Tag Archives: Deuteronomy

Engaging Our Culture: July 23-Knowing When to Step Away

Posted on July 23, 2025 by expressyourself4him

Video of the Day: Clip from the 1999 movie “For Love of the Game”

Bible Verse of the Day:

Now what I am commanding you today is not too difficult for you or beyond your reach. 12 It is not up in heaven, so that you have to ask, “Who will ascend into heaven to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” 13 Nor is it beyond the sea, so that you have to ask, “Who will cross the sea to get it and proclaim it to us so we may obey it?” 14 No, the word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it, Deuteronomy 30:11-14.

Biblical Connection:

Professional athletes don’t always know when to step away from their athletic career. Some hold on way too long, retiring after an embarrassing season or simply riding the bench. Yet, Billy Chapel reached a point in his life that he missed his former girlfriend. Subsequently, as Billy pitches his final start of the season, he realized that this was the final game of his career.

Deuteronomy 30 is known as Moses’ farewell address to the nation of Israel as he prepares to step down as their spiritual leader. After God reveals that he won’t live long enough to experience God’s promised land, Moses urges Israel to remain obedient to God’s commands and decrees. Those who stay true to God’s precepts tend to know when to step away and when to keep going.

Closing Song:

As a Christian you may retire from work, but your faith journey should continue. Wherever this blog may find you in life, stay humble and avoid thinking that you’ve arrived spiritually.

by Jay Mankus

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Engaging Our Culture: May 7-A Life Changing Decision

Posted on May 7, 2025 by expressyourself4him

Video of the Day: Trailer from the 2005 movie “End of the Spear”

Bible Verse of the Day:

See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess. 17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess, Deuteronomy 30:15-18.

Biblical Connection:

During his farewell address to the nation of Israel with Joshua set to take over as their spiritual leader, Moses highlights the importance of the choices that you make in life. In the film End of the Spear, based upon the truth story of 5 male missionaries, each died a martyr’s life. Sometimes following God’s call to fulfill the great commission, Acts 1:8, is just as dangerous as making a bad decision which gives the devil a foothold over your life, Ephesians 4:26-27.

The book of Deuteronomy means second law. As human beings, we tend to be forgetful individuals. Subsequently, the further you drift from God and the Bible, the more your mind is open to the ways of this progressive age. Yet, to those who look to the Bible for daily guidance, Moses points out that this results in blessings from God. As Christianity becomes a habit and way of life, this life changing decision will prepare you for any situation that you may encounter.

Closing Song:

Mincayani is born into a violent tribe who lives by the motto spear and live or be speared and die. After taking part in the deaths of 5 missionary men, who activated their faith, Mincayani’s life is transformed when he meets the son of the father he killed. One life changing decision led to the salvation of many members of the Waodani tribe. This is what God can do when faith is activated.

by Jay Mankus

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How Wokeness Relates to End Times Theology

Posted on July 16, 2022 by expressyourself4him

During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on abortion Tuesday, Senator John Hawley asked Berkeley Law professor Khiara Bridges to explain what she meant by “people with a capacity for pregnancy.” Hawley speculated that Bridges was referring to women but wasn’t sure. This triggered a heated debate that went viral on social media with Republicans and the Woke each claiming to be the victor.

Now listen and give heed, O Israel, to the statutes and ordinances which I teach you, and do them, that you may live and go in and possess the land which the Lord, the God of your fathers, gives you. 2 You shall not add to the word which I command you, neither shall you diminish it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you, Deuteronomy 4:1-2.

The book of Deuteronomy consists of three speeches delivered to the Israelites by Moses on the Plains of Moab prior to entering God’s promised land. Deuteronomy serves as a remainder of God’s laws as Israel is about to receive one of God’s many promises. One of the most basic elements of obeying God is to not add or subtract from biblical principles. Anyone who does this is considered a heretic, holding an opinion at odds with what is generally accepted by the community of faith.

But the [Holy] Spirit distinctly and expressly declares that in latter times some will turn away from the faith, giving attention to deluding and seducing spirits and doctrines that demons teach, 2 Through the hypocrisy and pretensions of liars whose consciences are seared (cauterized), 1 Timothy 4:1-2.

