I want to take a moment and consider the premise of the television show ALF. For those unfamiliar, the show stars a short, brown, and self-described “huggable and lovable” alien nicknamed ALF, who crashed his spaceship into the garage of the Tanner family. Despite the damage he caused, the Tanners took pity on the then-unconscious alien. In a great act of kindness, they decided to nurse him back to health and let him reside in their home to protect him from the government, who desires to capture him for cruel experimentation. So, at the mercy (and great expense) of the Tanner family, ALF had a perfect living situation. He had all the food he could want, he had great protection, free access to the TV, and the warmth and love of the Tanners, all without him having to work or pay for any of these blessings. So long as ALF obeyed the Tanner family’s home rules and remained content with his situation, he was free to live a peaceful life with easy access to everything he could ever need.
Unfortunately, ALF rarely ever let his life be that easy. Most of the show’s episodes see ALF making his life (and by extension, the Tanners’ lives) very difficult by pursuing things that were outside of the Tanners’ provision and went against their rules. For example, despite having all the food he could ever need, he repeatedly tries to eat the family’s cat, which caused ALF to receive their discipline. Also, despite not needing to go anywhere, he disobediently escaped his home once to purchase an expensive Ferrari, not only placing himself at risk of being captured by the government but also damaging the Tanners’ garage (again) with yet another disastrous crash. In addition, rather than living in gratitude and kindly enjoying his relationship with the Tanners, ALF constantly disrupted it with ungrateful complaints and sarcastic remarks. Thus, although ALF had the opportunity to simply enjoy his life and rest in the gracious providence of the Tanners, his rebellious pursuits and ingratitude robbed him of receiving all the peace and joy it could have provided him.
Similarly, we as believers make our lives significantly harder, rob ourselves of God’s blessings, and bring His discipline when we pursue desires that satisfy our flesh and fall outside of God’s perfect provision. This is also the case when we take our eyes off Christ and assign glory to ourselves rather than God. As Proverbs 13:15 says, “Good sense wins favor, but the way of the treacherous is their ruin,” or in the KJV, “Good understanding giveth favor, but the way of transgressors is hard.”
"The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the Lord swore to give to your fathers. 2 And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. 3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. 4 Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. 5 Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the Lord your God disciplines you."
Verse 1 shows that God made an unconditional promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that their descendants would receive a land to dwell in. Despite the repeated transgressions, rebellions, and complaints of the Israelites in the wilderness, God still fulfilled this promise due to His perfect faithfulness and mercy. Likewise, when we accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord through receiving His gracious gift of salvation, we permanently receive a new life from our once-dead human spirit being regenerated by the Holy Spirit indwelling it. This gift is one that cannot be taken away; in fact, the Holy Spirit making His residence in us is proof of this. Ephesians 1:13-14 say, “In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in Him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, Who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of His glory.”
Furthermore, God’s grace is seen again in verses 3-4 of Deuteronomy 8 through Him perfectly and miraculously providing for the Israelites’ needs. For example, He faithfully fulfilled their need for daily sustenance through miraculously providing them manna. Furthermore, the people had no need to be concerned about making or procuring new clothes, for the Lord prevented their current ones from wearing out for 40 years. In addition, He maintained their health during this time span by protecting their feet from wear and tear. Likewise, because we are God’s children, He promises to fulfill all our needs through His perfect provision. For example, Philippians 4:19 states, “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Also, Matthew 6:25-32 sees Jesus command us not to be anxious for any of our needs, for as God cares for the birds of the air and the lilies of the field, so will He care for our need for food, water, and clothes.
However, Deuteronomy 8:1-2 and 5 reveal that there are conditional blessings and promises God offers that can be missed and forfeited due to sinful pursuits and disobedience. In Israel’s case, when the people complained in Numbers 11 about the manna God provided and demanded meat, the Lord allowed them to fulfill their lusts but punished them with a plague. Furthermore, the very reason Israel was wandering in the wilderness was due to their disobedience in entering the land during their initial visit. Likewise, when we allow ourselves to be distracted by sinful desires or rebel against God’s command, we fall outside of His provision and protection, resulting in Him delaying or permanently withholding His blessings. Furthermore, as the Prodigal Son experienced, God can allow us to fall into great need in order to draw us back to Him. To ensure we remain in God’s provision and are available to receive His blessings, we must follow Matthew 6:33, where Jesus says after stating God’s promises to provide for us, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
6 So you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him. 7 For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, 8 a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, 9 a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. 10 And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the Lord your God for the good land he has given you.
