GOD’S CARE FOR THE LAND OF CANAAN
Deuteronomy 11: 10 - 12
Thanksgiving Sermon by:
Rev. G. R. Procee
PUBLISHED BY
PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE
OF THE
FREE REFORMED CHURCHES OF NORTH AMERICA.
(September 2004)
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LITURGY:
Votum
Psalter 419: 1, 4, 5
Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 11: 1 - 17
Text: Deuteronomy 11: 10 - 12
Psalter 176: 3
Congregational Prayer
Offerings
Psalter 177
Sermon
Psalter 171: 2, 3
Thanksgiving Prayer
Psalter 230: 5, 7
Benediction
Doxology: Psalter 199: 4, 5
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Congregation,
Moses is addressing the people of Israel. They are standing before and are ready to
enter into the land of Canaan. But before they enter in, Moses, the servant of the Lord is
addressing them. He reminds them of all the Lord’s goodness in leading them through the
wilderness. The Lord gave them His special care. Moses is urging them to keep all the
commandments of the Lord, for then it shall be well with them in this new land.
In our text Moses is explaining to the people what a beautiful country Canaan is. The
land that the Lord is going to give to His people Israel is a blessed land. A land flowing
with milk and honey. A land where flocks of sheep and goats graze in abundance. A land
of fruitful vines and orchards. A land where the crops will grow abundantly. The land of
Canaan was of old known for the good wheat harvests. The soil was very fertile.
But the issue here in our text is even more than all these blessings. The text explains
to the people of Israel how God Himself shall care for the land. The Lord Himself shall
bless this land by sending rain from the heavens. That sending of rain is a tremendous
blessing. This forms a wonderful blessing above the land where they came from - Egypt.
Moses compares here the land of Egypt with the land of Canaan.
We see a remarkable difference. The land of Egypt was actually a very dry land.
There is little rain in Egypt. But there are still good crops. But these crops are all located
around the river Nile. Every year the Nile would overflow and flood the fields. The mud
would make the land fertile. The water had to be channeled and kept in ponds, trapped so
that when the Nile would rescind, everywhere there would be these pools of water
staying behind.
These pools of water were used to irrigate the land. The people had to work hard,
digging ditches, casting up little dikes to create reservoirs and ponds. Once they had done
that, then they had to pump the water onto the land. They used certain pumping wheels
which they had to work with their feet in order to activate the irrigation system. That
irrigation system would consist of endless long ropes extending over the fields with pails
attached to it for the drawing up of the water.
This pumping mechanism would be worked by their feet. That is why we read in
verse 10 the land of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and
wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs.
The Egyptians had to water the land by hard labour. They watered, as verse 10 says, a
garden of herbs. Much labour is needed to grow a good garden of herbs. In Egypt
intensive work and hard labour was required to secure the water flow. By hard work the
Egyptians watered their land and the land would yield a good harvest.
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However the land of Canaan is a different land. It didn’t have a great river the people
could rely on. The river Jordan was the only river in Canaan and that was not really such
a great river like the Nile. We also know that the Jordan river did not overflow her banks.
The river Jordan is very low, and it flows in-between hills on either side. There is no
room for the Jordan river to overflow. On the banks of this river Jordan is the land of
Canaan, and Moses says here that it is a land of hills and valleys. The land of Egypt
around the Nile was straight and even. There was room for water to flow, but not so in
Canaan. Canaan was unsuitable for irrigation.
But there is no need for irrigation either. Because the great difference between Egypt
and Canaan is that Egypt had to secure its own water through the hard labour, but in
Canaan the whole country is provided with rain from heaven. It rains much more in
Canaan. The Lord causes showers of rain to come down. There is no need for that
tiresome work that the Egyptians had to do. The Lord would water the whole land
according to its needs. The people didn’t have to work for the water supply. The Lord
would give that Himself.
While the Egyptian farmer had to work knee deep in the mud digging ditches and
gutters to secure the water flow, the Israelite farmer could sit comfortably at home at ease
and the fields would be watered by rain from the heavens. He didn’t have to do anything
for it. God would take care of the rain.
The Lord cared greatly for Canaan. The text says that His eyes were directed towards
Canaan from the beginning of the year to the end. All year round the Lord looked after
Canaan and the Lord blessed the country. The Lord would give the former rain and the
latter rain. Psalms 65:9 says; Thou visitest the earth, and waterest it: thou greatly
enrichest it with the river of God, which is full of water: thou preparest them corn, when
thou hast so provided for it.
