How Does Deuteronomy Help Us Rejoice in the Lord?

As our name suggests, Desiring God Church emphasizes the importance of our delighting in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We often quote verses such as Psalm 16:11 and Philippians 4:4:

In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice.

But consider how often we find similar commands in the book of Deuteronomy – often prescribing rejoicing during the regular feasts or when bringing tithes and offerings:

Deut. 12:7 (NET): Both you and your families must feast [at the place God designates] before the LORD your God and rejoice in all the output of your labor with which he has blessed you.

Deut. 12:12 (NET): You shall rejoice in the presence of the LORD your God

Deut. 12:18 (NET): In that place you will rejoice before the LORD your God in all the output of your labor.

Deut. 14:26 [When the people bring their tithes to the place God designates]: You shall eat there before the LORD your God and rejoice, you and your household.

From Deut. 16:10-15: Then you shall keep the Feast of Weeks to the LORD your God with the tribute of a freewill offering from your hand, which you shall give as the LORD your God blesses you. 11 And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and your daughter, your male servant and your female servant, the Levite who is within your towns, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow who are among you, at the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell there…. 14 You shall rejoice in your feast…. 15 For seven days you shall keep the feast to the LORD your God at the place that the LORD will choose, because the LORD your God will bless you in all your produce and in all the work of your hands, so that you will be altogether joyful.

Deut. 26:5-11 [When the people offer from their first harvest in the Promised Land]: You shall make response before the LORD your God, ‘A wandering Aramean was my father. And he went down into Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and populous. 6 And the Egyptians treated us harshly and humiliated us and laid on us hard labor. 7 Then we cried to the LORD, the God of our fathers, and the LORD heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. 8 And the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great deeds of terror, with signs and wonders. 9 And he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 And behold, now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground, which you, O LORD, have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the LORD your God and worship before the LORD your God. 11 And you shall rejoice in all the good that the LORD your God has given to you and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the sojourner who is among you.

Deut. 27:7 [After crossing the Jordan and building an altar]: You shall sacrifice peace offerings and shall eat there, and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God.

From these and related passages, consider four observations that help us today to rejoice in God:

First: Rejoice corporately! In our individualistic culture, we easily internalize commands such as Philippians 4:4: “I must rejoice in God in myself!” In contrast, all the quoted passages refer to rejoicing in God together with others. So today we should rejoice together in God not only in our worship services but also at our meals, at family events, at gatherings in our homes. By so doing, we help one another also to rejoice internally.

Second: Recognize that all you have is a gift from God! God owes you nothing. You have earned nothing. As the excerpt from Deuteronomy 26 emphasizes, only a handful of people went to Egypt, and God multiplied them, making them a great nation. Then He rescued them from oppression and by His power brought them into a fruitful land. Just so with us. We were dead in our trespasses and sins, and by His great mercy through the work of His Son He made us alive in Jesus. Every breath, every heartbeat, every morsel of food is an undeserved gift from God.

Third, and related: Recognize that even what you “earn” is a gift from God! Deuteronomy 12:7 says we are to “rejoice in all the output of your labor with which he has blessed you.” Thus, even what seems to result from our work is a blessing from God. Deuteronomy 8:17-18 elaborates on this idea: “Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth.” If I produce more output than others through diligent work, that doesn’t mean I am better than others, or that I deserve the additional output. Rather, the diligence and the ability to work well are gifts that others do not have. I should therefore rejoice in God all the more.

Finally: Rejoice in the Giver rather than the gift! When they prosper, the Israelites are to rejoice in the giving of tithes and during their regular feasts as repeated reminders of the One Who is Himself good and holy and loving. The houses, the herds, the flocks, the silver, the gold, health, children, protection – all these are pointers to God. Just so with us. Every good and perfect gift is from Him (James 1:17). We must not be like the thousands in John 6 who ate the miraculous bread and simply desired more, failing to see what it signified. Rather, we can take the occasion of every delight – cardinals at the feeder, sunshine on new leaves, a whiff of Clematis flowers, a brisk early-morning walk, tasty cobbler, a toddler’s smile – and rejoice in our trinitarian God, from Whom, through Whom, and unto Whom are all these joys.

[All quotations are ESV unless otherwise indicated.]

