This is Monday night, June 9, 1975, in Richmond, Virginia. The ministry is given to Brother Stephen Kaung.
I would like to read just here and there a few passages to start with. I do not know how much we will cover tonight, but we will see as we go along.
Deuteronomy 1:5
Beyond the Jordan, in the land of Moab, began Moses to declare this law.
Deuteronomy 4:1-2
And now, O Israel, hearken unto the statutes and unto the ordinances, which I teach you, to do them; that ye may live, and go in and possess the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, giveth you.
Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.
Deuteronomy 29:1
These are the words of the covenant which the Lord commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which He made with them in Horeb.
This fifth book of Moses is called Deuteronomy. The very word means the restating of the law—the saying of the law for the second time—or the second law.
Before the children of Israel were to enter into the promised land, on the plains of Moab, Moses restated the law that God had given to their fathers at Mount Horeb. As he restated the law, he unfolded it and expounded it to them.
Now, if you compare Exodus 20 with Deuteronomy 5, you will find the exact ten words—that is, the Ten Commandments. We know, of course, that the Ten Commandments form the basis of the law. The statutes and ordinances were all built upon the ten words.
So, in one sense, we can say it is the same law being stated for the second time. But we do know that, under the law given to the children of Israel at Mount Horeb, they were not able to enter into the promised land.
The law was given to them to keep, and yet, because of the weakness of their flesh, they had not kept the law. They were not able to keep the law, and because they broke the law, that generation fell dead in the wilderness. They were not allowed to enter into the promised land.
So, if the law was stated for the second time and was the same law, the same covenant, how came it that the new generation was able to enter into the promised land?
That is the reason why Deuteronomy is sometimes called the second law—not just the law stated for the second time, but the second law. Why? Because here you find God made another covenant with the children of Israel on the plains of Moab, besides the covenant He made with them at Horeb.
It was almost the same, but not exactly the same. In Deuteronomy 29:1, we are told that these are the words which Moses spoke to them as God’s covenant with them, besides the covenant that God made with them at Mount Horeb.
Now, what was the difference? In every outward respect, it seemed as if they were the same, and yet there was a difference. The difference was that, under the pure law of God, no one was able to enter into the promised land.
The children of Israel, the second generation, were able to enter into the promised land not because they were righteous. If you read the book of Deuteronomy, God made it very clear to them: “Do not think that you are able to enter in because you are more righteous.” God said, “You are not. You are a stiff-necked people.”
It was because of the wickedness of the peoples who were in the land, not because of Israel’s righteousness. It was because God remembered His promise to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. It was because God was a faithful God.
It was not because of the faith of the people, but because of the faithfulness of God. And God said, “Do not think that you enter because you are stronger than the people inhabiting the land.” God said, “Actually, they are stronger than you are. But it is because I love you that you are able to enter in and possess the land.”
So, brothers and sisters, you can see very clearly that they did not enter into the land because they kept the law. Nobody could, whether it was the first generation or the second generation. They were allowed to enter in because of God’s love, His faithfulness, and His mercy.
But God did restate the law to them, and the restating of the law is related to the land. After they entered into the land by the mercy of God, they should learn to hearken to God’s Word—not like their fathers, who did not listen to the voice of God.
After they entered into the promised land, they should listen to God’s Word. If they obeyed God, they would be able to remain in the land.
Brothers and sisters, they did not enter into the land because they kept the law. But after they entered into the land by the mercy of God, they were commanded to keep the law. If they hearkened and kept the law, then they would remain long in the land. If they did not, they would be cast out of the land.
But that was not everything. If this were everything, then they would enter into the land through the mercy of God, but they would be cast out of the land because they did not keep the law.
So here you find, in the book of Deuteronomy, God’s new covenant, as it were—another covenant with them. God said, “Now, if you do not keep My Word, keep My law, you will be cast out. But I will, in My mercy, get you back.”
Now that is the covenant on the plains of Moab. It is more than the covenant God made with their fathers at Mount Horeb. Even though it was the same law, the second one was supported by grace. Their coming in was by mercy.
