EverydayWord · Pastor Derrick J Dawkins

“Mercy After Failure”

April 10, 2026·1 hr 3 min·5 clips

Pastor Derek Dawkins explains why Deuteronomy chapters 9 and 10 tear down human pride and expose our desperate need for God's mercy.

1. Everyday Word episode 1,316, hosted by Pastor Derek Dawkins, covers Deuteronomy chapters 9 and 10 under the theme 'Mercy After Failure.' 2. Pastor Derek Dawkins serves as teacher and host; online participants Sister Walters, Sister Watson, and Sister Scott are acknowledged at the session's opening. 3. The core thesis is that Israel stood not because of its righteousness but because of God's mercy and his covenant promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — a principle applied directly to contemporary listeners. 4. Deuteronomy 9:1-3 describes Israel about to cross the Jordan to face the Anakim, a people so enormous Moses notes their beds were 13 feet long, approximately six feet taller than NBA player Shaquille O'Neal. 5. Moses hammers the same point three times in verses 4-6: victory over the Canaanites is not Israel's reward for righteousness but a consequence of Canaanite wickedness and God's fulfillment of his oath to the patriarchs. 6. Dawkins personalizes the warning against pride, stating directly: 'You are not where you are today because of your righteousness — God chose you because he loves you.' 7. Deuteronomy 9:7-14 recounts the golden calf incident: while Moses fasted on Sinai for 40 days and 40 nights, Israel held what Dawkins calls a 'club scene' at the mountain's base, worshiping a metal calf while God prepared to annihilate the nation. 8. Moses descended while the mountain was still on fire, saw the idol, and smashed the two stone tablets bearing the Ten Commandments before the calf, then immediately fell prostrate before God for another 40 days to intercede for the people — 80 days of fasting in total. 9. The golden calf was burned, crushed to fine powder, and thrown into the stream flowing down the mountain, leaving no trace — an enacted sermon Dawkins interprets as the command to kill sin, not set it aside for another day. 10. Moses specifically prays for Aaron in Deuteronomy 9:20, because Aaron — Moses' own deputy — led the idol worship and should have known better, drawing a parallel to modern church leaders who enable congregational sin. 11. Dawkins lists four additional moments of Israelite rebellion: Taberah, Massah, Kibroth-hattaavah, and Kadesh-barnea, describing the people as fighting God 'every step of the way' from Egypt to the doorstep of the promised land. 12. Deuteronomy 10:1-5 narrates the renewal of the covenant: God commands Moses to cut two new stone tablets, and God himself rewrites the same Ten Commandments that had been shattered, placing them in an ark of acacia wood. 13. The death of Aaron at Moserah and the succession of his son Eleazar as priest (Deuteronomy 10:6) is noted, with the tribe of Levi set apart to carry the ark, minister before God, and pronounce blessings — receiving no territorial inheritance because 'the Lord is his inheritance.' 14. Deuteronomy 10:12-16 delivers what Dawkins calls the episode's most powerful passage: God's requirement is simply to fear him, walk in his ways, love him, and serve him with a whole heart — framed not as burden but for Israel's 'own good.' 15. Dawkins applies the command to 'circumcise your heart' as a call to remove inner wickedness and stubbornness, separate from external ritual observance. 16. The sovereignty application climaxes in a direct political statement: in the current uncertain environment, Dawkins says he does not get upset about politics because God is in control, and declares that 'no president is going to save you' and 'no president has a heaven or hell to send you to.' 17. The episode maintains a consistent Black Protestant preaching cadence with call-and-response invitations, personal testimony, humor (comparing the Anakim's height to Shaquille O'Neal), and spontaneous asides about real-life applications. 18. The format follows the Everyday Word pattern: scripture reading in full, chapter-by-chapter summary, lesson extraction, and practical application — structured but energetic, with frequent repetition for rhetorical emphasis. 19. Christians seeking daily devotional Bible study with direct personal application, especially on themes of grace, humility, and resisting pride, will find this episode directly applicable. 20. Listeners who prefer verse-by-verse academic commentary, minimal repetition, or nondenominational approaches to Old Testament history will likely find the style too sermonic.

As heard by us

A mercy-first sermon that turns failure toward prayer, gratitude, and a steadier walk with God.

Deuteronomy 9 and 10 are handled as a sermon on mercy, pride, and the simple fact that God's people stand only because God is merciful. The strongest passages stay close to Moses' intercession and the reminder that faithfulness comes from God, not human strength.

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Why you'd press play

For a morning dose of mercy, prayer, and plainspoken Bible encouragement.

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