In this passage, God not only gave Israel the unconditional promise of receiving land, but also the conditional promise that if they honored Him and obeyed His commands, they would remain in it and be richly blessed by the land’s immense beauty, vast resources, and abundant fruitfulness. Similarly, although Jesus has graciously given us a new spiritual life and the promise of an unending afterlife safe from eternal condemnation, John 10:10 reveals that He also desires to bless us with an abundant life. It is crucial to note that this life is not a promise of earthly wealth, freedom from suffering, nor constant good times. Rather, it is a promise of a life lived within our human spirit that, by drawing near and abiding in Christ, can grow in beautiful fellowship with Him, receive and obey His will, and persevere with joy amid all kinds of tribulations.
John 15:1-11 perfectly describe this abundant life: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. 9 As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. 10 If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. 11 These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.”
As this passage states, the abundant life in Christ is one that abides in Him, meaning we consistently make Him the focus of our lives and rely solely on Him to care for our needs, strengthen us with His endless power, and lead us with His perfect will. Also, this life is one that involves trials and painful acts of surrender; events that are unpleasant but remove things that inhibit our relationship with Him. Furthermore, these trials only further our capacity for Christ to produce from us spiritual fruit, which include talents to glorify Him, our lives more closely reflecting His, and lost souls drawn to Him. In addition, Christ will answer our prayers and fulfill our requests because they will be asked according to His will and not our carnal desires. Finally, His love and joy will remain in us to help us withstand the trials of this life. While Christ desires to give us all these blessings, they require us to obediently abide in Him and surrender our sinful desires and behaviors. Failing to do so will rob us of this abundant life and lead to a difficult, miserable existence outside of His perfect providence.
11 “Take care lest you forget the Lord your God by not keeping his commandments and his rules and his statutes, which I command you today, 12 lest, when you have eaten and are full and have built good houses and live in them, 13 and when your herds and flocks multiply and your silver and gold is multiplied and all that you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart be lifted up, and you forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, 15 who led you through the great and terrifying wilderness, with its fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty ground where there was no water, who brought you water out of the flinty rock, 16 who fed you in the wilderness with manna that your fathers did not know, that he might humble you and test you, to do you good in the end. 17 Beware lest you say in your heart, ‘My power and the might of my hand have gotten me this wealth.’ 18 You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day. 19 And if you forget the Lord your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. 20 Like the nations that the Lord makes to perish before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God.”
Those who have read the Old Testament know that Israel unfortunately did not heed this warning. Because they failed to obey God in eradicating their pagan enemies, the Israelites forgot God in their abundant living and went after the pagans’ false gods. The result was a repeated cycle of judgment, repentance, deliverance, and apostasy that eventually ended in Israel’s destruction and Judah’s captivity. This history demonstrates how disobedience to God not only results in lost blessings but also severe consequences if rebellion persists amid warnings and lighter instances of discipline.
Why is it so easy to forget God and serve our own self-centered desires, especially during good times? As this passage in Deuteronomy and Jonah’s account demonstrate, the root issue is pride. In the latter’s case, Jonah underwent severe circumstances when he pridefully resisted God’s calling and attempted the impossible task of fleeing His presence. Furthermore, even though God humbled him enough to obey by forcing him to live three days in a large fish’s belly, Jonah remained bitter after preaching God’s message of repentance to his enemies, the Ninevites. Instead of enjoying the blessing of an entire city receiving his message and repenting, Jonah bitterly wished for death because he pridefully insisted that God should have destroyed them. Unless we surrender our pride to God, we will live after our flesh, find ourselves living in a manner opposed to God, and miserably wallow in self-centeredness. Such is why Proverbs 13:15 does well to warn that “the way of [the] transgressor is hard.”
We as believers cannot live for both ourselves and God, for Romans 8:5-8 reveal that, “those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”
As shown here, we cannot both serve our self-centered flesh and God, for they are irreconcilably opposed to one another. If we live after our flesh, we forget God and thus rebel against Him. Conversely, keeping our focus on Christ and living according to His Holy Spirit enables us to surrender our pride, selfishness, and all else that is of the flesh. The latter path is the one we must strive to follow if we wish to remain in God’s providence and receive the fullness of His abundant life.
God’s commands and warnings to Israel in Deuteronomy 8 hold true in principle to us today. If we live to honor and obey Him, He promises to fulfill all our needs and bless us with an abundant life in Christ. However, if we choose to selfishly live after our flesh, pridefully forget all He has done for us, and arrogantly rebel against His callings and commands, we will soon find ourselves living outside His perfect provision, robbing ourselves of His blessings, and enduring consequences from His discipline. Though we can never lose our salvation, there are countless blessings we can lose from living in rebellion against God. Fortunately, by choosing to abide in Christ, surrender our self-centered carnal life, and obey God’s will, we can remain in God’s providence and receive the fullness of His promises to bless us with bountiful spiritual fruit, the unending joy and love of Christ, and fulfilled desires that align with His will.