Hopefully, the children of Israel—their hearts being touched by the love of God—would rise up to love God. Thus they would remain long in the land.
Of course, now it is history. As we look back, we know exactly how everything happened. By the mercy of God and because of the faithfulness of God, God led them into the promised land, and they received the land.
But after they settled in the land and became prosperous, they soon forgot God. They did not keep the law. God sent His prophets to them again and again to warn them, but they would not repent. Finally, they were taken into captivity; they were scattered abroad.
But thank God, God promised to bring them back. That is the covenant God made with them on the plains of Moab.
Now, what is that to us? Brothers and sisters, of course, we are not under law; we are under grace. If we were still under law, we would still be under bondage. We would never be able to enjoy Christ, our land, in all His fullness.
That is very true. But, dear brothers and sisters, sometimes we forget. We think that because we are not under law, therefore we are not under anything.
Because we are saved by grace, somehow, after we have possessed Christ, we begin to wander. In doing that, we will not be able to fully possess our possession.
Spiritually speaking, even though we are not under law but under grace, there is a law which God does give to us. If we want to remain long in the land, if we want to fully possess our possession, there is a law that we need to keep.
It is not the Ten Commandments. You remember in John 15, the Lord said, “If ye keep My commandments, ye shall abide in My love.” Not because today we are under grace, therefore, is there no law whatsoever. There is a law.
What is the law of grace? What is the law that God has given to us today? You remember, in the new covenant, in Hebrews 8, God said:
I will put My laws into their mind,
And on their heart also will I write them:
And I will be to them a God,
And they shall be to Me a people.
In other words, we are not without law. We do have a law, but one law: the royal law of love, the law of grace, the law of the Spirit of life.
God does not give us ten laws, ten commandments, nor a hundred commandments. No, there is just one. It is the law of love. It is the law of life. It is the law of the Spirit of life.
Now, if we keep that law, we will abide in Christ. If we abide in Him and He abides in us, then we will bear much fruit.
Oftentimes, brothers and sisters, we know that we are in Christ and Christ is in us. We know this is grace. It is by the grace of God that we are now in Christ and Christ is now in us.
But sometimes we wonder why we do not bear fruit, why we do not know more of Christ, why we do not fully possess our possession, why we are still so weak and still so poor, why we know so little of Christ and experience so little of Him. We should understand why.
In John 15, we are told, “Abide.” You need to abide—to make your home, to remain in Him. Then He will make His home in you.
Now, how do we abide in Christ? The children of Israel abode in the land by keeping the law. That was the one condition. How do we abide in Christ? We abide in Christ by keeping the law of the Spirit of life.
Therefore, you find in 1 John 2 that we have the anointing within. The Spirit of life is in us. How we need to follow the teaching of God! The anointing within us will teach us in all things, and whatever He teaches is true and is not a lie.
If we obey the teaching of the anointing, we abide in Christ. Thank God, we are in Christ. We can possess our possession, but there is a condition: we must abide in Christ.
How do we abide in Christ? He has put His Spirit—the Spirit of life—within us. The Spirit of life has its law, and He will teach us from within, not from without.
It is not a matter of keeping rules and laws from without. The law is no longer carved on stone; it is inscribed upon our hearts. Within us, we know. Within us, the Holy Spirit will show. Within us, the life works according to its law.
As the Spirit of life moves within us, we abide in Christ. So our Christian life is a life of obedience. We simply obey, and that is the meaning of being under grace.
We are not under law, but we are under grace. Under grace is different from under law because it is not something external. Under grace, the life within us operates, and all we need to do is obey, cooperate, follow, and walk after that life.
In doing that, you will find that we remain long in the land. We are able to enjoy all that Christ is unto us. So, in a sense, the law and the land are related.
The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus is the secret of possessing our possession.
Now you find in the book of Deuteronomy that, even before they entered into the promised land, God, through Moses, told them what kind of life they should live after they entered into the land.
Thank God, we are now in Christ. But what kind of life shall we live in Christ? How do we know that we are really living in Christ—that it is not something unreal, but very real?
As you read the book of Deuteronomy, you will find Moses told the children of Israel what they should do after they entered into the land, and how they should live in the land.
