Pray the Word with David Platt is a resource from Radical.net.

Deuteronomy chapter 13, verses 6 through 8,

if your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or your daughter,

or the wife you embrace, or your friend who is as your own soul,

entices you secretly saying, let us go and serve other gods,

which neither you nor your fathers have known, some of the gods of the peoples who are around you,

whether near you or far off from you, from the one end of the earth to the other, you shall not yield to him,

or listen to him, nor shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him, nor shall you conceal him.

Wow, what a warning.

Here in Deuteronomy chapter 13, God's speaking about the power of close friendships, of family relationships to either spur you and me on toward God and serving and worshiping God and loving God, or to pull us away from

serving, loving, worshiping God. And this is part of God's design for close friendships.

Think about places like Hebrews chapter 10, verses 24 and 25, where we see that picture

of gathering together closely with other brothers and sisters in Christ to spur one

another on toward love and good works, to encourage one another in faith.

Think of Proverbs saying as iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.

God has designed our closest relationships to draw us closer to him.

But the warning here in Deuteronomy chapter 13 is, it's possible for these

closest relationships, people who are as close as your own soul, it's possible for those

people to entice you in a way that pulls you away from intimacy with God, in a way that leads you to serve other gods,

which just shouts then guard your closest relationships.

There's so many different ways, Deuteronomy chapter 13 leads us to pray.

Let's just think of as we pray all the different ways that based on this

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