THE ONE

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, promised you.

Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. Deuteronomy 6:1-9

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks are to God.

In Chapter 5, Moses reiterated the Ten Commandments verbatim to Israel. The Lord definitely wanted to drive His expectations home, particularly because Israel was about to finally enter the Promised Land.

As Chapter 6 opens, Moses once again speaks about the importance of keeping all of God’s decrees and commands so that they might “enjoy long life” and see things “go well” so that they might “increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord…promised.” Truly, as mentioned in the “Live Long and Prosper” devotional, the Lord wanted the best for Israel but they had to be obedient.

This matter of obedience is one we see so many times in the Old Testament and throughout the scriptures. Why? Because it is really at the root of human failure. We can read the scriptures, pray, and go to church every week but if we aren’t committed to obedience, we are destined to perpetually live a life of sinfulness and not just accidental sinfulness but willing sinfulness. God had to address it so much in His word because the Israelites refused to show they had understood God expectation for them…and we are in the same league with them. We have failed to show we have figured it out either.

Well, Moses gives us something further to consider as we look at this matter of obedience. For read again, these words from our passage:

“…The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.”

Question: Do you love God? I mean, really love God. Be careful how you answer because you may have to step back and reevaluate your response after you ponder these last verses who offer us several key points:

1. The Lord is the ONE God. And this isn’t meant to invalidate the Holy Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Ghost. No…this means that God is alone and has no equal. He is THE God…the ONE God of everything. Thus, He and He alone is the One worthy of all our worship, honor, glory, praise and love. And this leads to the second point.
2. This Lord who is the One God is to receive all of our love. Not just some of it…all of it. And just in case we don’t understand what “all” means, scripture tells us. It tells us that all our heart, all our soul and all our strength are what God requires. There’s no exception. He gave it all to and for us and He expects it all back from us. When we’re sinful and disobedient, we aren’t giving Him our all because sin is getting some of our effort. God wants it all…and deserves it all. By understanding this, we can steer clear of anything that would draw us away from Him (i.e. not giving Him all) and remain in His good favor.
3. Tell others about the One God. God’s word exhorts us to tell about Him and His expectations. We’re to “impress (this) on (our) children. We’re to “talk about them when (we) sit at home and when (we) walk along the road. We’re to meditate on them “when (we) lie down and when (we) get up. We’re to carry His word and will with us, tying “them as symbols on (our) hands” and binding “them on your foreheads”. We’re to pass God’s commands and decrees to others, writing “them on the doorframes of (our) houses…and…gates.” Truly, God wants everyone to know and understand Him and He wants to use us as instruments to this end.

Question: Do you love the One God of the universe with ALL your heart and ALL your soul and ALL your mind and ALL your strength?

If the answer is no or sometimes, you have some work to do. I think if we were all honest about it, we ALL would say we have work to do. Let us strive from this day forward to be hyper-sensitive about the way we live and the message it sends to the God…the ONE God…who expects our all because He first gave it ALL for us. Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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