Deuteronomy 23No one who has been emasculated by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the LORD. 2 No one born of a forbidden marriage nor any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.

3 No Ammonite or Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.

7 Do not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother. Do not abhor an Egyptian, because you lived as an alien in his country. 8 The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the LORD.

Members in Good Standing Only, Please!Deuteronomy 21-28

AssemblyClear membership requirements

Entrance testLegal identification required

Before we get to the topic…Interesting

FunnyStrange

Sad

Deuteronomy 2110 When you go to war against your enemies and the LORD your God delivers them into your hands and you take captives, 11 if you notice among the captives a beautiful woman and are attracted to her, you may take her as your wife.

Scripture reminds us that…Nothing has changed

Other laws also tell us that nothing has changed…

Sadly, they confirm how sinful and ugly we have always been

Deuteronomy 22 22 If a man is found sleeping with another man’s wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel.

30 A man is not to marry his father’s wife; he must not dishonor his father’s bed.

This, you might find shocking…When their kids gave parents

trouble, they had the option of having them stoned

They just had to show just cause

Deuteronomy 2118 If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who does not obey his father and mother and will not listen to them when they discipline him, 19 his father and mother shall take hold of him and bring him to the elders at the gate of his town.

20 They shall say to the elders, “This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious. He will not obey us. He is a profligate and a drunkard.” 21 Then all the men of his town shall stone him to death. You must purge the evil from among you. All Israel will hear of it and be afraid.

The topic for todayWorship

Entering the assemblyExpectations

Deuteronomy 23No one who has been emasculated by crushing or cutting may enter the assembly of the LORD. 2 No one born of a forbidden marriage nor any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.

3 No Ammonite or Moabite or any of his descendants may enter the assembly of the LORD, even down to the tenth generation.

7 Do not abhor an Edomite, for he is your brother. Do not abhor an Egyptian, because you lived as an alien in his country. 8 The third generation of children born to them may enter the assembly of the LORD.

WomenForeigners

Even Jews who were disobedient…Could not enter the assembly

There was an understanding that you had to earn the right to be in

the assemblyYou had to be good enough

You had to be an insider

Deuteronomy 2618 And the LORD has declared this day that you are his people, his treasured possession as he promised, and that you are to keep all his commands.

Deuteronomy 28If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth. 2 All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the LORD your God:

3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. 4 The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. 5 Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. 6 You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.

45 All these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the LORD your God and observe the commands and decrees he gave you.

The assembly is for Jews in good standing

My concern…We often live in the Old Testament

model of worshipWe fear the God of the Old Testament

We are under a new covenant

John 639 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all that he has given me, but raise them up at the last day. 40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

Romans 831 What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen?

38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

God’s love… Is not dependent on our actions

Is firmly rooted at the crossBehavior is important but does not

bring salvationSalvation is about the relationship

we have with Jesus

Ephesians 2 8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

Romans 715 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. 16 And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. 17 As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me.

Romans 7 21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.

24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!

WretchedBrokenSinful

DisobedientBut welcomed

Putting all togetherMany of us fear the God of the

old covenantI want you to fall in love with the

God of the new covenantChrist, opens doors through his

sacrifice on the cross

Putting all togetherComing to the assembly – to church

is a great privilegeCome when life is great and things

look good for youCome when life is broken, sinful,

disobedient and God feels far away

Putting all togetherWe are welcomed into God’s presence

Sometimes, as pastors, we make people feel like they are not worthy

Jesus died to open doors not to shut them

John 3:17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.