In revealing to them how they should live in the land, you will find it was divided into two parts. One is a corporate life; the other is a personal life.
Life, as God sees it, has these two aspects. So the life in Christ has its corporate aspect as well as its personal aspect. These two aspects must go together.
You cannot just emphasize one of these two aspects. If you do that, your life will be unbalanced; it will be weak. But as we emphasize both aspects of life, they strengthen each other. They are complementary to each other. Then life becomes a complete life.
So, in telling the children of Israel how they should live in the land, you find God emphasized their personal life as well as their corporate life. This evening, we would like to mention just a few things.
So far as we are concerned, the personal comes first. But so far as God is concerned, the corporate always comes first. God always begins with the ultimate, the end, and then comes downward. We always come from the beginning and go to the end. God’s emphasis is very different from our emphasis.
So in the book of Deuteronomy, you find that God revealed to the children of Israel what their life would be in the land, and the corporate came first.
Number one: God said, after you enter into the land, you should not do what you are doing now in the wilderness, and you should not do what the nations in the land do.
After you enter into the land, God said, “I will appoint a place where I will put My name, and then you all must go to that place to offer sacrifices and to worship.”
Today, you can offer sacrifice any place you want to, just like the rest of the nations. If a place attracts them—if they see a tall tree, a big rock, or a high place—then they build an altar and worship their god.
Now, the children of Israel, because they were traveling in the wilderness, could not be at that one place. They would be here and there, offering sacrifices and worshiping God in various places. But God said, “After you enter into the land, it should not be so.”
God would appoint a place, and all the children of Israel would go to that place to offer sacrifices and worship God.
We know, of course, the place that God chose was Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the place that God chose. In Jerusalem, there was a temple built. In Jerusalem, all the tribes of Israel would go and offer sacrifices and worship God—and no other place.
Jerusalem became the center, the rallying point, of the twelve tribes of Israel. It was Jerusalem that kept the nation as one people.
Suppose God had allowed them to offer sacrifice to Him in whatever place pleased them. Suppose God had allowed them to worship Him in different places. You know what the result would be? Before long, there would be twelve nations, not one nation.
In order to keep them as one nation and one people, God appointed Jerusalem as the center, and all the tribes were to go to Jerusalem. Jerusalem became the center of that people; it united them into one people.
Jerusalem had such a place in the heart of the children of Israel. Whether you were of Levi, Dan, or Issachar—whatever tribe you might be—you found that Jerusalem was the love of the heart of the children of Israel.
You remember the psalmist said:
If I forget thee, O Jerusalem,
Let my right hand forget her skill.
Let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth,
If I remember thee not;
If I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.
In other words, let me be speechless. O Jerusalem! The Jews were scattered all over the world, but what held them together? Jerusalem. Every year they said, “Next year in Jerusalem.”
The city that God had chosen, where He put His name, united them into one people and kept them as one. That is a corporate life.
Now, dear brothers and sisters, of course we are in Christ. What kind of life does God want us to live in Christ? Does God want us to live in Christ as a scattered people, each going his own way, worshiping God and offering praises to Him?
Thank God, yes, we should offer praises to Him. We should worship Him. But do we worship Him merely as individuals? The life in Christ is a corporate life. It is a life together. It is a life as one people, one body, as one.
But how are we one? How can we really be one? How can we really live as one? What is our center? Where shall we go together?
You remember the Lord said, “Where two or three are gathered together unto My name, there am I in the midst of them.” In other words, there is a Jerusalem with us, and our Jerusalem is Christ our Head.
That is our Jerusalem. We not only live in Christ, but we let Christ be our Head. If we lift up Christ and let Him be our Head, then the whole body is fitly framed and knit together.
This is the place where He put His name: two or three gathered together unto His name. What does it mean, “unto My name”? Unto His name simply means that we all come under His authority. He is our Head.
Brothers and sisters, it is very simple—very simple. Whenever God’s people are gathered together unto His name, that is to say, holding fast the Head, then you will find we live as one.
Whenever we move away from that name which is above every name, you will find we are scattered; we are split. This is God’s way of keeping His people together as one.
