Week 12 (Days 078-084): Will reading the Bible make my life easier?

Hey Bible readers, welcome to TBR Deep Dive. I'm Emma Daughter. I'm Kirsten McCloskey. And our first question comes from day 81 and the passage or really the verse is Deuteronomy 31-24, which says, when Moses had finished writing the words of this law in a book to the very end. The question is, how did Moses write the end of Deuteronomy if he had already died? Very good question. Great question. So we know that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. So this is what we call the Pentateuch. It also is referenced as the Torah. So this is Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. But most scholars agree that Joshua likely finished the final verses and that doesn't break Scripture's authority. It actually shows God's faithfulness to preserve his word from beginning all the way to the end. Yes, exactly. So Moses certainly wrote almost all of Deuteronomy, but clearly he couldn't have written all, all of it because we have this little section that talks about his death at the end. And so that's where we're getting, wait a second, how did Moses write his own obituary? Which who knows, maybe he told Joshua what he wanted included. Maybe so. Who's to say? Exactly. So I think there's a couple of options for who maybe wrote this last part. So most people think that it was Joshua. And that's probably where I land as well. But there's also the possibility that it was maybe one of the elders that Moses had appointed in Exodus 24-9. And other people think that it was possibly even Ezra, which would have been an add-on way later. So again, I think probably Joshua makes the most sense. And maybe even an elder. But yeah, I think the amount of time that passes in between the end of Moses' life and Ezra's life was almost a thousand years. So I just don't think that Ezra is maybe the best option. Yeah. So if Moses wrote the bulk of Deuteronomy and the closing section was outed later by someone, it's important we remember that that someone, whether it's Ezra, which you and I would say probably not, or Joshua, that someone was inspired by the same God carrying the same story forward without interruption in God's timing. So the last chapter, it's functioning like a divinely guided epilogue, if you will. Moses' life was complete, but God wasn't done speaking, leading, or writing his people's story. So knowing God preserved his word, even through Moses' death, reminds us that his work in our lives doesn't stop when human strength runs out. He's faithful to finish what he started. So and I think if this brings up any questions for people about the validity of Deuteronomy or potentially even the whole Pentateuch, just because we don't know for sure who wrote that this last part of it, then I think here are some things that are helpful because we still believe that like what you're saying, this is all God's work. And so this section of Deuteronomy in the same way that the rest of Deuteronomy is God's word. It's not a mistake. Right. It's not a mistake. And so some scholars say that Jesus actually quoted from Deuteronomy more than any other book of the Bible. There's a little bit of a debate because others point to Psalms and say that Jesus quoted more from Psalms. But either way, he quoted Deuteronomy a lot. And he quoted it when he was being confronted by Satan and the wilderness. So I feel like Jesus was in on Deuteronomy. That's a critical moment. He was in on Deuteronomy. He definitely regarded it highly and would have seen it as scripture. Absolutely. And so I think that we can really anchor ourselves in the fact that regardless of who wrote it, the Holy Spirit is the one who authored scripture through the work of human hands. That's right. And Jesus regarded Deuteronomy a scripture, like I said, and the early church also regarded it as scripture. So we can be confident that they were aware that Moses couldn't have written these final chapters after his death. But we are not the first people to be like, wait a minute, what happened here? They recognized it as well. It would have known it as well. Absolutely. So I think if Jesus didn't have an issue with this more mysterious aspect of Deuteronomy, then I think I'm fine to not take any issue with it either. To not know. Yeah. To not know and think, you know, it makes sense that it would be Joshua, but also maybe it was an elder who just, who just did it. Yeah. Wrote some nice things about Moses. He just jumped in. Yeah. Jumped in to help. All right. This question comes from day 80, specifically Deuteronomy 3014. And it says, if Israel didn't yet have the Holy Spirit, how could they obey? And so Deuteronomy 3014 says, but the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart so that you can do it. That's a great question. Yeah. I want to clarify something before we answer it. Yeah. And it's a very important truth. Obeying the law did not equal salvation. Excellent. Obeying the law did not earn Israel's salvation. People in the Old Testament were saved by faith, not by keeping the law, not by works, not by sacrifices, not by anything they did. Yes. And it's always been that way. Yes. It has always been that way. So we know they were saved by faith starting in Genesis 156. Abraham believed God and as a result, it was credited to him