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SPECIAL 50TH GOLDEN JUBILEE SERVICE OF

DEEPER LIFE BIBLE CHURCH - AUGUST 13TH 2023.

MILESTONES AND MEMORIALS FOR FUTURE GENERATIONS

Text: Deuteronomy 4:1-40

Memory verse: Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest
thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from
thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons' sons.
(Deuteronomy 4:9)

Israel’s history is a mixture of good and bad, successes and failures, triumphs and defeats.
Generations of them had known nothing but suffering, pain and afflictions inflicted on them
by cruel slavemasters. The oppression was hard and long, until God sent them a deliverer in
Moses. In our passage, Israel stands at the threshold of Canaan after a forty-year long
meandering journey through the wilderness. Moses, for his part, had borne the brunt of their
imperfections. He was denied entry into the promised land because, when provoked by
Israel’s immaturity, he smote the rock contrary to the divine instruction to merely speak to
the rock. At this point, Moses and Israel stood at what was, effectively, the junction of the
old and new generations at the threshold of the Promised Land. It was an appropriate time
to remind the people of the memorials and reflect about the milestones which have
characterised their action-packed history. This was the reason for the writing of the entire
book of Deuteronomy - to reiterate all the laws, commandments, statutes, and warnings
earlier given by God at various points along Israel’s pilgrimage. The name of the book which
derives from the Septuagint, the Greek edition of the Bible, means “second law” or, more
properly, “repeated law”.
Question One: Enumerate the successes and failures of Israel and how these could serve as
lessons for present generations of Christians in the Bible Church.
At God’s command, Moses had set memorials for Israel at various points along the Egypt-
Canaan pilgrimage. As he approaches his last years on earth, Moses calls Israel to
remembrance of the commands of the Lord. These serve as the milestones of the past to the
new generation and gives counsels on how to enjoy continued favour in the present and avoid
future degeneration into backsliding.

1. MAJOR MILESTONES TO WAKE UP THE NEW GENERATION

Deuteronomy 4:1-14; Exodus 12:42; 19:9-20; Hebrews 12:18-21; 1 Corinthians 10:1-12
Milestones are important events in a person’s life or career, or in the history of a nation. It
also marks the beginning of a new phase or chapter in one’s life. Israel’s journey from Egypt
to Caanan had important milestone events for sober reflections, serious reminders and
solemn warnings. The first three chapters in the book of Deuteronomy had chronicled Israel’s
forty-year wilderness wanderings. Chapter four, our main text, signifies the divine
instructions for unstable pilgrims.
Question Two: Why was it necessary for Moses to constantly remind Israel about the major
milestone events in their history and the relevant lessons for the new generation.
Moses, a strategic and successful leader, would constantly remind Israel about major milestone
events in God’s past dealings with them as a way of fortifying them through obedience and
righteousness. The first milestone was the Passover night. “This is that night of the LORD to be
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observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.” (Exodus 12:42). The second milestone,
the giving of the Pentateuch and the awe-inspiring spectacle that heralded it. “And ye came near
and stood under the mountain; and the mountain burned with fire unto the midst of heaven,
with darkness, clouds, and thick darkness. And the LORD spake unto you out of the midst of
the fire: ye heard the voice of the words, but saw no similitude; only ye heard a voice. And he
declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even ten
commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone.” (Deuteronomy 4:11-13). These
were major milestone events upon which if generations of Israel had continued to hang their faith
and loyalty to God, forty years or four hundred would have made no dent on their convictions and
distinctiveness. But they failed.
The third significant milestone was the tragedy of Baal-peor when Israel was snared in
abominable idolatry and fleshly lusts through Balaam’s counsel. The undiluted wrath of God
and the stern judgement that followed the sin would serve Israel as a memorial to the danger
of compromise with the world and the consequences of corruption of God’s holy covenant by
His people. “For all the men that followed Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed
them from among you.” (Deuteronomy 4:3) It is a testament against the peddlers of the
erroneous doctrine of unconditional, eternal security. By the same token, however, this
milestone is a heart-warming reminder of God’s preservation of the few righteous people even
if they live in a perverse, immoral society. “But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your
God are alive every one of you this day.” (Deuteronomy 4:4)
Without doubt, one of the most solemn memorials of all is Moses’ lamentation of his
disqualification from entering the Promised Land. Even more sobering still is the cause of
that painful denial. In Deuteronomy chapter 4 verse 21, Moses reminded Israel, “the Lord
was angry with me for your sakes”. Israel had provoked their leader to the point of costly
frustration; he smote the rock contrary to divine instruction. The purpose of this reminder
was not to reproach the people but to validate the high standards God holds His servants to.
Members of the Church owe it to themselves to keep praying that they would not be the
stumbling-blocks to trip their spiritual leaders into sinning against God. Israel recorded these
iconic milestones within a space of forty years, but they are “written for our admonition,
upon whom the ends of the world are come.” New generation believers must be guided by
the truth that fifty years may seem long, but it is quite a short span of time in the life of a
church that hopes to continue harvesting souls to heaven until Christ comes.

