Click here to listen to Gary Millar’s TGC13 talk.
Why is an Old Testament scholar—one particularly conversant with the book of Deuteronomy—speaking at TGC’s 2013 National Conference with the theme, ‘His Mission: Jesus in the Gospel of Luke’? Because we’re convinced that Deuteronomy contains uniquely valuable insights and lessons for church leaders. With years of pastoral experience, Gary Millar, principal of Queensland Theological College in Brisbane, Australia, is well suited to explore “The Theology of Deuteronomy for Preachers” in one of our many conference workshops. Here’s the description:
Deuteronomy is the ultimate sermon for preachers! Not only is it the capstone of the Pentateuch, it lays the foundations of the flow of the rest of Old Testament theology. Prophecy, wisdom, and biblical history all find their “genesis” in Deuteronomy. That’s why getting to grips with the theology of Deuteronomy not only opens the way to preaching a helpful series on this book, it has the potential to transform our Christ-centered preaching of the Old Testament.
I corresponded with Millar—who will also deliver a TGC13 plenary address on Jesus Betrayed and Crucified (Luke 22:39-23:43)—about his workshop and why Deuteronomy is worth a pastor’s attention.
When a pastor could preach a more obviously applicable book like Ephesians, why should he spend time working through Deuteronomy?
I’m tempted to say because he won’t understand Ephesians unless he has come to grips with Deuteronomy first! More seriously, I don’t think it’s “either-or” but “both-and.” Working through Deuteronomy (which I think is probably the greatest sermon ever preached) has the enormous benefit of exposing us to the final reflections of Moses, a man who by the end of his life not only knew God deeply but also understood the riches of grace.
The rhythms of Deuteronomy are, no doubt, a little different, but the book is no less practical—it tackles head-on questions like how to face our past, the urgency of listening to God’s Word, why God would want anything to do with us in the first place, why people like us can’t be good, and what God has set up to help people like us find satisfaction and security in him.
In what sense does Deuteronomy occupy a crucial place in biblical theology?
Along with many others, I’m convinced that the Pentateuch is the foundation of biblical theology. Here in these five books so many of the themes and categories unfolded in the rest of the Old Testament and fulfilled in Christ are first introduced (e.g., creation, sin, covenant, rescue, seed, sacrifice, law, atonement, and God’s glory, just to name just a few). Deuteronomy is clearly the theological conclusion to the Pentateuch, and therefore must play a crucial role in articulating the theology of the Bible.
Moreover, the historical books (Joshua-2 Kings), the major and minor Prophets, and the wisdom books all lean heavily on the language and ideas of Deuteronomy. When we appreciate the richness of Moses’s insight in Deuteronomy, then, it really does open up the rest of the Old Testament (and, ultimately, the entire Bible).
You’ve written a New Studies in Biblical Theology (NSBT) volume titled Now Choose Life: Theology and Ethics in Deuteronomy (IVP Academic). What did you learn when writing that book that sticks with you today?
Two main things—our God is incredibly gracious, and we are unbelievably sinful.
Discerning how Old Testament laws apply to new covenant believers is a perennially challenging task. What are some helpful principles for determining which Pentateuchal laws apply—-and how?
I’m not dodging the question, but I think that the first step is to understand how the laws in Deuteronomy (mostly in chs. 12-26) function in relation to the Ten Commandments (or Decalogue) in chapter 5. Once we see that Moses is basically expounding the Decalogue later in the book—and we work out how he goes about that—it opens up all kinds of fruitful avenues for thinking through how the law works. However, I don’t want to spoil the “surprise” by saying any more about that in advance of TGC13!
You will be speaking on “The Theology of Deuteronomy for Pastors” at TGC’s 2013 National Conference in Orlando. Why is this a topic requiring urgent attention from pastors?
It’s no exaggeration to say that Deuteronomy is the key to understanding how Old Testament theology unfolds. Teaching Deuteronomy transforms the way folks in our churches read the Bible, and it can be a massive help in grasping how all of the Scriptures lead us to the Lord Jesus Christ. The fact that Deuteronomy—which is such a compelling exposition of God’s grace to flawed people like you and me and points so clearly to what God would do in Christ in setting up a New Covenant—is in the Old Testament may come as a bit of a shock to many. But it also provides us with one of the most moving and powerful incentives to “choose life” in the whole Bible.
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