as righteousness. And that's before Abraham's done anything. Yep. And I just want to clarify, when you said starting in Genesis 15, you're just meaning we're hearing about it there. Yes. That's where we see it explicitly stated for the first time. Because anyone from Genesis 1 to 14 was also saved by faith. Yes. Great clarification. In the Old Testament, people were saved by faith. It was a forward-looking faith believing God would keep his promises. And keeping the law perfectly couldn't save anyone. Obeying perfectly couldn't save anyone. And that's a good thing because no one, except for Jesus, is perfect. Right. God, in the Old Testament, is after the hearts of his people, not just their behavior when he gives them the law. So their behavior should have been a reflection of the heart. It wasn't a means of salvation. Yep. That's a really good distinction. Just like today, our works should be the overflow of our gratitude for what Jesus has done, our salvation we've received through faith. That same principle was true then. Yep. And I think, as I was thinking through this question, I wrote down, the Israelites didn't have the Holy Spirit and they couldn't obey God's laws perfectly. And we have the Holy Spirit and we can't obey God's laws perfectly. So same vein there, that that's a really important starting point that, and I think what this question is getting at is kind of this confusion of, well, God said that they could do it, but they can't. And so what's that about? And I think really, the reality is God gave the Israelites the law. They could never follow it perfectly. And he gave him the sacrificial system to point forward, but to deal with the sin when they messed up, when they didn't fully obey God's laws. So pointing forward to Jesus, but for them, they're recognizing, okay, this deals with the sin problem that I'm experiencing. But the command here feels to me like, God is saying to the Israelites, you can choose me. So you can't obey me perfectly and you can't choose me perfectly, but it's that turning of, turn to me, choose me instead of these foreign gods, instead of any other way you would want to go. And it's because God chose them first. That is even the way. God chose them first. God chose them and so they are then able to respond back to God. Yeah. Something else that's interesting is that even in the Old Testament, there were people who did have the Holy Spirit or at least received the Spirit for a time. We see that with Saul and David, for example. But even those people in the Old Testament who got the Holy Spirit, who were given the Holy Spirit, they failed miserably. They fell short. So the only way we cannot fail is by having Christ's finished work attributed to us. No one should come at Christianity feeling like they can personally succeed or like win by doing well or doing all the things. That's not the point. In fact, that's the opposite of the point. God was after the hearts of His people, not just their behavior. So yes, Israel fell short. Yes, those who have the Spirit fall short. The point isn't what are we doing? It's whose work are we trusting in? Yeah. Yeah. And I think also we have the constant presence of the Spirit and so we are so blessed with that. But we also need to remember that God was helping the Israelites as well. It's not like they were on their own to do this. He was with them. He was with them. They had the cloud by day, fire by night situation going on. Right, exactly. They had His presence. And so I think when we're thinking about just kind of the distinction, they still had God's presence. They still had God's help and assistance. And we have that too. Yeah, totally. And through God's work in our lives, that's how then we are able to obey Him. Yes, absolutely. And I want to read from Romans because I think this will be really helpful for some who may still be wrestling. Paul gets at this in Romans chapter 9. I'm going to read from the NLT, Romans 9, 30 through 32. What does all this mean? Even though the Gentiles were not trying to follow God's standards, they were made right with God. And it was by faith that this took place. But the people of Israel who tried so hard to get right with God by keeping the law never succeeded, why not? Because they were trying to get right with God by keeping the law instead of by trusting Him. They stumbled over the great rock in their path. So the problem wasn't, do they have the Spirit or not have the Spirit? Yes, the Spirit is a good thing to have. But the problem was that they got off track and they started placing their value. I mean, the Pharisees are a good example of this. They started placing their value and worth before God and how much they could do rather than how much God had done for them. Yep, that's a great point. All right. You ready for the next one? Let's do the next question. Alrighty. This next question comes from day 80, Deuteronomy 30, 11 through 14. Deuteronomy 30, 11 through 14 says, for this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you. Neither is it far off. It is not in heaven that you should say, who will send heaven for us and bring it to us that we may hear and do it? Neither is it beyond the sea that you should say, who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us that we may hear it and do