Deuteronomy 9:4a (NLT) “After the Lord your God has done this for you, don’t say in your hearts, ‘The Lord has given us this land because we are such good people!’”

As Moses was giving The Lord's final instructions to the people just before they were about to enter the promised land, God had one more thing to let them know. He was about to displace many wicked people from the Promised Land to make room for His people but He wanted them to know the truth about all that was about to happen. God's amazing mercy and grace had been displayed as He rescued the Israelites from the hand of Pharoah, king of Egypt, and as He guided them in the wilderness for forty years. During all of that time, He provided food and water for them and caused their clothes and shoes to not wear out and now, He was about to give them many victories over people that were superior to them in strength and in numbers. He wanted to make sure that the people knew that all that was about to happen for their good had nothing to do with how good a people they were. As a matter of fact, they weren't very good at all. They were a stiff-necked people, to put it in God's own words (Exodus 32:9). They were stubborn and rebellious and were only in a position to inherit the land because of the goodness and mercy of God.

People have a tendency to take credit for themselves even when they don't deserve credit. That is due to our sinful nature, which includes being prideful. We like to think very highly of ourselves and many times think that when something good happens to us, it's because we are good and we deserve it. The truth is that we are not so good. Even when we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, that's not the end of our pride and ego. It's the beginning of a transformation process that will last for the rest of our lives until we go to be with Jesus or until He returns, whichever comes first. Even when we have been walking with the Lord a good number of years and have been radically transformed, we can still see the vestiges of that old, sinful nature always trying to rear its ugly head. It can be very disappointing except for the fact that God loves us and cares for us knowing that we are works in progress. That's why He always gets all of the glory. Has God blessed you? Has God given you things and fulfilled promises in your life that you never dreamed possible? Don't get too excited about yourself. You and I are not that good. In fact, if it weren't for the grace and mercy of God, we would not be enjoying His love and His favor. That should cause us to love Him all the more as we see how He loves and cares for us, showering us with His blessings even while knowing that we are not so good. But don't fret. We will get there when we see Jesus face to face and become like Him. In the meantime, give God all the glory for everything that you have and all the blessings that you enjoy. It's all because of Him!

Pastor Joey Vazquez