“See I have to set before you today life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his rules, then you shall live and multiply. And the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. But if your heart turns away and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore, choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice, and holding fast to him, for he is your life and length of days that you may dwell in the land of the Lord sworn to your fathers. To Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob to give them.”
– Deuteronomy 30:15–20
This is a longer portion than we normally read, but I just want you to hear what God says to his people as they prepare to go into the promised land. This is such a powerful charge that God gives to his people through Moses.
The God of Life Conquers Death
Ah, is that not such a powerful picture? God saying to his people I want you to have life. I want you to experience good. I’ve promised it to you, it is there for the taking. So, take it, follow me, trust me, love me, pursue me, enjoy my love for you, enjoy my pursuit of you. This is what I’m holding before you, and at the same time, know that if you don’t chose that, you will be choosing death. You will be choosing to perish. You will be choosing emptiness and you will be choosing curse. It’s a no brainer, right? Choose life. And yet when God’s people go into the land, what do they choose? They choose death, they choose curse, they turn away from God before long, and worship other Gods.
God help us to choose life and to spread life for the glory of Jesus Christ. May we learn from the foolishness of those who have gone before us.
Deuteronomy 30:15–20 Encourages Life in God
So, let’s look at our own hearts and realize that today, the same choice is before us. And in a sense on a daily basis life or death, blessing or curse, obedience to God, walking in the promises of God, the worship of God, or disobedience to God. Not trusting in the promises of God, worshiping all kinds of things in this world instead of God. Oh God, help us to choose life. God, help us to learn from even the foolishness of those who’ve gone before us.
Help us to choose life. Help me to choose life today. I pray this for every single person who’s listening right now, help them to choose life today. Help them to choose obedience to you today. Your blessing today. Trust in your promises today. Oh God, help us to choose all these things. And help us to make that choice all day long. By your grace, Oh God, we want to experience life and blessing, and walk in your ways, and keep your commandments and your statutes and your rules. We want to live and multiply and experience your blessing. So, God, please make me so.
Deuteronomy 30:15–20 Prays for the Life of the Gospel to Reach All People Groups
I pray this for my life I pray this for my family. I pray this for every single person who’s listening to this right now, their families. Oh God, I pray this for our churches, God help us, help us to choose life. I pray this for the country I live in. God, I pray this for the nations, I pray this for the Nohchi Chechen in Russia. Oh God, may the Gospel to go to them for the 1.4 million of them. God, may the Gospel go to them so they can choose life. And may they choose life. Open the eyes of Nohchi Chechens to the life that’s found in Christ. God, help us to choose life and to spread life. We pray, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
