Term 1 – Week 4
Big Idea – Moses tells Israel to trust God and keep God’s commands after he’s gone
Deuteronomy 31-34, key passage 31:1-13
Outcomes
- See how Moses encouraged Israel to trust God as they enter the promised land
- Make the link to how Jesus encouraged us as his disciples to follow him, knowing that He is with us always through his Holy Spirit.
Implications
- Belief – Trusting God to be with us always, even when we are afraid
- Behaviour – Live as we are commanded to by God as Christians, knowing that we have the Spirit who is with us every step of the way.
Introduction
Decades have passed since God used Moses to rescue the Israelites from slavery and lead them toward the promised land. The Israelites has not trusted God then and had refused to enter the land.
After 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, the Israelites were once again at the edge of the promised land. But this time, it was a new generation of Israelites – many of whom had not even been born when the people left Egypt and came to this land for the first time. Moses was 120 years old!
Moses wrote the book of Deuteronomy to tell the people all that God had done for them and to repeat the laws and instructions that God had given His people. At the end of the book, God told Moses that Moses would soon die, never setting foot in the promised land because of his disobedience (Num 20L12). God chose Joshua to lead Israel into the land.
God also revealed to Moses that even though Israel had just endured 40 years of punishment for not trusting Him, the people would abandon God again. Having the laws written out would not be enough to keep the Israelites from breaking the covenant with God. Moses emphasized that obedience would lead to blessing and life, but disobedience would lead to curses- namely, exile from the land.
Moses went up to a mountain where he could see the land that God had promised to give to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Then Moses died there. Moses wasn’t perfect, but he was a good leader for God’s people. No other prophet in Israel was like Moses – until Jesus came.
‘Trust in the LORD with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
in all ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight’
Songs
A Very Special Tent – Ben Pakula
Leaders PDF
this has been put together using purchased external material and therefore this resource may only be used by Dundonald Church. For more information please contact natasha.small@dundonald.org
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