Truly, Canaan was a country God took care of. God gave His people a good country.
A land of abundance. A land in which they didn’t even have to toil to get the water on the
fields, for the Lord would do that. All by His grace, goodness and providential care.
This was a rich blessing the Lord gave to the Israelites far above what they had
deserved. God gave them these rich promises not for any obedience they had given to
Him, but it was His sovereign goodness and grace for them. Undeserved goodness. They
had sinned much. They had repeatedly been most ungrateful. But, God remembered His
grace. He gave them a country, a blessed and fertile country. God would water the fields
by rain. This was a manifestation of His Fatherly care for them. He sustained the fields
and crops and so the Lord blessed them. It was all His grace.
Moses said: the land drinketh water of the rain of heaven: A land which the LORD
thy God careth for: the eyes of the LORD thy God are always upon it, from the beginning
of the year even unto the end of the year.
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Let us now look at our own situation and our own country, what must we say? Can
we not say the same? The land where we dwell here in Canada, the land the Lord has
given us to live in, is also a land of hills and valleys. Is it not also a land that drinks in
the rain from heaven? The Lord has given us rain this past year. We had a fair portion of
rain. The most part of our country does not need irrigation. The Lord opens the heavens
and gives us rain and sunshine.
Looking back at the past year, can we also not say that the Lord has caused the land
to drink in the rain? But more than that, is our land not a land, to use the words of our
text: a land which the LORD thy God careth for: the eyes of the LORD thy God are
always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto the end of the year.
God has looked down upon our country. The Lord saw all the needs of nearly 30
million people and much cattle and livestock. The Lord saw the need for grain and food.
The Lord opened His hand and caused the corn to grow and He caused the grain to come
forth. It all grew out of the earth. We cannot cause one potato to grow. We cannot bring
forth one kernel of corn. It is all God's grace and mercy.
Our country has been richly blessed by the Lord. Because the Lord cares for our land:
the eyes of the LORD God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year even unto
the end of the year. From winter, through spring, summer and fall. The eyes of the Lord
are upon our land.
The result of all this care is that the crops are being harvested. The plants could grow,
the cattle could eat and we had more than enough to eat and to drink. We have been
abundantly blessed in our work and labour. These are all evidences of Gods care upon
our country. God has looked upon our land the entire year.
All this all in spite of our sins. Israel received the land not because of their
worthiness. They had forfeited this blessing but received it only because of God's grace.
Our country has not deserved to be looked upon in grace. We have sinned. Our nation is
turning away from the Lord. We have adopted sinful laws. We have forfeited God’s
favour and yet, if we look back at the past year, we may say that the eyes of the Lord
have looked upon our country in mercy and in rich blessing. It truly may be for us a
Thanksgivings day.
God’s eyes were upon the land of Canaan. God caused rain to come down. The
Israelite himself was unable to provide water for the fields and crops. God had to do it.
That meant that the Israelite had to live by faith. Israel needed the Lord. They couldn’t
bring the rain down. God had to do it.
In comparison to the Egyptian it seemed as if the Israelite had it easier and that the
Egyptian had it harder. For the Egyptian had to work to irrigate the water. He had to do it
himself, while the Israelite could stay at home and the Lord would do it for him. It
seemed as if the Israelite was easier off and that the Egyptian had it harder.
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In reality it was much harder for the Israelite. Because the Israelite had to trust in the
Lord. He had to have faith in the Lord. When the crops needed rain and the farmer in
Israel would look out at the blue sky and he would see no clouds, he could easily have
concerns. But he was called to trust in the Lord. He was called to live by faith. But that is
not easy.
The Israelite had to leave matters in the hands of God. It is much easier if you can
arrange things yourself. It is much easier if you can work for something and then earn it
and have it under your control. That is what the Egyptian could do. The Egyptian never
had to look up to God. In Egypt they can manage themselves. They don’t need God. They
have the river Nile and they will work hard to irrigate the water.
You know, that is a life that appeals to us. We will work for something and earn it.
We will work hard and are willing to work hard, as long as we can gain something and
then have it under our control. In Egypt they work and toil but they do not look unto God
in trust.
