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6/3 Reading Portions: Deuteronomy 7; Psalm 90; Isaiah 35; Revelation 5
Deuteronomy 7:22
“The LORD your God will clear away these nations before you little by little. You may not make an end of them at once, lest the wild beasts grow too numerous for you.”
GROWTH
Among the many blessed truths, Deuteronomy’s seventh chapter provides us with one wonderful snapshot about our growth in grace. A fleshly impulse in us would desire to be sanctified thoroughly, all at once. As children and adolescents, we couldn’t wait to grow up, to get older, naturally speaking. Likewise, the same temptation is there in our spiritual growth. We want immediate maturity and holiness. Yet just as a baby is not capable of driving a car, a spiritual babe must grow as a child, then into a young adult, and then into maturity for spiritual decisions based upon the Spirit’s guidance to be more fully grasped. This is not to say that a spiritual babe in Christ is not led of the Holy Spirit at all. God forbid. Nevertheless, the nations which inhabit our gospel lives must be cleared away by Jesus Christ little by little. Since it is Christ’s job to build His church and the Spirit’s job to sanctify the church’s members, God does so to mature us as we possess the “land” of gospel promise while He fights for us to dispossess those “nations more numerous and mightier than you” and me (Deut 7:1). We cannot covenant with these worldly influences (Deut 7:2), nor may we become intimate with them (Deut 7:3), for they would turn our hearts away from Christ time and again (Deut 7:4). Worldly idols must be destroyed in the depths of our souls (Deut 7:5) as the providence of God brings each one of them into the path of our spiritual walk (Deut 7:22), by His mercy, love, grace, and faithfulness (Deut 7:6-10). The blessedness of fruitful growth does not come apart from the parameters of God’s glorious covenant of grace (Deut 7:12-15); and as we grow in maturity, we will not pity those worldly influences, nor serve their wicked gods, because even a compassionate thought toward its evil would be a snare to us (Deut 7:16). We must remember always our miraculous salvation by grace (Deut 7:17-19), and the promise of God’s gospel protection against such things (Deut 7:20) that would cause us to fear these corruptions more than our great and awesome Christ (Deut 7:21). Hallelujah! What a Savior!