Dear Prodigals
Lessons and Inspiration from the Book of Deuteronomy
Talk 1: Come Home!
WELCOME to our brand-new exciting series, Dear Prodigals.
In the last 12 months, we studied the first four books of the Bible—Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. And finally, we have arrived at Deuteronomy, the last book of this five-book collection called the Torah…
The Jews call this collection as Torah, which we commonly translate as “Law”. And rightly so, because those five books contain the 613 Laws of Moses.
But in Hebrew, Torah literally means Teaching.
So, here’s the idea: We must read the first five books not as God’s laws for all eternity but as God’s teachings for all eternity.
Talk 1 recalls the story of the Prodigal Son who asked for half of his inheritance and squandered it all. He went back to his father, who ran, embraced him, and celebrated his homecoming with a party.
Deuteronomy is a book written to all Prodigals—every single person who wants to come home…
Thus, the title of Talk 1: Come Home!
Talk 2: Remember
TODAY, we discuss the second installment of our exciting series on Deuteronomy titled Dear Prodigals.
The title of the series is based on the Gospel of Luke on the Parable of the Prodigal Son.
Talk 1, Come Home, recalls the story of the Prodigal Son who asked his father for his inheritance and squandered it all. He went back to his father, who ran, embraced him, and celebrated his homecoming with a party.
Talk 2, Remember, focuses on the long lecture of Moses to the Israelites not to forget lessons of God’s love during their long journey from slavery to freedom.
Because when we forget God’s blessings, we suffer soul dementia. And soon, we think we no longer need God.
Imagine God speaking to you right now: “Remember! Remember My sacrifice for you. Remember My favor over your life. Remember how much I love you.”
Talk 2 gives pointers on how to fight soul dementia.
Talk 3: God Is Committed to Your Well-Being
TODAY, we discuss the third installment of our exciting series on Deuteronomy titled Dear Prodigals.
The title of the series is based on the Gospel of Luke on the Parable of the Prodigal Son.
Talk 1, Come Home, recalls the story of the Prodigal Son who asked his father for his inheritance and squandered it all. He went back to his father, who ran, embraced him, and celebrated his homecoming with a party.
Talk 2, Remember, focuses on the lecture of Moses to the Israelites not to forget lessons of God’s mercy and love during their long journey from slavery to freedom.
Talk 3 is spotlighting five chapters of Deuteronomy, specifically, Chapters 12 to 16. If, at the start of the book, Professor Moses gave a History class, in this section, he gives a Worship Seminar.
In Genesis, we read that God’s original plan was He would live with us in the Garden of Eden.
Why is He giving us Laws? God wants to bring us back to the Garden.
The key message of Talk 3 is God is committed to your well-being.
Talk 4: Great Leaders Sacrifice Greatly
TODAY, we discuss the fourth installment of our exciting series on Deuteronomy titled Dear Prodigals.
The title of the series is based on the Gospel of Luke on the Parable of the Prodigal Son.
Talk 1, Come Home, is about God’s call to the Israelites to finally enter the Promised Land, mirroring the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Luke’s Gospel.
Talk 2, Remember, focuses on the long lecture of Moses to the Israelites not to forget lessons of God’s mercy and love during their long journey from slavery to freedom.
Talk 3, God Is Committed to Your Well-Being, is about God’s radical definition of Worship.
Talk 4, Great Leaders Sacrifice Greatly. This is the part of Deuteronomy where Moses gives a Leadership Workshop.
Talk 5: Go Back to the Father’s Heart
WELCOME to Talk 5.
We’re working our way through the Book of Deuteronomy, in this mind-bending series called Dear Prodigals—because God wants us to come home to Him.
The key message: Go back to the Father’s Heart.
The title of the series is based on the Gospel of Luke on the Parable of the Prodigal Son.
Talk 1, Come Home, recalls the story of the Prodigal Son who asked his father for his inheritance and squandered it all. He went back to his father who celebrated his homecoming with a party.
Talk 2, Remember, is Moses giving a History Class to the Israelites, so they do not forget God’s Lessons and God’s Love during their long journey from slavery to freedom.
Talk 3, God Is Committed to Your Well-Being where Moses gives a Worship Seminar.
Talk 4, Great Leaders Sacrifice Greatly. This is the part of Deuteronomy where Moses gives a Leadership Workshop.
Talk 6: God Sides with The Little Ones
We continue our Feast Talk series, Dear Prodigals, our study of the Book of Deuteronomy.
We are now in Talk 6 and the key message is God sides with the little ones.
God stands by the underdog. Which is a disturbing message if you’re the top dog. But if you’re the little guy, the misfit, the outcast, God tells you, “I’m on your side.”
Today, we’ll be walking through Deuteronomy 19-26, a large section full of laws. In Jesus’ mind, the laws we read in Deuteronomy have one goal: to side with the little ones. To love the last, the least, and the lost. To help the weak, protect the vulnerable, and defend the innocent.
In a very powerful way, Deuteronomy reveals to us God’s innermost heart. In every law, we’ll hear the heartbeat of the God of the universe—that He stands by the underdog.
Talk 7: Go Back to the Father’s Heart
WE’RE at the tail-end of our deep dive into Deuteronomy—and what a soul-expanding exploration it has been.
Talk 7 unpacks Deuteronomy 27 to 30. In these verses, Moses is offering two choices to the Israelites.
Moses says the Israelites have two options in life:
Option 1: Follow God’s Ways and get blessed.
Option 2: Reject God’s Ways and get cursed.
Talk 8: You Have a Mission
We are in the last part of our study on Deuteronomy. We don’t only reach the end of Deuteronomy, we also reach the end of the entire Torah–the first five books of the Bible.
Right after Moses gives a long powerful speech about choosing blessing or curse, he gives the awful news: He will not enter the Promised Land because he will die at its doorstep. The hero doesn’t reach the finish line. This is not your standard feel-good movie.
But this is a faithful picture of reality. The Bible does not sugarcoat this fact: Life is difficult.
Here’s the truth: God never designed life to be a vacation but a vocation. God designed life to be a missionary expedition. The key message of Talk 8 is You Have a Mission.
Talk 9: God Is Relentless
For more than a year, we walked through the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. Starting June 26, 2022, we studied Genesis, then Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and last week, on September 24, 2023, we ended our study on Deuteronomy.
Talk 9 summarizes the entire Torah in one simple yet powerful message: God is relentless.