When they gathered together in Jerusalem, they went there to offer their sacrifices and gifts to God. They did not go there empty-handed.
When we come together, we bring the produce of the land with us. We need to be diligent in cultivating the land. How we need to be diligent in our daily life to cultivate, as it were, to explore Christ, to work on Christ!
That we may have abundance to bring to the house of the Lord, and together we worship Him and share with one another. Now that is the life in the land.
Number two: God commanded that every year, three times a year, the children of Israel must come to Jerusalem—at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, or Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles.
During those three feasts, all the males—representing all the children of Israel—were to come to Jerusalem together, coming from all directions. There they would worship God.
Here you find that God’s people are not only one people, one body, but God’s people assemble. The life in Christ is an assembling life. Because we are one people, therefore we must assemble together.
The church is an assembly, a body. We are exhorted in Hebrews not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together, especially as we see the day drawing near. How we need to come together to encourage one another, exhort one another, and strengthen one another in love.
The children of Israel were one people, and they were to assemble together from time to time to encourage one another in the Lord. So the life in Christ is an assembling life.
Now, how often should we assemble? Of course, it does not mean three times a year. It is not literal in that sense, because with us today it is spiritual. But still, God’s people have to come together.
How often should we come together? It depends on how often we can come together. It is not a matter of how little we can get by with. It is a matter of how much we can.
Sometimes, of course, we have our families and our children. We should take care of our children. We should not leave our children at home every night while we go to a meeting. That does not honor the Lord.
So you find that the Lord will guide and lead us. Put priorities in their proper place, and be well balanced—well balanced. But anyway, you find it is an assembling life.
Thirdly, God divided the land among the children of Israel. They did not occupy the same plain or the same mountain. The twelve tribes were given different lands.
Some lived by the coast, some lived in the mountains, and some lived on the plains. Because they were given different lands, some became fishermen, some became farmers, some became herdsmen, and some even became miners.
They were given different land, and they were to diligently work upon the land. You know, it is not God’s will that we should do nothing. Laziness is never God’s character. God is a diligent God.
Even after He created Adam and Eve, He put them in the garden. You would say they did not need to worry about what to eat, because they ate the fruit of the trees. They did not need to work for a living, and yet God put them to work.
They did not work for a living, but they did work. They had to tend and keep the garden—not for a living, but for increase, for the glory of God.
Even after man was driven out of the garden, he had to work for a living. Formerly, man worked for the glory of God, to increase what God had already created and increase its value. But now man has to toil and sweat in order to make a living.
Of course, we Christians, as God has redeemed us, do not work merely to make a living. We have to work to make a living, but over and above that, we work to glorify God.
Paul said, “If any will not work, neither let him eat.” We have to work. We have to work in the land; we have to work on Christ. We have to increase the value of the land and get the most out of the land, so that we may have abundance to offer to God and to share with one another.
Not all are given the same thing. There is such variety. Some have fish, some have sheep, some have copper and iron, some have vegetables and fruit.
They brought the produce of the land to Jerusalem to give to God and to share with one another. It is unity with variety, not conformity. Do not try to conform one another. Do not try to conform others to yourself.
We are various members in the body, members one of another. We are all different members. The grace and gift that God gives to each are different. But we all need to be diligent—diligent in knowing Christ, diligent in possessing Him.
Then we have much to offer to God and to share with our brothers and sisters. That is the kind of corporate life in the land. It is not a selfish life; it is a life that shares with God and with one another.
On the other side, Moses also told them how they should live as individuals—their personal life. There are a few things that we can mention.
Number one: they had to live a separated life. After they entered into the promised land, they were a people separated from the nations. Therefore, they should not imitate the nations around them, nor the nations which they destroyed. They should be separated unto God and do everything that God commanded, not what the nations did.
Now that is a separated life. Dear brothers and sisters, we are to live a separated life. But where is the separation? How do you separate?
The separation today is a spiritual thing; it is not a legal thing. Oftentimes, we Christians do not understand what a separated life is. We think a separated life means laying down a few rules and regulations.
