What to do before I die
“There on the mountain that you have climbed you will die and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people.” (Deuteronomy 32:50)
Early this morning, I heard the news of the death of a friend of my beloved seminary alumni pastor. When I heard that my friend pastor’s friend had died at his home with heart attack, I went to the website of the church he served. The first article I read was written by the late Pastor Kim while thinking of his son(s) in America. Then I went to the gallery section of the church website and looked at the pictures. Pastor Kim's birthday is of course different from mine, but his birthday is on October 7th, one day apart from me. As I thought about what Pastor Kim's wife and his children and his church members and co-workers were going through, I prayed to Heavenly Father for them. As I prayed, I thought of my own death. In particular, I prayed to God while reading Deuteronomy chapters 31 though 32, especially while meditating on the three things Moses did before he died, focusing on Deuteronomy 32:50, which I read at the early morning prayer meeting. And as I write this down again, at least in writing, I want to remind myself again.
The first thing Moses did before he died was to build up his successor, Joshua, in the congregation of Israel and encouraged him.
Look at Deuteronomy 31:7-8: “Then Moses summoned Joshua and said to him in the presence of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.” Before he died, Moses prayed to God: “May the LORD, the God of the spirits of all mankind, appoint a man over this community to go out and come in before them, one who will lead them out and bring them in, so the LORD's people will not be like sheep without a shepherd” (Num. 27:16-17). Then God told Moses to take Joshua son of Nun and lay his hand on him, have him stand before Eleazar the priest and entire assembly and commission him in their presence, give him some of Moses' authority so the whole Israelite community would obey him (vv. 18-20). So Moses obeyed God's word (vv. 22-23). Then, when he was 120 years old, he knew that he could not cross the Jordan and would enter the land of Canaan as God had already said before all the congregation of Israel. So he told all Israel that the Lord Himself would cross over ahead of them and would destroy the Canaanites before them, and would take possession of their land (Deut. 31:1-3). Moses, who said that God would cross the Jordan before them, said, “Joshua also will cross over ahead of you” (v. 3). What does it mean? It means that God would be with Joshua, Moses' successor (v. 6), to cross the Jordan first in front of the Israelites. Then Moses summoned Joshua for the purpose of all Israel and encouraged him: “Be strong and courageous, for you must go with this people into the land that the LORD swore to their forefathers to give them, and you must divide it among them as their inheritance. The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged” (vv. 7-8).
Before I die, I want to continue to participate in the Lord's work of raising up the Lord-centered workers who have vision. I want to devote myself in seeking out more potential harvest workers and sending them out to expand the kingdom of God in this time when the number of souls to be harvested are so many but the workers are few, as I pray to the Lord of harvest to send out workers into His harvest field (Lk. 10:2).
The second thing Moses did before he died was to write the law and read it to all Israel so that they could hear it.
Look at Deuteronomy 31:9-13: “So Moses wrote down this law and gave it to the priests, the sons of Levi, who carried the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and to all the elders of Israel. Then Moses commanded them: “At the end of every seven years, in the year for canceling debts, during the Feast of Tabernacles, when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God at the place he will choose, you shall read this law before them in their hearing. Assemble the people--men, women and children, and the aliens living in your towns--so they can listen and learn to fear the LORD your God and follow carefully all the words of this law. Their children, who do not know this law, must hear it and learn to fear the LORD your God as long as you live in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.” Moses wrote the law before he died. And he made all the children of Israel hear the law. And Moses gathered the law, the men and women, and the children of the people, and all the foreigners living in their cities, so that they could hear and learn from it. Its purpose was that all the people of Israel may learn to fear the Lord their God (v. 13). Why did Moses do this? This was because Moses knew that when the Israelites entered the land of Canaan, they would prostitute themselves after the foreign gods of the land, would forsake God, and would break the covenant that God made with them (v. 16). How did Moses know this? This is because God told Moses (v. 16). Moses knew that they had been rebellious against the Lord while he was still alive and with them, how much more would they rebel after his death (v. 27). He knew that when the Israelites entered into the land of Canaan and ate their fill and thrive, they would turn to other gods and worship them, rejecting God and breaking God's covenant (v. 20). That was why he wanted to write the law before he died so that all the people of Israel could listen and learn to fear the Lord their God and follow carefully all the words of the law (v. 12).
Before I die, I want to meditate and preach on all the letters of the Apostle Paul. And I want to make a book based on my sermons. Currently, I often write “James’ family stories” for my three children. And I am sharing the Word Meditation (QT) in writing for the members of the Victory Presbyterian Church I serve, my beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, and members of my internet ministry. The reason I am doing this is simply to share the grace that God has given me through His Word with others. And I am continuing to share my meditation on the Word, trusting that the Holy Spirit may give grace to the members who read it. However, the thing I want to do more than all of this before I die is that my life becomes more like Jesus, so I earnestly pray that the little memories of Jesus will be planted in the hearts of all my loved ones, brothers and sisters in Christ, the friends whom I want to reach out share the gospel of Jesus Christ, and all the people I know.
The third thing Moses did before he died was to write songs and teach it to the sons of Israel in order for them to sing with their lips.
Look at Deuteronomy 31:19 – “Now write down for yourselves this song and teach it to the Israelites and have them sing it, so that it may be a witness for me against them.” Moses wrote a song before he died. And he recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel (v. 30; 32:44). The content of this song is recorded in Deuteronomy 32:1-43. Why did Moses write this song and read its words to the entire congregation of Israel? The reason was because he wanted this song to be a witness for God against the sons of Israel (31:19). Moses wanted this song to testify before them as a witness (“for it shall not be forgotten from the lips of their descendants) because he knew that when they entered the land of Canaan and had eaten and were satisfied, became prosperous, then they would turn to other gods and serve them, would spurn God and break His covenant, and the result would be that many evils and troubles would have come upon them (vv. 20-21). So Moses wrote this song and taught it to the sons of Israel (v. 22).
Before I die, I want to collect the songs that I enjoyed singing and and write a book about the grace that God has given me through them, and share it with my family, church members, and many brothers and sisters in Christ. If possible, I would like to record a voice praising those songs while playing the guitar and give it to my children. Some of those songs I hope my family members, church members, and mourners will sing praises to God during my funeral service.
The three things I need to do before I die are to raise up Christ-centered visionary kingdom workers, to publish books about my meditation on the Word of God, and publish a book about my testimonies of the songs that I enjoyed singing to the Lord. Through all these things, I hope and pray that God will be glorified and that it will be beneficial to many loved ones.
As I entrust to the Lord what I must do before I die,
James Kim