The first five books of the Bible, the Torah or Pentateuch, conclude with the Book of Deuteronomy. The word means “second law” and it purports to be a final message from Moses summing up the significance of the events of the Exodus and the creation of the Chosen People. This will equip them to occupy the Promised Land as God intends. This is why you must now know, and fix in your heart, that the LORD is God in the heavens above and on earth below, and that there is no other. Each nation had its own gods and Deuteronomy resists that notion insists that only God is God. If God is what is most important in your life than we too live in a age with many gods. Celebrity, possessions, power all seem to compete for the attention of the people of today. When the counter message of Jesus is that everyone must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me you couldn’t have a more direct contrast. But the message of Jesus is the only one that leads to lasting joy and happiness.