If you keep these rules and regulations, then you live a separated life. For instance, there are certain places you do not go and certain things you do not do; then you are a separated Christian.
But, dear brothers and sisters, separation, so far as our life in Christ is concerned, is a living thing. It is not a legal thing.
I will use an illustration which I can never forget. I do not know whether you have heard of Sister Eva von Bodelschwingh. She was connected with the deaconess work in Germany. In this country, at Liberty Corner, New Jersey, there are deaconesses connected with that work.
Now, Sister Eva came from a very wealthy family, but she devoted her life to God’s service. They cared for the aged and served those with leprosy, those who were blind, and others in need. Their life was a life of service.
Sister Eva knew God; she knew the Lord very well. Once she was traveling in England—or perhaps Scotland—during the time of the Welsh revival.
She was traveling by train and saw several young girls coming on board. They were talking aloud, bubbling over with life, and they were not dressed very conservatively. The deaconesses had uniforms, head coverings, and strict attire.
She looked at these girls and heard what they were talking about: they were talking about the Lord. Where were they going? They were going to lead revival meetings. They were involved in the Welsh revival.
In her heart, Sister Eva criticized the girls very much. She thought, “How could God use these people? They are not separated.” She considered herself separated by her uniform and all these things.
When she arrived at the place, sure enough, these girls were leading the revival, and God used them mightily. It really put her to shame. She said, “Why? Why did God do such a thing? I am so separated; they are not separated, and yet God used them.”
The reason is that a separated life is not a legal thing; it is a living thing. So far as the Lord had shown these young girls, they had been obedient. So the Lord blessed them.
It was not a matter of saying, “You must dress this way,” or, “You must act this way or that way.” No, it is not a legal thing. As the Lord leads you, as the Lord gives you more life, as you know the Lord a little more, then you find the Lord begins to build up the wall of separation.
The wall of separation is the life of Christ. It is your living knowledge of Christ that is the wall of separation.
What is worldly? What is not worldly? It is the life of Christ in you that separates. The more you know the life of Christ, the more you are separated from that which is not of Christ.
Because of that, you cannot put up a standard and apply it to everybody: “Now this is worldly, and this is not worldly.” You cannot do that. It is a living thing.
I do not mean to say that you can be careless. But we need to see that we Christians must live a separated life, separated from the world. Yet it is a living separation, not a legal thing. It is based upon our knowledge of Christ in life.
The children of Israel were not only to live a separated life; they were to live a holy life. God said, “I am holy; ye shall be holy.”
Holy simply means set apart for God. It is not only separation, which is negative, but being for God. They were to live positively for God.
How shall we live in Christ? We need not only to live a separated life, but we need to live a life for God. We live for Him. That is holiness.
Holiness is not merely some idea we have of what a holy life should look like. Holiness is a life for God, devoted to God.
Strangely, the way God told the children of Israel to live that holy life included very practical matters. I will mention a few things.
Number one was their eating habit. Certain things they should not eat. They should not eat unclean things; they should eat only clean things. Because they ate clean things, they were holy.
Now, of course, applying this to us today, the Levitical law of eating does not apply to us literally. For hygienic reasons, there may still be value in it, but there is no spiritual value in following the Levitical law of eating merely outwardly.
But there is a spiritual meaning to it: what you eat makes what you are.
How we need to feed upon Christ. How we need to feed upon His Word. How we need to feed upon things that are clean and not feed upon things that are unclean.
People in this world today are so unclean. Why? Because day after day, everything they feed upon is unclean. What they see on television, what they read in the papers, and what they see around them—these things are unclean.
They feed upon these things, absorb these things, associate with these things and these people, and eventually they become the same thing.
So here you find life in Christ is feeding upon what is clean. Oh, how we need to feed upon His Word, which is clean and pure. How we need to feed upon Christ as our food and meditate upon Him.
How we need to associate ourselves with other believers who make us clean. Eating is association too; it is fellowship. So to live a holy life begins with our eating habit.
The second thing that made them a holy people was tithing. In Deuteronomy, they were told to tithe their increase.
Aside from the firstfruits, which they were to offer to God, every tenth was to be offered. Now, why did God command them to tithe? What He was concerned with was not merely the method of tithing, but the principle and spirit of tithing.