Delighted, Not Dependent: God’s Glory and Your Good

God can make children of Abraham out of rocks. God will be glorified with or without you. And yet, God delights to use you for his glory and your good in his kingdom plans. At the same time, he is not dependent on you to accomplish them. This is a principle that John the Baptist reminds the Pharisees and Sadducees of (cf. Matthew 3:9 — “And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.”) We see this principle illustrated in Acts 1:15–26. There we witness a memorable scene play out. Peter leads the disciples to fill the void in the twelve left by Judas with a qualified disciple, in keeping with the necessary fulfillment of God’s Word with regard to kingdom restoration (cf. Psalms 69:25; 109:8). Two fellas, the man with three names, Joseph-Barsabbas-Justus, and the man with one name, Matthias, meet the stipulations. That is, both Joseph and Matthias are qualified to be counted among the twelve and receive a share in their ministry. And yet, only one will be chosen. In the end, King Jesus reveals his choice of Matthias. Check out the final movements in the scene:

And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. (Acts 1:24–26)

The disciples pray for the Lord to reveal his choice, and he does. We may wonder: What did Joseph do after this? Did he leave in a huff? Did he ask for a recasting of the lots? Did he take his ball and go home? I think it is safe to say no to all of the above. Here’s why.

The very next thing we read in Acts 2:1 is this,

When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

They here refers to all of the disciples of Jesus who were present in the preceding scene: the eleven and the roughly 120 including the newly added to the eleven, Matthias, and Joseph. All of these were baptized in the Holy Spirit and became instrumental witnesses of Jesus Christ in the founding of the early church. Some traditions even say that Joseph went on to become a bishop in the early church. But, we may still wonder: Why was Matthias chosen over Joseph?

The short answer, as we’ve made clear at the top, is because Jesus delighted to choose Matthias and wasn’t beholding or dependent to pick one over the other. But there might be more to say on the matter.

We find one other valuable insight in Acts 1:24. From the disciples’ human perspective, the choice is a toss-up. All the objective evidence they can observe suggests that these men are equally qualified. There are no glaring reasons why one and not the other should be chosen. Therefore, they pray. Notice the content of their prayer again. Not only do they confess that Jesus has already made his choice (he simply needs to reveal it) but they address Jesus as the knower of hearts. They recognize that not only does the Lord know the hearts of these men in a way that they as outside observers certainly can’t, but that the Lord also knows Joseph and Matthias’ hearts more intimately than even Joseph and Matthias can. We’re reminded here of the Psalmist:

Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. (Psalm 19:12)

 Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! (Psalm 139:23–24)

Perhaps, there was something in the heart of Joseph that better suited him to not be one of the twelve. For that matter, perhaps there was something in Matthias’ heart that better suited him to be one of the twelve. What was it? We don’t know. We can only speculate on the specifics. But what we can know for sure is that this choice by the Lord was a grace to both men.

Everything God does for his people, he does for his glory and their good. God’s will for his people is their conformity to Jesus and their ultimate glorification with him (Romans 8:29–31). Therefore, God works all things toward this ultimate good for those who love him and are called according to this purpose and plan unto his own glory (Rom 8:28; 11:36). By taking away from Joseph the role of being one of the twelve, King Jesus was doing what was most glorifying for himself and what was best for Joseph. Likewise, by giving to Matthias the role of being one of the twelve, King Jesus was doing what was most glorifying for himself and what was best for Matthias. This is instructive for us.

Our identity should never be wrapped up in anything other than Jesus—not even our particularly calling or ministry. If Joseph bound his identity to being named one of the twelve because he thought it was what was best for him and the kingdom, the loss of this possibility might have driven him to despair. By taking this role from Joseph, then, we can trust that God was working a particular grace in his life that otherwise wouldn’t have come about. Perhaps he was exposing things in Joseph for his good. Perhaps he was protecting Joseph from hidden things in his heart that wouldn’t have been revealed and dealt with otherwise. So, for you, when God takes something away, even when it is what you believe he has called you to, you can rest assured of this: God gives and God takes away always for your ultimate good and his glory.

God is not dependent on you for his kingdom plans to succeed. He is not beholden to use you in any specific ministry or way. Rather, God delights to use you in the way that will most glorify him and conform you into the image of Jesus (Rom 8:28–31). The picture of Matthias being chosen rather than Joseph illustrates this reality for us in a memorable way.

God can make children of Abraham out of rocks. God will be glorified with or without you. But, in his kindness, he has delighted to call you to wrap yourself up completely in his Son, Jesus. He has delighted to call you to glorify him in the way he chooses. Submit to his call knowing that he will work all things for your good. For, his glory is your good.

Why Do You Own Anything?

Why do you own anything?

