It s the same with the people of Israel as they stand before Moses poised to enter the promised land. They have wandered as aliens in the wilderness for forty years. Now they have come to that land given as a gift by the Lord who set them free. It is not a coincidence that the land turned out to be much more complicated than they had imagined. A land that will challenge their faith and test their loyalty to Yahweh.
Land is home.
They are coming home to God in a land provided by God who is the source of their freedom and life. See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, death and adversity. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I am commanding you today, by loving the Lord your God, walking in his ways, and observing his commandments, decrees and ordinances, then you shall live and become numerous, and the Lord will bless you in the land that you are entering to possess. Moses and Jesus knew that only absolute loyalty would be enough - enough for us to survive the rigors of life that contain joy and hurt. Lives where relationships can be the source of growth and risk.