Why did God command the children of Israel to tithe everything? To remind them that they belonged to God.
If God had not commanded them to tithe, soon they would forget. They would think, “These things belong to us.” They would become self-centered. They would think everything belonged to them, and that they belonged to themselves.
By tithing, they were reminded that everything they had was given by God. The tithe was only a symbol, a token, to show: “This is not mine; it is Yours. I am giving a tenth back to You to show that it belongs to You. You are the Owner. You are the Giver. Everything belongs to You.”
Whatever is left, I enjoy with gratitude and thankfulness. That is actually the meaning of tithing.
Brothers and sisters, today the question is not simply whether Christians should tithe or how they should tithe. The question is the principle, the spirit, of tithing.
Do we know that we belong to God? Do we know that everything belongs to Him? Do we know that we cannot hold back anything from Him? Do we know that whatever we enjoy, we enjoy with thankfulness in our hearts?
If we have that kind of spirit, it makes us a holy people. It may be a very small thing, but it does make us a holy people—knowing that we belong to Him and that everything is His.
Number three: to make them a holy people, God commanded one thing—every seventh year was to be a year of release.
Every seventh year is a year of release. If somebody owed you anything, in the seventh year you were to forgive the debt.
If your brother was poor and sold himself to you to be your servant, he would serve you six years. In the seventh year, he would go out free—and not empty-handed. You had to give him what he needed.
Why did God command the children of Israel to do such a thing? In doing that, they became a holy people. Why? Because the nations did not do these things.
If somebody owed you something, the nations would squeeze every penny out of him, with high interest. Surely, they were out to gain, not to lose.
But with the children of Israel, if your brother was poor and had to borrow something from you, you were not to refuse to lend because the seventh year was near. You were not to say, “Next year will be the seventh year, and he will not have to repay me.”
It is the spirit, the attitude, that God was creating within His people—an attitude, a heart, as generous and as big as God.
Outwardly, it was just a law: the year of release. But actually, God was trying to create in them generosity, a big heart, and love among the brethren.
Do you think that by doing that you lose? Not at all. The Bible says that after six years, you should let your brother go. He has already served you six years. You have received more than enough recompense.
Let him go, and give him what he needs. Do not let him go empty-handed. What will be the result? That brother may come to you and say, “I love you. I love your family. I do not want to go free.”
Then you would take him to the door and pierce his ear to the doorpost, and from then on he would become your servant for life.
In other words, do not think that because you have love, because you give and are generous, you will suffer loss. No, you will be given much more. That brother will come and serve you forever.
It is a life of love that makes us holy. Through these small things, God teaches us how we need to be a holy people—not a people who are small, narrow, and stingy, but a people with love and compassion, willing to give.
Outwardly, we may appear to suffer, but actually we gain our brothers. It is a life of love.
Not only a separated life and a holy life, but also a pure life. A pure life.
There is a difference between clean and pure. Things may be clean but may not be pure. Purity is something higher than mere cleanliness.
Our God is a God of purity. He loves anything that is pure. So, in the Sermon on the Mount, the Lord said:
Blessed are the pure in heart:
For they shall see God.
God wants a pure heart—not a mixed thing, but pure.
In Deuteronomy there is a chapter full of instructions. I have to say that I do not know all the spiritual applications of these things. But if you turn to Deuteronomy 22, you find a very interesting chapter, full of these small things.
Deuteronomy 22:9-11
Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with two kinds of seed: lest the whole fruit of the seed which thou hast sown, and the increase of the vineyard, be forfeited.
Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together.
Thou shalt not wear a mingled stuff, wool and linen together.
Here you find three things. God said you cannot sow two different kinds of seed in your vineyard. If you do, the whole thing is forfeited.
Seed in Scripture always speaks of life. The sower goes forth to sow seed, which is the Word of God. The Word of God, after it is sown in us, becomes life in us.
In 1 John, you find that we have His seed within us. That is the life of Christ within us. Now, you do not sow two kinds of seed. In other words, there should not be two different kinds of life in us.
