It was customary for Israel to have all the words of the law read whenever they gathered in a general or solemn assembly. Our text is a pointer to this. Take note that the reading comprised both the blessings and cursing. Focusing on blessings alone would have produced entitled, indulgent mindsets in the people. On the other hand, focusing on curses alone would have produced timid, fearful people whose understanding of God would not be any different from that of a slave master. By reading all the words, Joshua drove the people towards a balanced and well adjusted perspective of spiritual reality.

By the time a person is making a choice of a word of the Lord over another, he is already going into heresy…The totality of God’s word is to be received equally…To live a profitable Christian life, you must embrace all of God’s word.

The word “heresy” is derived from Greek and literally means “choice”. By the time a person is making a choice of a word of the Lord over another, he is already going into heresy. Heresy involves identifying with something to the exclusion of others. We don’t have the liberty to choose which of God’s word we like and which to drop. The totality of God’s word is to be received equally. In Acts 20:20, Paul gave an account of his ministry, telling the elders of the church that he did not keep back anything of the word of God from them. The same Paul wrote to Timothy that all scriptures are given by God’s Spirit and are profitable. To live a profitable Christian life, you must embrace all of God’s word.