it? But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart so that you can do it. So the question is, I know I have the Holy Spirit to help me, but I think God's commands are really hard. I'm discouraged because God makes it sound like it should be easy to follow His commands. What's wrong with me? Yeah. This is piggybacking so well, I think, on the question that we just answered. And so let's do a real talk here. God's commands are hard. Yes. They're hard. Agreed. That's because no matter where we're at in our journey, so whether we've been a Christian for 40 minutes or for 40 years, we are infected by sin. Sin has corrupted us and we will never be perfect in this life. We are redeemed and we've been given the righteousness of Christ and the Holy Spirit is actively sanctifying us, working in our lives, changing us to be more like Christ. This is a process. And so I think, to be honest, there are times where following God's commands are harder. I think sometimes the more you know. So I think there's kind of, there can be a learning curve a little bit at the beginning when you're like, oh, I didn't know that I wasn't supposed to do that or that that's not good for me. But then I think the more that we get to know God, the more we love Him, we're even more aware oftentimes of our fallen condition and of how much, how selfish we are, how sinful we are, how prideful we are, how much we just want our own way and not God's ways. So I think kind of the wrestle potentially that this person is feeling totally makes sense because we actually as Christians have to fight against sin in a way that the rest of the world, not knowing God is not fighting against sin. And so it's more of a, it can be more challenging. Totally. And I would say if you're listening to this and you feel like obedience is hard, that does not mean something is wrong with you. It means you're human. God's commands aren't easy, but they are good. And He gives us His Spirit, so we're never fighting sin alone. And again, I guess Romans is it for me today. I'm reminded of Romans 3, starting in verse 19b, the second half of it. Paul is talking about the law and he says, its purpose is to keep people from having excuses and to show that the entire world is guilty before God, for no one can ever be made right with God by doing what the law commands. The law simply shows us how sinful we are. And his point in talking about the Jewish people was that no one could keep it, but God's intended purpose for the law, for these instructions He gave His people was to help them see their need for Him, to point them back to Him in His provision, because the commandments are hard. We can't perfectly keep them. Right, exactly. Yeah, and that's where I think we want to, if you're in a season where you're feeling like, okay, this is particularly challenging for me, I think zoom out a little bit and maybe look at more of the trajectory of your relationship with the Lord. So over time, are you trending up? And so what I mean by that is, do you more consistently find in your walk with the Lord that you're obeying God's word? Do you more consistently love your neighbor? Do you more consistently demonstrate in your life the fruit of the Spirit? Do you more consistently trust God? This is maybe one way to kind of look at it and also to just recognize that the path of holiness and the walk of holiness and sanctification, it's three steps forward, one step back, fall down, get back up again. It's just, but God knows that. God is so aware of that and He's with us in it all. But I would also add that that discouragement can be a gift because it can expose where we're trying to obey in our own strength instead of relying on God's grace, God's presence, God's power to change us from the inside out. Yep. Yeah, kind of really trying to strive or like muscle our own obedience. Yeah. And so bring your discouragement to God honestly. Sometimes the gap between what He calls us to and what we feel we're able to do is where the deepest transformation or growth happens because the Spirit meets us in our weaknesses, not to shame us, but to reshape our desires, strengthen our dependence and ultimately lead us into daily obedience. But it doesn't happen overnight. And I really just, the Lord keeps putting Romans on my heart as we're having this conversation in Romans 7, Paul, the apostle Paul who wrote like, how much of the New Testament would we say? A lot. A lot. He wrote a lot of the New Testament. And he says in verse 18, reading from the NLT, the trouble isn't with the law, the trouble's with me. I am human. I don't understand myself. I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate. And he goes on to just talk about how he wants to do the right thing, but he doesn't always do it. And that is the human experience. But then the beautiful part is that he describes then after he unpacks the wrestle that we all experience, he says, thank goodness the answer is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. And in chapter eight, he begins, so there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. Amen. So if you're the person who is reading through these passages and you're just thinking, I fall short over and over again. I can't, I know I have the Holy Spirit, but I'm becoming increasingly aware of my sin. It's not necessarily a bad thing