In God’s Kingdom matters go differently. God's people need God to work, for they
cannot do it themselves. They must live by faith and trust. That is harder than to work. It
is hard for man to admit that you can’t do something. The Lord must do it for you. You
need God to do something for you.
In Egypt they were self sufficient. Of course the Egyptian was also dependent upon
the flooding of the river Nile, but still he could work and assure himself that he had taken
care of a sufficient water supply. He could boast in his own work. He could say these are
the beautiful fields that I have watered. We like that attitude. That is how we are. We
don’t mind to work hard for something as long as we can give ourselves the honour for it.
As long as we can say: This is the great city Babylon that I have built.
In Canaan they had to live by faith and trust. There they had to wait upon the Lord.
They couldn’t water the land themselves. They needed rain. Only the God of Heaven can
let the rain come down. So the farmer is dependent upon the God of Heaven.
When
the fields are watered, God receives the honour and not man.
Of course the farmer in Israel also had to till the soil, he had to plant and seed. He had
to manure and prune the plants. But when he has done all that, he has to look to God for
help and blessing. For God can only give the rain. In Canaan they realized how small
man is. Man cannot cause one drop of rain to come down. Man can cast seed into the soil
but cannot give the increase. No orchard, no crop can yield, no cattle can prosper unless
God gives the blessing. That is what they understood in Canaan.
In Canaan they had to live by faith. That faith could be very much assaulted. It is a
trial when I see no rain coming. Everything is dry. Then it is not easy to have trust that all
will be well.
Then faith needs to be exercised. For the Lord had promised that His eyes would be
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upon the whole land from the beginning to the end. That means that the Lord knows the
needs of the land from the beginning of the year to the end. God's providential eye would
be upon the land. That means that the Lord shall provide.
To have that trust is difficult when you see the circumstances are different. It is harder
to live by faith, instead of working yourself. Living by faith is what the Lord teaches His
people. In this way they are richly blessed for this life, and besides that, the Lord prepares
them for an eternal life with Him.
In Egypt the people think, they can do all things themselves. They do not need God.
They do not live by faith. Therefore they are outside of God's gracious care and blessing.
They have no God and no refuge when they leave this life. They are strangers to God.
They do not live by faith. Canaan was a country where the Lord would teach His people
to live by faith.
Now, this whole matter of living by faith has certain effects:
In the first place we highlight dependence. The Lord leads His children into a life of
dependence. It is easier to be independent and to think you can manage your own affairs.
But that draws people away from the Lord.
The Lord shows His people that they are dependent upon God. They learn to think
small of themselves. They realize they are creatures of the dust, mortal and weak. They
realize that they can do nothing without the Lord Jesus. They see that only the Lord can
deliver, save and bless them. They realize that every blessing flows to them from God.
God's children are a dependent people. That is how the Lord educates them. They
become more and more dependent upon Him. That is a blessed life. A life in which His
people shall be tried but will never be put to shame. In this life of dependence they find
out more and more who God is. They are drawn closer to Him. They learn to live by
faith. They need the Lord, not only for the things of daily life, but also for spiritual
matters. For salvation. They cannot live outside of the Lord. They live with the Lord and
for the Lord. They learn to bow before His sovereign will, and before His dealings with
them.
They see His love in the smallest blessing. They see His love in His gifts. But
especially they see His love in God's unspeakable Gift: His own Son. God so loved the
world that He gave His Son so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but shall
have everlasting life.
That is the blessing attached to this dependence. It is a life of growing closer to the
Lord. A life in which you learn to trust with all you have upon the Lord. That life shall
have the Lord as its aim. That is the secret. By being dependent upon the Lord, one is
drawn closer and closer to the Lord. One needs God for all things. One learns to live by
faith, not only for the things of this life but for the matters of eternal salvation.
These people who are dependent have become aware of their own inability. Their
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eyes have been opened to reality. They are poor in themselves but they are rich in the
Lord. For the Lord shall provide. That is His promise. That is their comfort. His eyes are
open unto them.
In this way which is not always easy, a life of having to hold up your hand, you see
the beauty and the care of God. You become focused upon the Lord. That is the fruit of a
dependent life. Life in Israel is dependent. They were called to look to the Lord. It leads
to a life with the Lord. Life in Canaan teaches you your full dependence upon the Lord. It
leads to surrender, to faith, to salvation. It is blessed to know your dependence upon the
living God and to live from His hand. His eyes shall then be upon you day by day, the
whole year round. He shall bless you.
