DEUTERONOMY 8:14

One of the worst things that can happen to the people of God is for us to be stricken with spiritual amnesia. Here in this sacred passage, the children of Israel are seriously warned not to forget God and how He so meticulously led the children of Israel out of bondage and misery, through the pernicious harshness of the wilderness, and so strategically and skillfully brought them into the Promised Land.

The entire chapter, Deuteronomy 8, is a chapter of caution, warning against forgetting God’s providential care and leading, not just through the hard times but especially when the hard times were over. It compels us to face the fact that sometimes prosperity poses more of a problem for us than adversity. We often seem to trust Him more in the bad times than in the good times. Therefore, Israel is warned to guard against pride and the sin of neglecting the One who raised them out of complete obscurity to a place of prominence and respectability. Especially in the good times, we must be careful not to forget.

The writer signally commands “Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God . . .” (Deuteronomy 8:11). He sounds the alarm. He seeks to jolt us into our senses. He attempts to help us avoid the scandal of thinking that we are independent and self-reliant, self-sustaining, self-determining, and self-made. The admonition is “When thou hast eaten and are full, then thou shalt bless the Lord God for the good land which He has given thee” (v.10). This we must ever keep in mind! The real sin is in forgetting the real source of all our blessings and supplies.

Verse 17 makes it plain. It states, “And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:17). It unequivocally alludes to the fact that this then becomes a heart problem – a problem with the heart not operating properly and spiritually. It speaks about the problem of the heart that has become sick and contaminated with pride and out of sync with its Maker and with truth. .

Today, the message to this twenty-first-century church is – Remember to walk humbly and always in supreme gratitude to the Almighty/Redeemer and Shepherd of our lives, who indeed has brought us from a mighty long way to this point of great accomplishment and achievement. We must always greatly acknowledge and confess that all that we are and possess has all graciously come from Him. Today, we may no longer be classified as the “have-nots,” because of Him. We are no longer the dispossessed, destitute, despondent, and disregarded because of Him. It is not because of our wisdom, ingenuity, education, or craftiness. We are today prospering and making strides, primarily and singularly, because of the goodness of the Lord who brought us from all the way over there to here. We must never forget!

Let this verse ever resound and reverberate in our spirits, “But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is He that giveth thee power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenant which He sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day” (Deuteronomy 8:18). We refuse to succumb to the curse of spiritual amnesia! We choose to remember!