If you have two different kinds of life in you, then the whole thing will be forfeited. We have the life of Christ within us, but we also have the Adamic life in us.
In actuality, there are two seeds in the vineyard. We have the good seed and we have the bad seed. We have Christ living in us, but we also have Adam living in us. God said it should not be so. He does not like that.
That is the reason why, when Christ died on the cross, our old man was crucified with Him. He got it out, because He is a God of purity. He does not like anything mixed.
Brothers and sisters, how often we find that, so far as our experience goes, our life is very mixed. Sometimes the life of Christ seems to come forth; at other times, the life of Adam seems to get the upper hand.
You find in us there is always that mixture in our lives. God is not pleased with that. God has already made provision to get rid of the other seed.
How we need to stand by faith on the ground of our death and resurrection with Christ, that we may live according to the life of Christ and not walk according to the flesh. That is a pure life.
The second thing is this: “Thou shalt not plow with an ox and an ass together.” In the old country, in the old days, when they plowed the field, they used either oxen or asses.
In order to make the plow more effective, they would usually put two oxen or two asses together under a yoke. A yoke is a bar with curves carved on two sides. One curve goes upon the neck of one ox, and the other curve goes upon the neck of the other ox. They are yoked together, and the farmer plows while they pull the plow.
But you do not plow with an ox and an ass together. An ox is a domesticated animal: disciplined and mild in nature. But an ass is a wild animal: undisciplined and quick-tempered.
When you put an ox and an ass together to plow the field, the furrow will never be straight. It will go to this side and that side. You cannot do it.
That is the reason why, in 2 Corinthians, we are told, “Be not unequally yoked.” We are believers; we are the Lord’s, and we should not be yoked to unbelievers.
Spiritually speaking, plowing is work. As we are doing the work of God, do not use two different kinds of strength: the power of the Spirit and the power of the flesh; natural energy and spiritual energy.
Do not do the work with both of these strengths. If you do, you will never get straight. The work of God will be spoiled.
We shall work with the power of God. Our natural strength must be broken.
Thirdly, you find: “Thou shalt not wear a garment of mixed material, woven of wool and linen together.” Garments in Scripture always speak of behavior, conduct, and deeds.
The garment should not be woven with wool and linen. Wool comes from the animal kingdom; linen comes from the plant kingdom.
A priest serving in the temple must not wear wool. Why? Because when he is serving, if he wears wool, he will get warm and perspire. When a priest is serving God, he wears linen. God wants to keep him cool.
In Revelation 19, you find that the bride has made herself ready, and it was given unto her that she should array herself in fine linen, bright and pure:
For the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Linen here represents Christ, our righteousness, as He is woven into our life by the Holy Spirit. Then it comes out as the righteousness of the saints. Our righteousness is none other than Christ.
But wool represents that which we perspire to get—how we exert our effort and perspire in order to produce some merit, some good deeds. This is something God does not accept.
So whether it is life, work, conduct, or behavior, God loves purity. God loves that we be a pure people.
Very generally tonight, because the book of Deuteronomy is such a big book, we have mentioned only a little of what kind of life we ought to live in the land—that is, in Christ.
We have a corporate life today, and we have a personal life too. These two strengthen each other.
So may the Lord help us to abide in Him and to live the kind of life that He wants us to live in Christ. Shall we pray?
Our heavenly Father, we do praise and thank Thee that by Thee we are in Christ Jesus. Not because we are able to keep Thy law, but because of Thy faithfulness, Thy mercy, and Thy grace, we are now in Christ Jesus.
But, Lord, Thou dost command us that we need to keep the law of the Spirit of life in order to abide in Christ, that we may bear much fruit to the glory of God.
So, Lord, we do ask Thee that Thou wilt teach us this lesson, that we may not be careless, that we may walk very softly before Thee as Thy Spirit moves within us.
Lord, we do praise and thank Thee that Thou dost give us a view of what kind of life Thou dost expect us to live in Christ.
Lord, lead us into that kind of life, both on the personal and the corporate side, that we may be a people in the land, a people in Christ, to show forth Thy glory. We ask in Thy precious name. Amen.