Going Deeper in God's Word
Scripture Passage: Deuteronomy 6:1-9 (NASB)
“Now this is the commandment, the statutes and the judgments which the Lord your God has commanded me to teach you, that you might do them in the land where you are going over to possess it, 2 so that you and your son and your grandson might fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. 3 O Israel, you should listen and be careful to do it, that it may be well with you and that you may multiply greatly, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.
4 “Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one! 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
SUMMARY
Moses tells the Israelites of the commandments of God and tells them that they should follow these laws in the promised land. He says to fear God and to love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and strength and to teach the commandments to future generations, as well, so that they can live long and prosper in the promised land that the Lord is giving to them.
MEDITATION & REFLECTION
The first half of the passage talks about doing the commandments so that the Israelites can live, multiply and be the way God intended them to be in the promised land. Moses reminds the Israelites to "listen and be careful to do it, that it may be well with you and that you may multiply greatly, just as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you" (v. 3). I think I often listen and act in ways that I think is proper or godly to get the reward of God's promise being fulfilled. However, that is very superficial.
What God really wants is our hearts. The second part of the passage focuses more on spending time in the word of God in a more personal way, such as loving the Lord with all our hearts, and binding His word as a sign on our hands and foreheads. I also want to meet God on a more personal level in my everyday life.
APPLICATION
I think I need to work on applying God's word on a more deeper level in my heart. I know His word protects me from my own temptations and prevents me from making rash decisions and helps guide my steps to a better future for myself. This is good, but I think I need to stop thinking of following God just to prosper in the promised land. I need to get on a deeper level in my heart and allow His word to also change my heart, and interact with His word in a more intimate manner daily. Lately I have just been doing the bare minimum to get by and say that I have spent time with God, when really, I know that I have not been doing my best to meet with Him on a more personal level.
PRAYER
Dear God, Thank You for giving us Your commandments to follow as guidelines in the promised land. I pray that as I follow Your instructions, that I will continue to grow deeper in my relationship with You and that Your word will continue to change and transform my heart.
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