The apostle Paul refers to end times when people begin to listen to what their itching ears want to hear, 2 Timothy 4:3-4. When the newest member of the Supreme Court, Ketanji Brown Jackson, was afraid to answer the question “what is a woman,” this is a clear sign of how influential the Woke Movement has become. Perhaps Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny DeVito, and Emma Thomson were visionaries of men being able to have babies in the 1994 film Junior. Since God works in mysterious and strange ways, maybe it will be the Woke Movement ushering in the days leading up to Jesus’ second coming. Only God knows how this story ends.

by Jay Mankus

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Write It Out in Plain Sight

Posted on July 25, 2021 by expressyourself4him

John Heywood wrote “A Dialogue Conteinyng the Nomber in Effect of All the Prouerbes in the Englishe Tongue” in the 1500’s. The printing of this book is the first known author to address the concept “out of sight out of mind”. As God called Moses to write out what the Jewish faith refers to the Second Law, the book of Deuteronomy serves as a refresher to anyone who may have forgotten one of God’s laws. Understanding the shortcomings of human beings, God’s plan was to write out in plain sight to overcome the reality of out of sight out of mind.

Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord [the only Lord]. 5 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your [mind and] heart and with your entire being and with all your might. 6 And these words which I am commanding you this day shall be [first] in your [own] minds and hearts; [then] Deuteronomy 6:4-6.

In the passage above, the Holy Spirit leads Moses to take the first commandment and write it out in such a way to help people understand how to love an invisible God. This is accomplished by putting everything you have which includes all your heart, soul and mind. Don’t just say follow and keep this commandment, but demonstrate this through action as love flows out of your heart. Part of Jesus’ teaching is that you will know my followers by their love, John 13:34-35.

You shall whet and sharpen them so as to make them penetrate, and teach and impress them diligently upon the [minds and] hearts of your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down and when you rise up. 8 And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets (forehead bands) between your eyes. 9 And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and on your gates, Deuteronomy 6:7-9.

Unfortunately, we live in a fallen society that seems to become more corrupt and darker with each passing generation, 1 Peter 2:11-12. Despite this reality, writing out inspirational verses of the Bible on a note card or sticky note gives your a reminder of what you should shoot for in life. While perfection is unachievable in our mortal bodies, writing out what is admirable in plain sight, Philippians 4:8-9, provides a daily goal and vision for the future.

by Jay Mankus

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Remember or Forget

Posted on May 28, 2019 by expressyourself4him

The book of Deuteronomy serves as a repetition of God’s laws.  Essentially Deuteronomy is a second statement of Mosaic Law.  The need for human beings to remember suggests that individuals tend to forget.  Thus, Moses is inspired by God to repeat what was written in previous books to highlight what God fearing Jews should remember and obey.

God fed you manna in the wilderness, [a substance] which your fathers did not know, so that He might humble you [by dependence on Him] and that He might test you, to do good [things] for you at the end. 17 Otherwise, you may say in your heart, ‘My power and the strength of my hand made me this wealth, Deuteronomy 8:16-17. 

Chapter 8 serves as a brief summary of God’s faithfulness to his people while in the wilderness.  When the people were hungry, manna from heaven appeared to eat.  After individuals became tired of bread, the Lord sent quail as well to eat.  However, murmurs began to spread among the camp that some hearts were considering to trust in their own strength rather than rely solely on God.  This led Moses to draw a line in the sand, “it’s your choice to remember or forget.”

18 But you shall remember [with profound respect] the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore (solemnly promised) to your fathers, as it is this day. 19 And it shall come about if you ever forget the Lord your God and follow other gods and serve them and worship them, I testify against you today that you will most certainly perish, Deuteronomy 8:18-19.

Each decision that you make has eternal consequences.  Remembering God through obedience results in blessings, seen and unseen.  On the other hand, those who slowly forget God will be punished via a series of curses meant to drive you back into the merciful hands of God.  Unfortunately, the longer you forget God, the harder it becomes to return.  For those who do, the spiritual baggage accrued takes months and even years to sort through.  In view of this, save yourself the heartache by remembering and obeying God’s Word daily.

by Jay Mankus

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