --> 00:18:08.319 Look at the God who wants your heart. 00:18:08.319 --> 00:18:10.319 Specifically, this. 00:18:10.319 --> 00:18:13.279 Look at the beauty of his love. 00:18:13.279 --> 00:18:16.400 Look at the beauty of his character. 00:18:16.400 --> 00:18:19.119 Look at the beauty of his care. 00:18:19.119 --> 00:18:21.599 First, look at the beauty of his love. 00:18:21.599 --> 00:18:24.880 Let's read again verses 14 and 15. 00:18:24.880 --> 00:18:33.599 Behold, to the Lord your God belong uh belong heaven and the heaven of heavens and the earth and all that is in it. 00:18:33.599 --> 00:18:46.160 Yet the Lord set his heart and love on your fathers and chose their offspring after them, you above all peoples, as you are this day. 00:18:46.160 --> 00:18:49.119 What's going on in verse 14 and 15? 00:18:49.119 --> 00:18:53.359 We see the beauty of God's love in election. 00:18:53.359 --> 00:18:59.440 He is the God of the cosmos, of the universe, of galaxies, of stars, of planets. 00:18:59.440 --> 00:19:02.640 In him and through him all things hold together. 00:19:02.640 --> 00:19:08.960 This is who Yahweh is, yet, grand and marvelous and spectacular as he is, what does he do? 00:19:08.960 --> 00:19:13.839 He sets his heart's affections on you. 00:19:13.839 --> 00:19:18.240 You see this wonderful and beautiful doctrine of election. 00:19:18.240 --> 00:19:25.440 It's not meant for us to first speculate about who God chooses and why, and do we have free will or not? 00:19:25.440 --> 00:19:28.160 Do you see it's actually meant to be beautiful? 00:19:28.160 --> 00:19:31.599 It's meant to make God's people marvel. 00:19:31.599 --> 00:19:36.880 Why would Yahweh set his love on us? 00:19:36.880 --> 00:19:39.759 See the beauty of his love for you. 00:19:39.759 --> 00:19:41.839 See the beauty of his character. 00:19:41.839 --> 00:19:43.920 Verses 17 and 18. 00:19:43.920 --> 00:19:55.359 For the Lord your God is God of gods, and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. 00:19:55.359 --> 00:20:05.680 He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 00:20:05.680 --> 00:20:10.559 You see, in other words, Yahweh is their king. 00:20:10.559 --> 00:20:15.680 The people of God, they have lived under other kings, and how did that go for them? 00:20:15.680 --> 00:20:21.920 More bricks, less straw, impatient taskmasters who treated them cruelly. 00:20:21.920 --> 00:20:23.759 That is not who Yahweh is. 00:20:23.759 --> 00:20:27.039 That is not how he will lead and love his people. 00:20:27.039 --> 00:20:29.359 Look at his character. 00:20:29.359 --> 00:20:32.000 He rules with justice. 00:20:32.000 --> 00:20:38.960 He doesn't accept bribes, he's not manipulated, and he is impartial to all. 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:43.200 Look at the beauty of his care. 00:20:43.200 --> 00:20:46.319 Verses 19. 00:20:46.319 --> 00:20:51.599 Love the sojourner, therefore, for you were all sojourners in the land of Egypt. 00:20:51.599 --> 00:21:02.720 And again, verse 18, he executes justice for the fatherless and the widow and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing. 00:21:02.720 --> 00:21:05.599 Do you see the beauty of his care? 00:21:05.599 --> 00:21:08.559 He provides for the least of these. 00:21:08.559 --> 00:21:09.680 What does he provide? 00:21:09.680 --> 00:21:11.599 He provides them justice. 00:21:11.599 --> 00:21:13.279 He provides them food. 00:21:13.279 --> 00:21:15.599 He provides them clothing. 00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:25.519 Remember, Yahweh demands all of life's allegiance, but do you see he provides all that we need for all of life? 00:21:25.519 --> 00:21:28.640 And it goes even deeper than that. 00:21:28.640 --> 00:21:36.559 The God who sees everything sees the people everyone else overlooks. 00:21:36.559 --> 00:21:41.599 The fatherless, the widow, the sojourner. 00:21:41.599 --> 00:21:44.559 And what effect does this have on God's people? 00:21:44.559 --> 00:21:46.000 Look at verse 19. 00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:50.960 It shows that beholding God's beauty changes his people. 00:21:50.960 --> 00:21:57.519 The people who receive God's love begin loving the people God loves. 00:21:57.519 --> 00:21:59.759 But there's one more thing. 