The Lord shall provide. He blesses those who trust in Him. He keeps matters under
His control. They just have to look unto Him and have trust in Him. The Lord shall
provide, that is a blessed life. What an easy life that is, when you may live in this child
like trust, that He shall provide. Then you may surrender all in your life to the Lord and
you may know that He shall provide. Blessed peace, blessed life of dependence.
There is a second effect. That is thankfulness. When the Lord has richly provided for
you, you see that it is all His blessing, His grace, His goodness for you. You didn’t
deserve it. You didn’t work for it. He gave His blessing to you, as it were in the sleep.
Therefore in Canaan they know how to give thanks to the Lord. Not so in Egypt.
There they do not thank God, for they did it themselves. In Canaan they have
Thanksgivings days, for they know: God gave us all these crops. In Egypt they know
nothing about thanksgiving. In Canaan you can hear them singing in humility and in
adoration:
Psalm 65:11-13, Thou crownest the year with thy goodness; and thy paths drop fatness.
They drop upon the pastures of the wilderness: and the little hills rejoice on every side.
The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered over with corn.
In Canaan they give honour to God. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. You
too may realize how you also were dependent this past year upon the Lord. You needed
His blessing for your business, for your shop. You needed His blessing for your farm, for
your studies. It is God who opened His hand and blessed you. Realizing your dependence
there will be true thankfulness to God for His many undeserved blessings.
A thankful heart is a happy heart. True thankfulness realizes that all these blessings
are miracles of God's grace. I receive them from His Fatherly Hand. Faith sees God’s
Fatherly care in the daily food and drink. Faith sees miracles in a new harvest. The Lord
has again given the increase. Miracle of grace! I did not deserve anything. Then what a
mountain of blessings over against so much unworthiness from my side. I say: “Lord
thou art good to those who are not good.” That is true thankfulness.
Finally, there is a third effect. That is obedience. When the Lord is good to us, true
thankfulness is expressed not just by words but also by deeds and actions. These are then
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deeds of obedience to the Lord. That means then that we seek to do His will. That is to
know His will and to seek to walk in His ways. There is then the prayer for obedience:
Unite my heart to the fear of Thy name. Teach me Thy way. Cause me to live for Thee
and to walk in Thy ways. That is true thankfulness. A life dedicated to the Lord, a life in
obedience to Him. Therefore I need Thy grace. Then I again am dependent upon the
Lord.
These lessons of dependence, thankfulness and striving to be obedient to the Lord are
not learned in Egypt. They are learned in Canaan. That is why at times the Lord seems to
withhold His provisions in order to keep His people dependent, so that they will be truly
thankful, that they would live by faith, and that seeing such goodness of the Lord they
would seek to be obedient to the Lord. These lessons are only learned in Canaan, where
one lives out of God's hand, where one realizes that God gives graciously.
Where do you live? In Canaan or in Egypt? Do you live in the awareness that God
must bless you? Have you become dependent upon Him? Have you seen His care for our
beautiful country?
When you see His blessings, do you become humble, do you become dependant and
thankful and do you learn obedience?
Does the goodness of the Lord lead you to repentance, to a turning to the Lord, to a
confessing: “Lord, so many blessings and Thou hast just given them to me. I did not
deserve them at all“? If so,then you end in the Lord and you desire the God who blesses.
Your life is attached to Him.
Do you still live in Egypt? In Egypt people are independent. Do you take all the
blessings for granted?
Do you still think that it was all your work that gave you prosperity? Then you are
living in Egypt, still not focused upon God. There is no true thankfulness in your heart
and that is evidenced because there is no striving to be obedient. There is no life of
dependence either.
If you can still manage your own affairs, you are still a stranger to God and your
heart. If you will live independent of God you will also die without God. You will spend
eternity without God. See and realize that all blessings flow from God.
It is blessed to live a life dependent upon God. That is not the easiest life, but it is a
blessed life. It leads you to see the undeserved merits of God all given to you through
Jesus Christ. You then desire to be fully His, to be fully with Him forever. That is true
thanksgiving. That is salvation. AMEN
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