Deuteronomy 10
Look around you: Everything you see is GOD's – the heavens above and beyond, the Earth, and everything on it. But it was your ancestors that GOD fell in love with; he picked their children – that's [you]! – out of all the other peoples. That's where we are right now. – Deuteronomy 10:14-15 MSG
I have to be honest. Sometimes I don't fully understand or appreciate the reality that the God of the universe has chosen to have a relationship with me. For some reason I lose sight of just how incredibly awesome that fact is. I take it for granted. I even convince myself that I somehow deserve to have a relationship with God. But I know I'm not alone. The Israelites had the same problem, and Moses knew it. That's why he has spent the last few chapters reminding them of all the great things God has done for them. Now in chapter 10 he gives them a not-so-subtle reminder that God chose them, not the other way around. The Creator of all things, the God of the entire universe, "set His affection" (NASB) on Abraham and his descendants. He showed them favor. He delighted in them. All so He could express His love for them. His choosing of Abraham had nothing to do with Abraham himself. It was not based on anything Abraham had done or not done. God chose Abraham. And God chose Abraham's descendants. And God chose the Israelites who found themselves standing on the edge of the Promised Land, waiting to inherit the blessings of God, in spite of their stubborn hearts and rebellious spirits.
And God chose me! Not because I deserved to be chosen. He just chose me. That ought to blow my mind every time I think about it. But instead, I have grown so accustomed to the reality of it, that it sometimes carries no weight with me at all. I use phrases like "child of God" so flippantly and casually, not realizing or appreciating the remarkable nature of my relationship with the Almighty God, creator of all things. When I think about the reality of my relationship with God, it should blow me away. And it should engender a response, much like the one Moses encouraged the people of Israel to have. To fear Him, obey Him, love Him, and serve Him with all my heart and soul. "So now Israel, what do you think GOD expects from you? Just this: Live in his presence in holy reverence, follow the road he sets out for you, love him, serve GOD, your God, with everything you have in you" (Deuteronomy 10:12 MSG). I am to serve Him with everything I have in me. But I will never do that fully if I don't come to realize just how marvelous it is that He chose me! Moses describes God in these amazing terms: "GOD, your God, is the God of all gods, he's the Master of all masters, a God immense and powerful and awesome" (Deuteronomy 10:17 MSG). That same God chose me! He wants to have a relationship with me. He put HIS Spirit within me. He calls me His child. He has made me His heir. That incredible reality should produce in me a desire to obey Him, love Him, follow Him, fear Him, listen to Him, and more than anything else, appreciate the fact that I can have a relationship with Him.
Father, thank You for choosing me! What more can I say? Thank You, thank You, thank You. Amen