00:21:59.759 --> 00:22:04.240 There's one more thing here in this middle passage of the text. 00:22:04.240 --> 00:22:06.799 Do you see Moses' technique? 00:22:06.799 --> 00:22:09.359 Do you see how he goes about motivating? 00:22:09.359 --> 00:22:12.319 Remember, this is an incredibly embarrassing. 00:22:12.319 --> 00:22:17.039 This is an incredibly shameful story in Israel's history. 00:22:17.039 --> 00:22:27.359 How easy would it be for Moses to tap into shame, which is not a good long-term motivator, but it is certainly an effective pill? 00:22:27.359 --> 00:22:30.000 Does he touch on shame? 00:22:30.000 --> 00:22:30.720 No. 00:22:30.720 --> 00:22:34.480 He speaks to Yahweh's love. 00:22:34.480 --> 00:22:38.720 He is the God who keeps covenant with you. 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:46.160 He is the God who is beautiful in his love and his character and his care over you. 00:22:46.160 --> 00:22:48.559 And what does this lead to? 00:22:48.559 --> 00:22:57.680 Well, this is my language here, but I believe the beauty of who God is leads to the beauty of doxology. 00:22:57.680 --> 00:22:59.519 This is speculation. 00:22:59.519 --> 00:23:02.799 It's pure speculation here at this point. 00:23:02.799 --> 00:23:08.640 But notice in verse 21, Moses moves to the present tense. 00:23:08.640 --> 00:23:24.319 I almost picture here that Moses knowing this is his farewell speech to his people, whom he has loved for 80 years of his life, whom he has wandered through the desert wilderness with, whom he himself has experienced this with God. 00:23:24.319 --> 00:23:30.640 He himself has his own failures, yet has received God's love, character, and care. 00:23:30.640 --> 00:23:46.480 And before this new generation will enter into the promised land, I read verses 21 and 22 almost as a spiritual father with tears in his eyes breaking out in doxology about who our God is. 00:23:46.480 --> 00:23:49.759 He is your praise. 00:23:49.759 --> 00:23:52.720 He is your God. 00:23:52.720 --> 00:24:03.759 Here's the question that should be on all of our hearts when we look at the beauty of God's character. 00:24:03.759 --> 00:24:06.400 Do we actually believe this? 00:24:06.400 --> 00:24:15.200 You see, remember, what's on offer here in all the text is Yahweh alone, God alone, is worthy of all of our hearts and all of our lives. 00:24:15.200 --> 00:24:16.960 And Moses shows us why. 00:24:16.960 --> 00:24:17.519 Why? 00:24:17.519 --> 00:24:20.640 The beauty of his love, his character, and his care. 00:24:20.640 --> 00:24:27.680 And this should lead into an all-of-life doxology and praise because of who he is. 00:24:27.680 --> 00:24:31.519 Do you believe this? 00:24:31.519 --> 00:24:35.119 So, what's going on here in the text? 00:24:35.119 --> 00:24:39.119 God, he wants all of my heart. 00:24:39.119 --> 00:24:45.680 God certainly is worthy of all of my heart. 00:24:45.680 --> 00:24:52.400 But as we spoke to earlier in the text, the problem remains. 00:24:52.400 --> 00:24:55.759 My heart is divided. 00:24:55.759 --> 00:25:00.000 One more time, let's read together verse sixteen. 00:25:00.000 --> 00:25:08.559 Circumcise, therefore, the foreskin of your heart and be no longer stubborn. 00:25:08.559 --> 00:25:13.759 In other words, what are we called to do here in verse 16? 00:25:13.759 --> 00:25:21.920 Well, I think it's this give your heart to the God who gives his heart to you. 00:25:21.920 --> 00:25:25.839 But how do we actually go about doing this? 00:25:25.839 --> 00:25:32.480 You see, here's the thing that theologians and the people of God alike have realized. 00:25:32.480 --> 00:25:38.319 The only way that we can give God all that he asked for is if God himself will provide. 00:25:38.319 --> 00:25:44.720 And it's not here in Deuteronomy chapter 10 that we receive the promise of a new heart, but it's going to be later. 00:25:44.720 --> 00:25:55.039 It's going to be Moses' swan song near the very end of Deuteronomy that he will give this promise to Israel regarding their hearts. 00:25:55.039 --> 00:25:58.160 Deuteronomy chapter 30, verse 6. 