Deuteronomy 23:1-25


The Lord is always concerned about the holiness of His people and wants to make sure that they remain separated from the influence of the pagan nations that are around them.  Besides that He wants them to remain pure within their own nations and be protected from the sinfulness and corruption that is a part of their own hearts and actions.  Between the two, I think it is usually a far greater challenge for me to stand firm in the face of my own sinfulness than it is for me to avoid the influence of the society around me.

TROUBLE FROM WITHOUT: The nations around Israel represented very real dangers to them because of the idolatry and immorality that was so prevalent in these cultures.  For this reason these nations were never to be allowed into the assembly of the nation or the worship in the tabernacle even to ten generations.  These nations had been at war with Israel and tried to lead them into immorality as well as idolatry in the past and God wanted to protect them from this same thing in the future.  However, there were other nations who had been friendly or that were related through Abraham who were to only be excluded to three generations.  I find it very interesting that this distinction was made and that even Egypt who had enslaved and tried to destroy the children of Israel was not considered as dangerous as the nations who had tried to lead them astray.  We must be very careful with our close associations and be sure that we are having an influence of the world around us and not being influenced by those who would lead us away from Christ.

TROUBLE FROM WITHIN: Perhaps the greatest danger that the children of Israel faced was the sinfulness from within their own tribe and their own hearts.  They were to take steps to be holy and pure and were not to allow greed and corruption to control their hearts and minds.  God was present in their midst and He required that they live with that reality in mind.  We must be very careful not to allow our own sinful hearts to be the driving force in our lives.  We must be aware of the corruption of sin and greed that will often erode our standards and our walk with God.  My own heart is often far harder for me to maintain close to God than it is for me to avoid the sinful influence of the sinful world around me. 

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