Deuteronomy 23:1 -141He that is wounded in the stones, or hath his privy member cut off, shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord. 2A bastard shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the Lord. 3An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the Lord for ever: 4Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee. 5Nevertheless the Lord thy God would not hearken unto Balaam; but the Lord thy God turned the curse into a blessing unto thee, because the Lord thy God loved thee. 6Thou shalt not seek their peace nor their prosperity all thy days for ever. 7Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian; because thou wast a stranger in his land. 8The children that are begotten of them shall enter into the congregation of the Lord in their third generation. 9When the host goeth forth against thine enemies, then keep thee from every wicked thing. 10If there be among you any man, that is not clean by reason of uncleanness that chanceth him by night, then shall he go abroad out of the camp, he shall not come within the camp: 11But it shall be, when evening cometh on, he shall wash himself with water: and when the sun is down, he shall come into the camp again. 12Thou shalt have a place also without the camp, whither thou shalt go forth abroad: 13And thou shalt have a paddle upon thy weapon; and it shall be, when thou wilt ease thyself abroad, thou shalt dig therewith, and shalt turn back and cover that which cometh from thee: 14For the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that he see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee. (Deuteronomy 23:1‑14)
“WHEN THE host goeth forth against thine enemies, then keep thee fromevery wicked thing."
Here we have Israel going forth to war and some might plead that in engaging the enemy unusual things could happen, so you have to make allowances for minor violations of rules and conduct. However, this is not so with God. In our Christian testimony, perhaps in carrying the gospel to the world where Satan reigns, the utmost purity is insisted upon. God is, just as He was in Israel's day, the strength of His people, and He cannot manifest Himself in power where they act in ways contrary to His Word. Where there is lack of care even in little things there will be corresponding lack of power, whereas if we go forth and diligently seek to act according to that Word then we can be assured of the strength of His presence and the end will be sure.
Next, Israel are told that the cleanliness of the camp must be maintained because of the purity of the nature of Him who dwelt in their midst. Natural man since the fall is unclean, so what is of fallen man cannot be allowed in His holy presence. And this is not only true in spiritual things but it ought to be reflected in our walk, our ways, our dress, as also in our surroundings. If we belong to the Lord, then a clean tidy home is only worthy of Him who has deigned to come and dwell with us.
"For the LORD thy God walketh in the midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before thee; therefore shall thy camp be holy: that He see no unclean thing in thee, and turn away from thee." God's Word is to be our guide in all these matters, and how thankful we can be for its precious instruction.
There are many things in Scripture that may seem hard to understand, but we believe it is written that it should be that way, for God's Word is infinite and His wisdom far above our natural intelligence. How sad when men seek to rewrite the Scriptures, and paraphrase them in an effort to make them intelligible to man's natural intellect, for in so doing much of the precious truth is lost and the keen edge of the Word is gone.
Someone has said, There are knots in Scripture which we find we cannot untie. However, do not try to cut the knot. Leave it with the Lord and later on, if we go on with Him, as we grow in grace and spiritual wisdom oftentimes the knot will untie itself; its meaning will be made clear.
Faith does not have to know why the Lord tells us to do a certain thing. There is a sweetness and consolation in doing it just because it is His will. Someday doubtless we'll understand. The Lord Jesus could tell His disciples, "What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter." John 13:77Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter. (John 13:7). How glad we shall be in that day, when all is as clear as noonday, that we sought grace to do His will not because we understood but just to please and honor Him whose way is perfect and whose love never made a mistake.
Messages of the Love of God 10/12/1975