00:25:58.160 --> 00:26:14.799 And the Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul, and that you may live. 00:26:14.799 --> 00:26:16.960 So how do we do this? 00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:31.759 How does God ultimately come through and fulfill his promise to be the one who will circumcise our hearts, to be the one who will give us the hearts that we need to fully give all of our hearts and all of our lives to him? 00:26:31.759 --> 00:26:40.400 Well, I believe we don't look backwards for the answer, but we look forwards to the cross of Jesus Christ. 00:26:40.400 --> 00:26:49.200 Romans 5.8 tells us this: that while we were still sinners, Jesus Christ died for us. 00:26:49.200 --> 00:27:00.000 In John 19, 34, we are given what might seem like an insignificant, yet I believe a tremendously important detail. 00:27:00.000 --> 00:27:04.799 As Jesus Christ is on the cross, his side is pierced. 00:27:04.799 --> 00:27:06.960 And from his side flows what? 00:27:06.960 --> 00:27:09.680 Flows both water and blood. 00:27:09.680 --> 00:27:25.599 Medical professionals who are smarter and more intelligent than I am have concluded, based on this small detail in the Gospel of John, that when the spear went through his side, it necessarily pierced his heart. 00:27:25.599 --> 00:27:35.119 In other words, we might say that on the cross, Jesus' very own heart was transplanted for yours. 00:27:35.119 --> 00:27:44.960 You see, his living heart was pierced and made dead, so that your dead heart may be transplanted with his and made alive. 00:27:44.960 --> 00:27:47.920 This is the hope of the scriptures. 00:27:47.920 --> 00:27:52.960 This is the hope of the prophets that all of Scripture ultimately points to. 00:27:52.960 --> 00:27:58.799 Here, Ezekiel chapter 36, verses 25 through 36 to 27. 00:27:58.799 --> 00:28:08.240 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all of your uncleanness, and from all of your idols I will cleanse you. 00:28:08.240 --> 00:28:12.480 I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. 00:28:12.480 --> 00:28:17.839 I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 00:28:17.839 --> 00:28:28.799 I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. 00:28:28.799 --> 00:28:46.640 It is looking at the cross of Jesus Christ and how God will ultimately be the one who will give us a new heart through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ that Deuteronomy 10, 21 now has a whole new meaning. 00:28:46.640 --> 00:28:48.480 He is your praise. 00:28:48.480 --> 00:28:56.319 He is your God who has done for you these great and terrifying things that your eyes have seen. 00:28:56.319 --> 00:29:01.359 New city, what's the great and terrifying thing that our God has done for you? 00:29:01.359 --> 00:29:11.839 Jesus Christ substituted himself on the cross in your place, that you may now have his heart and you may have his life. 00:29:11.839 --> 00:29:18.960 Really, the only question that remains then is how do we respond to this God? 00:29:18.960 --> 00:29:22.880 Well, again, the answer is here in verse 20. 00:29:22.880 --> 00:29:31.039 You shall fear the Lord your God, you shall serve him, and here's the key you shall hold fast to him. 00:29:31.039 --> 00:29:37.359 You see this language here in Deuteronomy verse 10, verse 20, hold fast. 00:29:37.359 --> 00:29:40.079 This isn't the first time that we have heard this language. 00:29:40.079 --> 00:29:46.160 In fact, the first time that this language is used in the scripture, it goes back to Genesis chapter 2. 00:29:46.160 --> 00:29:51.119 It goes back to the first wedding ceremony in the scriptures. 00:29:51.119 --> 00:29:56.400 A man and wife shall leave their family of origin and do what? 00:29:56.400 --> 00:30:01.839 They shall covenant, they shall hold fast to one another. 00:30:01.839 --> 00:30:05.920 This is marriage language that Moses is using. 00:30:05.920 --> 00:30:12.000 Israel, marry Yahweh with your heart's affections. 00:30:12.000 --> 00:30:13.920 How do we do this? 00:30:13.920 --> 00:30:15.440 Look at him. 00:30:15.440 --> 00:30:17.519 Look at his love. 00:30:17.519 --> 00:30:19.519 Look at his character. 00:30:19.519 --> 00:30:21.200 Look at his care. 00:30:21.200 --> 00:30:27.119 Look at what he has done for you in the person of Jesus Christ. 00:30:27.119 --> 00:30:30.880 New city, he is your praise. 00:30:30.880 --> 00:30:33.839 New city, he is your God. 00:30:33.839 --> 00:30:37.200 Hold fast to him. 00:30:37.200 --> 00:30:40.480 Remember Ashlyn's story? 