if it's pushing you to dependence and nearness to the Lord, but the enemy is the voice that's going to tell you you're a failure, that you're not enough, that you will never measure up. That is not the voice of God because there's no condemnation for those who are in Christ. Yeah, amen. And I think this would maybe be a great question or like struggle to bring up in a community group with a pastor, with really a mentor, anyone who is walking alongside you in your Christian journey to just say, I am struggling to obey right now. I want to, but there's a fight, there's a wrestle and I'm just right now not winning. You know, help me in some way. And so I think it's a great place to bring in community, great place to bring in prayer and really just speaking with God about this. And remember, the Christian journey is not a sprint. It is a marathon. That's right. It is a marathon and God is helping you and He loves you so you can be encouraged. Okay. Let's do the next question. Let's go on to the next question. Day 82 is where this question comes from and specifically Joshua 1.8. So let me read Joshua 1.8. This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful to do all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success. So the question is, if I read my Bible, will my life get easier? I want success like it says in Joshua. So this question is really getting at this formula that the enemy likes to feed us. And the formula is, if I do spiritual things like read my Bible, then God will give me what I want. And that's wrong. That's not a guarantee. And I can see how reading Joshua 1.8 could make it seem like that formula is correct when it's actually not. So let's kind of comb through it. That's good. Joshua 1.8 isn't promising an easy life. So if we look at what Joshua had to do, he had to lead the people to war. That's true. It's not an easy thing to do. Joshua 1.8 is promising a formed life, F-O-R-M-E-D, formed life, meditating on God's word, made Joshua strong and ready for the challenges ahead rather than sheltering him. His success was faithfulness, not freedom from hardship, not a lot of money, not riches, not a trophy. His success was faithfulness. He didn't mean life was easy. And in the Old Testament, when we think about prospering and succeeding, that's really talking about living in alignment with God's will, walking in his ways so that we're more aware of his presence and his nearness and his blessing resting on the person. So obedience shaped who Joshua became and how he led the people through hardship, not how comfortable his circumstances felt. And I think, gosh, those are two really good things to clarify is what is God's definition of success and God's definition of what it means to prosper. And it really, I feel like, comes down to even just living wisely in the world because we're recognizing this is God's world, we're following God's ways, and we're doing it the way that he says. But if we have a definition of what prosper or what success means that is in our own context and that really is removed from what God says, then we're going to be confused, I think, maybe disappointed at times. So I think those are really good things to point out. Thank you. Yeah. And I think I would say, so you're going to get a lot of wonderful things in reading the Bible. You're going to get wisdom. You're going to know God better. You're going to understand God's story. You're going to understand your history. You will certainly be blessed. But like what we're saying, this idea of success in our own heads, no. I think whatever we're thinking success is, like maybe a name on a billboard or plenty of money in the bank account or whatever, that's not the correlation. A promotion. Yeah, that's not what God is promising. Yeah. So you think about the context. Joshua 1-8 is sitting at this massive turning point in Israel's history. Moses, the only leader this generation had ever known, is gone. And Joshua is stepping into what seems like a really impossible job, leading a grieving nation into enemy-occupied territory. And specifically into territory, their parents had refused to enter. And Joshua's the guy for the job. And so God's success formula for Joshua wasn't about his comfort or his ease of life, how easy his job would be. It was about covenant faithfulness, meaning it was about Joshua walking in obedience, believing that if God said he'd give us this land, he will do it no matter how hard it is. And the success was his belief, his trust in God. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. And I think when we're getting, when we're kind of understanding a little bit more of what the success is, so when we're reading our Bibles, we're getting a greater recognition that this is God's story. So it's God's plans, it's God's purposes for his people, including us. And the more we're aligning ourselves with his ways, with his world, the way that he says things are going to go, that's when we're going to feel successful, according to God's standard of success. So the biblical godly version of success, not the same as the worldly version, but so much richer and fuller because it is rooted in God himself, knowing God and being faithful. Yeah. So for Joshua, what did that look like? Knowing God and being faithful, hearing his word, speaking his