Consider what you own:

  • Shirts, dresses, and pants,
  • Dress coats, rain coats, and fleeces,
  • Exercise shoes, casual shoes, and dress shoes
  • Beds, mattresses, and sheets,
  • Houses, stoves, and refrigerators,
  • Gardens, patios, and pools,
  • Cars, bikes, and scooters,
  • Computers, cell phones, and watches,
  • bank accts, 401k’s, and IRAs
  • health insurance, car insurance, and life insurance:

You own a lot.

Indeed, you are rich. If you have:

  • Indoor plumbing,
  • Water readily available in your house that is fit for drinking
  • More than 1 change of clothes,
  • Enough money or food all year long to know you won’t go hungry,
  • Access to medical care that can actually keep sick children from dying,

then you are richer than the vast majority of humanity in all recorded history, and far, far richer than virtually everyone in Jesus’ day.

You own a lot.

But why do you own anything?

Consider emphasizing two different words in that question:

Why do you own anything? That is: Where did what you own come from? How did you get it? Do you deserve it?

Second: Why do you own anything? That is: For what purpose – to what end – do you own anything? How are you to use what you own?

Those two aspects of the question constitute our outline.

Why Do You Own Anything?

Consider two different answers to this question:

1) The Marxist answer, also given by a number of cultures:

“You personally don’t own anything. All you have and all you earn belongs to the state (or the ethnic group or the village).” This idea is well summarized in a phrase popularized by Marx: “From each according to his ability, to each according to his need.”

2) An answer common among American citizens:

“Whatever I own, I deserve. I worked hard for it, or made smart investments to get it (or my parents and ancestors worked hard for it). Sure, I’m willing to pay a reasonable tax rate to fund necessary government services, and I choose to give some away to good causes, including my church. But I deserve what I own. It’s mine.”

Is either of these the biblical view?

Some have argued that the Marxist view is biblical, taking as strongest evidence the behavior of the early church in Acts chapters 2 and 4. Let’s look briefly at these chapters – and chapter 5 as well – to see if the actions of the early church can be described in this way.

Acts 2 and 4 tell us how the church helped the needy among them:

Acts 2:45: They were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.

Acts 4:34-35: There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

Chapter 4 goes on to tell us that Barnabas was one who sold a field and gave the entire value to the apostles.

Then in chapter 5 we learn of Ananias and Saphira. This couple also sells a field. They too give a substantial amount to the church to distribute to the poor. But they tell the church a lie, saying that they gave the entire value of the sale.

Peter then speaks to Ananias:

Acts 5:4: “While [the field] remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”

Peter’s statement shows that the early church recognized private property. The early church did not force believers to sell all their possessions and turn them over to the collective. The sales and giving were voluntary.

Note that Peter doesn’t upbraid Ananias for withholding part of purchase price. Peter makes clear: Ananias didn’t have to sell the field, and having sold it, he didn’t have to give all the proceeds to the church. Had Ananias sold the field and given half the proceeds – and had they been honest about it – Peter’s response would have been similar to Jesus’ when Zaccheus gave half of his goods to the poor: Great joy! (Luke 19:8-10)

So Ananias and Saphira’s sin was not withholding part of the purchase price. Instead, the sin consisted of:

  • The lie itself: Peter says they lied not only to the church but also to the Holy Spirit.
  • The motivation for lying: Desiring the praise of men more than the praise of God. Ananias and Saphira wanted the accolades that were accruing to Barnabas and others, while not doing what Barnabas had done.
  • Most importantly, they participated in an attack on the witness and purity of the church. Satan had persecuted the church externally, and the church only got stronger. At this point, Ananias effectively cooperates with Satan to attack the church internally – to take the institution that should exist to God’s glory, and make it like any other human institution, as its members strive for self-exaltation and recognition. (For more details, see this sermon).

But for our purposes today, the main point is this: Even in the context of great sharing, Peter affirms that Ananias and Saphira have the right to use the proceeds of the sale as they see fit.

So, no, the Bible does not argue that all you have belongs to the church, must less to the state.

What about the second answer to the question, “Why do you own anything?” – what I called the common American view?

Do you deserve what you have?

Think about what you have. Where did it come from?

All you have came as a gift, as inheritance, or from your work (for our purposes today, let’s consider government transfer payments as gifts, and include investment income under the gains from work).

You clearly did nothing to merit what you received through gifts or inheritance. What about your earnings from work? Do you deserve what you worked for, what you earned through investments?

Next week we’ll look more closely at the biblical view of work. We’ll see that work itself is God-ordained, that we are to work hard, as to the Lord, and that we are not to be lazy.