00:30:40.480 --> 00:30:47.759 Eventually, she reached the point where trying harder, it can no longer save her. 00:30:47.759 --> 00:30:52.960 Her heart wasn't something she could rebilitate through greater effort. 00:30:52.960 --> 00:30:56.799 She needed a heart that she could not give herself. 00:30:56.799 --> 00:31:00.720 And so Ashlyn was placed on the transplant list. 00:31:00.720 --> 00:31:10.559 One day, exciting news came she had a donor, but sadly, the first heart and the first donor had failed its final inspection. 00:31:10.559 --> 00:31:13.440 She went home still waiting. 00:31:13.440 --> 00:31:17.519 Four weeks later, another call came. 00:31:17.519 --> 00:31:20.799 A 17-year-old boy had died. 00:31:20.799 --> 00:31:23.279 His heart was a match. 00:31:23.279 --> 00:31:30.880 For Ashlyn to live, she would have to receive life that came to her through the death of another. 00:31:30.880 --> 00:31:34.559 And that life she did receive. 00:31:34.559 --> 00:31:41.119 You see, it was the new heart that gave Ashlyn the life that the old one never could. 00:31:41.119 --> 00:31:47.039 Within days, Ashlyn was able to walk for over 45 minutes on a treadmill. 00:31:47.039 --> 00:31:51.359 Eventually, and recently, Ashlyn has ran a half marathon. 00:31:51.359 --> 00:31:53.200 Ashlyn is a mother. 00:31:53.200 --> 00:31:56.400 She can throw her little girl into the air. 00:31:56.400 --> 00:32:10.400 Ordinary things that she had spent her life calculating around her failing heart became possible because now she is living with a heart that she had received as a gift. 00:32:10.400 --> 00:32:17.200 But here's one of the most incredible things when I was able to connect with Ashlyn this last week. 00:32:17.200 --> 00:32:26.559 Looking backwards, Ashlyn would tell you that she realized this wasn't actually the first time that God had given her a new heart. 00:32:26.559 --> 00:32:35.759 You see, two weeks before the doctors ever diagnosed her with the disease in her physical heart, Ashlyn became a Christian. 00:32:35.759 --> 00:32:44.720 And through nearly a decade of suffering, God had already begun doing spiritually what no surgeon could ever do. 00:32:44.720 --> 00:32:52.319 Give her a heart that could trust him, love him, and follow him in all of life. 00:32:52.319 --> 00:32:57.279 You see, Ashlyn couldn't exercise her way into a healthy heart. 00:32:57.279 --> 00:33:01.119 She couldn't discipline her old heart into becoming a new one. 00:33:01.119 --> 00:33:07.039 Someone had to die, and she had to receive a heart that she can never give herself. 00:33:07.039 --> 00:33:09.119 A new city, do you see? 00:33:09.119 --> 00:33:11.920 That is the gospel. 00:33:11.920 --> 00:33:21.519 God wants all of your heart, but the good news isn't that Jesus came to tell people with idolatrous hearts to try harder. 00:33:21.519 --> 00:33:27.920 The Son of God gave his life so people like us could be given new hearts. 00:33:27.920 --> 00:33:39.039 And the God who tells us to love me with all of your heart, he is the God who, by his spirit, gives us a heart that is capable of loving him. 00:33:39.039 --> 00:33:40.799 A new city. 00:33:40.799 --> 00:33:56.559 Oh Father, how beautiful are you, Yahweh. 00:33:56.559 --> 00:34:05.759 Lord, when we read the scriptures, we see the beauty of your love, of your character, and of your care. 00:34:05.759 --> 00:34:11.119 And that is most demonstrated to us in the cross of Jesus Christ. 00:34:11.119 --> 00:34:13.039 So we thank you for our Lord. 00:34:13.039 --> 00:34:14.880 We thank you for our Savior. 00:34:14.880 --> 00:34:21.599 We thank you that in him we have a new heart and a new life. 00:34:21.599 --> 00:34:27.760 Because of this, may our hearts erupt in doxology, in praise. 00:34:27.760 --> 00:34:32.159 May we uh own and claim the truths here in Deuteronomy. 00:34:32.159 --> 00:34:36.320 You are our God, you are our praise. 00:34:36.320 --> 00:34:44.719 Would your gospel grow deep roots in our heart that we might hold fast to you in all of life? 00:34:44.719 --> 00:34:48.079 You are worthy of it all. 00:34:48.079 --> 00:34:49.519 We love you. 00:34:49.519 --> 00:34:51.840 It is in the name of Jesus we pray. 00:34:51.840 --> 00:34:53.360 Amen.