word, obeying his word, and leading people according to his word. His life didn't magically get easier. He faced fortified cities, military campaigns, complicated tribal disputes, betrayal within the camp, like Aikonson. He faced the grueling task of dividing the land between all the people. I mean, I can't imagine how that might have felt for him. But yeah. I love how that's the hardest part for you that you're thinking about. Don't you think everyone would have wanted the best part of the land? Oh, I see. I want this region or I want this or I don't want to go fight any, I mean, that happened. We don't want to keep fighting anymore. We'll take this right here. He has to deal with all that. I thought you were meaning it would be hard to be like a cartographer, you know, like the people that make the maps. Well, that too would be hard for me. I'm very bad at geography and directions. But amidst all of that, he lived with this clarity, courage, instead fastness because God's word was forming his character and shaping his heart and his perspective. And that's the kind of success we can experience that as we read the Bible and are honestly seeking God through the word, not just doing it to check a box, but we're meeting with God through his word and meeting with God personally, our motive starts to change, our desires start to change, our heart posture starts to change and that's a win. Yep. That's a win. And I do also just want to point out that I think sometimes when we really align ourselves to follow God, to do what he says, to pray, to read our Bibles, I think sometimes that honestly makes life harder. I mean, I know for me there have been seasons where my devotion to God felt like it made every other area of my life so much more difficult. And I've spoken to other people where that's been their scenario too, where it's like, the more I'm moving towards God, the more these other parts of my life are falling apart. So it's not necessarily that your life's going to get easier and it maybe is going to be that actually some things get harder. And so I think I really want to be clear, don't let that discourage you either. That as you're really moving towards God and really doing the things he says that your life might get harder and don't be alarmed by that. Yeah, don't be surprised. I think that's a really great point to get up because if you think that if you become a Christian, your life will magically get better, you're in for a rude awakening, unfortunately. And if you think if you read your Bible, your life will get easier, it may or may not. I don't know, but it's not a guarantee. And Jesus says, in this world you will face trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world. And so whenever we start to think, gosh, God, I'm doing what you want. Why aren't you giving me what I want? We have to remember the words of Jesus that there will be trouble. There will be trouble. That's the reality. But the good news is that our victorious God is with us in the trouble when we don't feel successful in worldly terms. And I think, so kind of wrapping this up. So as we're, as you keep reading scripture, you're going to meet a lot of other historical figures in the Bible who knew God's word and obeyed God's word. And they have success in the eyes of God, but it wouldn't necessarily be the kind of thing you'd put on a vision board. So if you have some time, go check out some of the stories in Hebrews 11. It has a lot of examples of people who were highly regarded for their faith. Some stopped the mouths of lions, but some were beheaded. Some died in prison. And as far as we know, all of the disciples had pretty horrific deaths or persecution. So be careful, like we've been saying, of how you think of success, because it might have you fixing your eyes on temporary or fleeting things. And the true source of success and the true source of joy is going to come from leaning into these eternal things. The kinds of things that prompt God's heart to say, well done, my good and faithful servant, which he says in Matthew 25, 23. That's right. Yeah. The next question comes from day 84, specifically from Joshua 10, 12 through 14, which reads, At that time, Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord gave the Amorites over to the sons of Israel. And he said in the sight of Israel, Son, stand still at Gideon and moon in the Valley of Agelon. And the sun stood still and the moon stopped until the nation took vengeance on their enemies. Is this not written in the book of Jashar? The sun stopped in the midst of heaven and did not hurry to set about a whole day. There had been no day like it before or since when the Lord heeded the voice of a man for the Lord fought for Israel. Joshua 10, 12 through 14. So the question is, Kirsten, did God, what? Really make the sun stand still? I've heard there's maybe some scientific evidence for this miraculous event. Yeah. So some people believe that the sun standing still is just a good old fashioned miracle. So not really like science. Well, we'll see. There's maybe some science. Behind the miracle. But also maybe. It's just a good old fashioned miracle. Yeah. Okay. So there's some people that it's like, this is just a good old fashioned miracle. And so we don't need to like prove it obviously because it's miraculous. We don't