But no matter how hard we work, the Bible claims that even what we earn is really a gift from God:

Deuteronomy 8:17-18:  Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’  You shall remember the LORD your God, for it is he who gives you power [NIV “ability”] to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

Listen to that carefully. This common American attitude is explicitly anti-biblical. The passage warns, “Do not say in your heart, ‘my power has gotten me this wealth.’” That is, “Do not say in your heart, ‘I worked hard and earned every penny I own.’” Do not pat yourself on the back and say, “I was smart, I bought Apple in 1985 for less than $2 per share. I deserve all those capital gains.”

Instead: Remember! Remember it is the Lord your God who gives you ability to get wealth. He gives you all your ability: Your education, your health, your intuition, your people skills, your looks, your diligence. Everything you use to make money is a gift from God. Every penny you make is to be used by God to confirm His covenant.

Work itself is gift of God. So all you own is undeserved: whether earned through labor, earned through investments, inherited, or received as a gift.

As Paul says: “He himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything” (Acts 17:25). Your ability to absorb oxygen from the air and to transfer it into your red blood cells is a gift of God. Apart from that, you are dead. And then what do you earn?

Indeed, biblically the only thing we earn in this life through our actions, the only thing we merit, is death. Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden, and every man and woman since born in the normal way has joined them in that rebellion. Death is the wages of sin, the right, just, and fair remuneration for sin. But God graciously grants us forgiveness in Christ, adoption, inheritance, security, joy – by faith, not by works, not by merit. There is redemption for all who believe, not redemption for all who are smart, wise, and hardworking. We are saved by looking away from ourselves, by looking away from our merit, and looking solely to Christ. So Paul writes:

What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? (1 Corinthians 4:7)

Why do you own anything?

  • The Marxist view is unbiblical.
  • And the common American view is unbiblical.

All you have is a gift from God – even what you earned as wages, or from your business.              All is undeserved. He gives us the ability to work, to serve.

Why Do You Own Anything?

For what purpose – if any – do you own anything? How are you to use what you own?

God has given you the gift of your material resources for a purpose:

  • The same purpose for which He does everything,
  • The same purpose for which He created the world,
  • The same purpose for which He sent Jesus into the world, to the cross,
  • The same purpose for which He forgives you.

God has given you all you own – for the glory of His Name. All you have is a grant from God – to be used for His glory.

There are hundreds of text we could consider to substantiate this point. But let’s look at Romans 11:35-36.

“Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?”  For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

In  verse 35, the Apostle Paul quotes Job 41:11. God is speaking to Job:

Who has first given to me, that I should repay him? Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.

This verse undercuts the foundation of most manmade religion. All of paganism – and, indeed, much unbiblical Christianity – is based on our giving something to God, putting Him in our debt. Then we draw down that debt when we need help.

We’re all tempted to think this way: “I have resources, time, energy, and abilities. If I use these in ways God wants, He then will have to pay me back. He’ll do what I want Him to do.”

Isn’t that way many, many people think? Haven’t you been tempted to think that way?

  • “If I tithe . . .
  • “If I attend church services . . .
  • “If I pray regularly . . .
  • “If I read the Bible daily . . .
  • “If I fast . . .
  • “If I do good deeds for others . . .

God will be in my debt, and then He’ll be obligated to give me what I want.”

But that’s ridiculous. That’s fundamentally pagan thinking.

Scripture tells us: All things are from Him. He already owns everything. Whatever goods, abilities, or skills you have are from Him. Anything you give to God belonged to Him before you gave it!

Imagine that 8-year-old Megan went to her daddy and asked, “May I have $10?”

He replies, “What will you use it for?”

She says, “I want to buy you a birthday present!”

So he gives her $10, and she buys him a lovely purple tie with pink polka dots that says “It’s My Birthday!” on it.

He opens the present and exclaims, “Oh! A tie! How lovely!”

Is he better off because he received the gift? He surely appreciates the thought, the desire to give. But you’d be hard-pressed to argue that he gained through that transaction. And receiving a gift for which he provided the money surely doesn’t put him in Megan’s debt.

That’s true of all we give to God- whether time or money or energy. All things are from Him. “Whatever is under the whole heaven” is His! So whatever you give to Him was His already.

In Romans 11, after Paul says “all things are from Him,” he goes on to say: “All things are through Him.” That is: He is the means by which all things are accomplished. Just as we said, even the work we do, we accomplish by His grace.

Then, third, Paul answers our question. He tells us the purpose of all that we have: “To Him are all things! So to Him be the glory forever!”