2. MEMORABLE MESSAGES AND WARNINGS FOR WANDERERS AFTER

NONEXISTENT GODS
Deuteronomy 4:7-9,15-28; Psalm 78:9-66; Judges 8:22-27; Daniel 5:1-6,17-30; Luke
12:14-21)
The key feature of the book of Deuteronomy is the intentional repetition of earlier warnings
given by God.
Question Three: Explain the danger inherent in managing success. How does that matter to
the Church, and to the individual Christian youth, today?
Israel was already smelling the air of the promised land; their goal was in sight, well within
their grasp. They would soon possess their much longed-for possession. They were flushed
with success and giddy with excitement. It was a most auspicious time for their insightful
leader, Moses, to bring them important messages of warning from God. The messages were
at once pointed, pungent and, prophetic. The joy of success and good fortune may become
an intoxicant that causes otherwise focused believers to forget their vows and perform
mindless acts. “The desire accomplished is sweet to the soul” (Proverbs 13:19) but that
sweetness must be enjoyed mindfully. If caution is thrown to the winds, success time could
become sinning time, backslapping could soon lead to backsliding. That was the error of
Gideon, Belshazzar, and the rich fool. It is for the same reason that thoughtful observers
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have declared that managing success is much more perilous than managing failure. “Rejoice
with trembling” (Psalm 2:11) is the admonition of scripture.
Question Four: In what ways are Christian youths called upon to be watchful?
Moses’ thrice repetitions of the solemn warning, “Take heed unto yourselves”
(Deuteronomy 4:9,15,23), is to the present generation of Christians, as it was to that
generation of Israel, a three-point alarm to watchfulness. First, watchfulness against
progressive but imperceptible corruption of the pure faith. “Only take heed to thyself, and
keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and
lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and
thy sons' sons”. New generation believers have a serious duty of watching lest the precious
heritage from the fathers of faith slip away from their hearts. It is a dangerous sign when
sound doctrine loses its grip upon the hearts of young people, or when young people despise
the saving, sanctifying truth, received from the fathers of faith. The present generation of
believers must not permit any deterioration or declension in a dangerously permissive society
of this age.
Secondly, Moses’ words called Israel to watchfulness against brazen-faced idolatry. “Take
ye therefore good heed unto yourselves; for ye saw no manner of similitude on the day
that the LORD spake unto you in Horeb out of the midst of the fire: Lest ye corrupt
yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of
male or female” (Deuteronomy 4:15-16). How could a people that had witnessed the
manifestation of God’s mighty miracles and power later descend into such shameless
idolatry? For four hundred years, Israel had observed how the Egyptians worshipped and
served their many gods; bowing down to objects of wood, stone, gold, and silver was ingrained
in their memory. So, sad as Moses’ warning seemed, it was not misplaced. For good measure,
it quickly progressed from a mere warning to a fearful prophecy: “When thou shalt beget
children, and children's children, and ye shall have remained long in the land, and shall
corrupt yourselves, and make a graven image, or the likeness of any thing, and shall
do evil in the sight of the LORD thy God, to provoke him to anger: I call heaven and
earth to witness against you this day, that ye shall soon utterly perish from off the
land whereunto ye go over Jordan to possess it; ye shall not prolong your days upon it,
but shall utterly be destroyed. And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and
ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.
And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither
see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.” (Deuteronomy 4:25-28) Fools despise the word of
prophecy, but wise people take heed to aligning their lives properly in relation to it. For
example, Simon Peter should have been on guard against the temptation to deny his Master
rather than carelessly dismiss Christ’s forewarning of the act. Present generation believers
ought to pray earnestly, repent, and return to God where necessary and, remain watchful so
as not to fall into grievous idolatry.
The third occurrence of the words, “Take heed” is a call to careful preservation of our
distinctives as a covenant people. The believer’s relationship with God is exclusive, it does
not admit of an intruder. “For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous
God.” God will not share your love and loyalty, or your affection and attention with other
lords. Moreover, besides the general revelations of scripture to everyone, the dealings of God
with individuals, families or church denominations differ from one to another. Christian
youths should avoid the grievous error of petty jealousies or carnal comparisons with other
Christian groups or fellowships in their schools or neigbourhoods. It is wisdom for Christian
youths to run in their own lane so as to win their own prize with God.
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3. MIGHTY MIRACLES RECOUNTED TO WOO AND WIN THE NEXT GENERATIONS
Deuteronomy 4:29-40; Psalm 78:1-8; 105:1-2,5-15,37-45; Acts 3:19; Galatians 3:13-14
Moses’ serious warnings transited into tender words of promise and affection clearly designed
to assure future generations of Israel of God’s special love and care. First, he outlined God’s
past mighty miraculous acts in their favour:
1. an uncommon revelation of Himself to Israel (Deuteronomy 4:32-33).
2. an uncommon leader in Moses;
3. an unprecedented redemption from prolonged bondage (Deuteronomy 4:34).
4. a distinct separation as a peculiar people (Deuteronomy 4:34);
5. unusual spiritual experiences (Deuteronomy 4:35-36);
6. unashamed love from God (Deuteronomy 4:37);
7. unexpected victories over stronger and mightier nations (Deuteronomy 4:38) and
8. an unparalleled inheritance, that is, the Promised Land.

Question Five: Outline the proofs of divine favour enjoyed by a faithful church and how the
present generation of believers can preserve the spiritual legacies handed down to us.
As a church, the sure testimony is that the Lord has favoured us with all these. We have an
uncommon book – The Holy Bible, a fearless leader, and other faithful ministers to teach it.
We have the Lord, His love, promises of victory and dominion, and His unfailing presence.
Above all, we have a mansion waiting in heaven.
Secondly, Moses encouraged the future generations of erring Israel with promises of God’s
mercy, forgiveness, restoration, and deliverance from cruel enemies. Their restoration was
guaranteed but not automatic. As always, God’s “times of refreshing” only follow genuine
repentance (Deuteronomy 4:27-29); that is the unchanging order.