know how God did it, but he made the sun stand still while Joshua fought the Amorites and God performed this miracle because of Joshua's request. So amazing. Others believe that this should be understood as poetic language. So there are some people who would say, this is not a literal recording of a miracle or a recording of this event happening, but it is using these metaphors to talk about the victory. But I will say this is a minority view. Okay. And that is not, I'm going to say that's not the view that I hold. That's definitely not the view that I hold, but it's a minority view. And I do, so there are some researchers who have found evidence that believe that this proves that this event literally occurred, but they actually look, there's a translation thing that makes it a little bit different because it actually in their eyes is a solar eclipse, so total darkness rather than the sun standing still. Okay. Interesting. So where they get to that is because you could possibly translate the phrase stand still, which only occurs one time in scripture. They're saying that it's possible to translate that as become dark. And so that's what led these researchers to look into this in the first place. And so then it would be the sun became dark instead of standing still and there was an eclipse. Interesting. So this was like a decade ago, some Israeli researchers were looking into this phenomenon and we're just looking at the moon and the sun and the story. And so they found that there was a solar eclipse around the same time that the Israelites were entering the promised land. And because of this translation, that was possible. So I think I have two more views to present, but the first one may actually be just your miracle view. So the first view is it's called, sometimes called the literal view, which just says, hey, Joshua 10 says what Joshua 10 says. And so God supernaturally extended the daylight so Israel could finish the battle. There's some nuances here. So some people think maybe God slowed Earth's rotation and that's how he did it or paused time itself or miraculously sustained creation in a way that we don't even have a category for. Yeah. Interesting. But the emphasis in this view is that it was a real physical cosmic intervention, a once in history kind of moment where we see creator ruling over his creation, which would fit with this straightforward reading of the text and match the statement, there has been no day like it before or since, which makes the eclipse view kind of tricky because we've had eclipses in our lifetime. Others would say it is a extra daylight, which is interesting. So this would be an alternative way. They'd say the language reflects how Joshua experienced the day. And so they'd say God provided extra daylight through supernatural brightening or some sort of atmospheric phenomena, getting very scientific here, or a unique manifestation of his glory. And so those who hold this view would look at the Hebrew and they'd say, hey, I think the Hebrew is describing the events from the viewer's perspective. So the view is still saying this is a miracle, but not necessarily this dramatic pause and cosmic mechanics, if you will. So this one maybe actually would align with that poetic option that you presented. Maybe it may be a different category, but it avoids a global freeze of some kind. And it's just like, let's just talk about the idea of light and where light could come from. So there's two more options. Maybe there's like five within those two. I don't know. Some more options. For me, I'm just totally on the miracle train. You know, I'm like, the whole Bible is full of miracles. Like why would God, yeah, sure, God stopped the sun. But I have so not science. So I feel like in my head, I know that there's people and I don't want to diminish that, the people that really, it is very helpful for them in reading the scriptures when there is scientific or archaeological evidence for certain things. And so if that's you, God bless you. I love that they're like, that that's how God has wired you. For me, I'm kind of like, yeah, it's a miracle. Great. Add it to the list of all the other amazing miracles that God does in scripture. But in realities, we just don't know. Right. So this is one of those interpretive challenges where we can look at a bunch of views and at the end of the day, you don't even have to have a strong stance on which view you think it is. Right. Exactly. Because any of them or one that we didn't even know about. Yeah. If you have another view. Let us know in the comments. Yeah. But so I think my takeaway from something like this is that God has always been a miracle working God. And here's another awesome example of God miraculously working in the world on behalf of the people that he loves in this specific story. So I think that's very encouraging and fun. Yeah. For me, my takeaway is that God isn't distant, that he's the God who steps in and fights for his people. Yeah. Even when his people or us can't see how things will work out, we can trust that his power is greater than our problems and his presence is greater than our fears. He's with us. Yep. Amen. Love that. Thanks for taking a deep dive with us. We will see you again next week as we continue to read, understand and love the Bible and the God who wrote it.