All creation – and thus all you are and have – exists to display His glory, to show what He is like. So He gives and gives and gives so that He might share His bounteous goodness with us, and so that we, in turn, might display to others Who He is.

That is true of all things, so that is true of all things that you own.

All you own is from Him, through Him, and to Him. All you own is a grant from God, which you are to use for His glory.

You deserve nothing; rather, You deserve condemnation. But instead, if you are in Christ, God has granted you life – and more than life: He has granted you material goods, He has granted you time, He has granted you energy. And all this grant is for the purpose of glorifying His Name.

Recognizing this truth leads to a profound change in attitude toward “your” possessions.

In the early nineties I was conducting an economic research project in Kenya and Tanzania. I received a grant of $250,000 from USAID to assist with project costs. I had to account for how I spent each dollar. Now, I had flexibility; I could move the budget among line items as needs arose, as the project turned out differently than I had planned. But I had to justify each expenditure by how it fulfilled the goals of the research project. And if I had reported that I spent $3000 for a party for my employees at the most expensive Nairobi hotel, the accountants at USAID would have said, “That’s not allowable. You can’t spend the grant that way. That violates the purpose of the grant!”

Just so, all you have is not yours to use however you decide to use it. All you have is a grant from God to be used for His glory.

So how does that change your mindset?

Think about what you own:

  • My house is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My car is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My computer is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My job is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My health is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My weekend is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My vacation is a grant from God to be used for His glory.
  • My savings accounts, my 401k’s, my college savings are grants from God to be used for His glory.
  • My income and my assets are grants from God to be used for His glory.

Is your reaction: “God can’t take all that from me! What’s left for me?”

That’s a natural reaction.  I feel that in myself.

And there’s a word for that reaction: Sin.

Why? Why is that reaction sinful?

Consider: What attitude underlies that reaction?

When we react that way, our attitude is: “If it’s for God’s glory, it must not be for my joy! I don’t mind giving some to God – but I need to reserve some for myself to be sure I get what I need!”

Is that the attitude of someone whose identity, security, and joy are in God?

Is that the attitude of someone who is content with God?

Indeed, what underlies that attitude?

This thought underlies the attitude: “I know better than God what is in my own best interest. He won’t really look out for me. He doesn’t really have my best interests at heart. I’ve got to look out for myself.”

And that was Eve’s attitude when she chose to eat the forbidden fruit.

My friends: God loves you with an everlasting love. He gives you the greatest joy imaginable. As Paul says in Romans 8:32:

He who did not spare His Son but gave Him up for us all – how will He not along with Him freely give us all things?”

You see? Putting Jesus on the cross was the hardest gift of all for God to give. He did that – for you! Having done that: Won’t He give you what is much, much easier?

Think of it this way: Those of you who have loving parents, think of what they’ve done for you.

  • They stayed up long hours at night when you were an infant.
  • They stayed up long hours at night when you were a teen.
  • They cooked and cleaned for you.
  • They counseled and taught you.
  • They drove you to practices and plays.
  • They prayed for you and played with you.
  • They cried with you and comforted you.
  • They taught you to drive and drove you to excel.

Now: Your dad drops you off at the airport. You say goodbye, and go to check in. You get to the counter and the agent says, “Sorry, Your flight is canceled. We can’t get you out until tomorrow morning.”

Do you then think: “Oh, no! I can’t call dad back. He just drove me to the airport! He won’t come back to pick me up!”

Could you really think that? After all he’s done that’s so much harder – he won’t come and pick you up?

That’s nonsense. He’s done what is hard. He’ll do this little thing.

Just so with God. After giving us Jesus – after sending Him to the cross – won’t He provide whatever we need for our good and His glory? That is: Won’t He provide whatever we need

  • to sustain us through trials,
  • to conform us to the likeness of His Son,
  • and to bring us safely to His heavenly kingdom?

You are rich. And all you own is from God. All you own is to God, to be used for His glory.

There’s much to explore in weeks ahead concerning how to live this out: What should be our attitude towards work? How do we live out this truth through our budgeting and spending? How do we use all we have for God’s glory? We’ll consider entertainment, saving, giving, and borrowing.

But for now: Think of what you own or have: Material goods. Skills and abilities. Interests. Blocks of time. Pray to God, acknowledging that these are His. And tell Him you want Him to use it for His glory – whatever that may mean. Pray, “We offer our bodies, ourselves, all we have as sacrifices for Your glory.”

May He bring that about – for our great joy.