1-1-14. Deut 6:1-5. LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART!-my devotional

Key Verse: 6:4-5                                                                                                                                                                            Kevin E. Jesmer

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord 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.” (ESV)

Dear Lord, thank you for 2014. There is so much hope and expectation to be had for 2014. There is a whole year of possibilities. But I concede that we can not reach our full effectiveness and fruitfulness without your love, grace, truth, spirit and power in our lives, guiding us and moving us forward. Lord, please help each of us to be like well-drawn and well-aimed arrows in 2014. Help us to hit the target that you have set up for us in the distance. Guide our hands, feet, hearts and minds by your grace. We can not hit the distant target but you can help us. Be with your people in 2014. May your kingdom come and your will be done. Please grant me your word through this passage. I pray in the majestic name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Part 1: “Fear God By Keeping His Commands” (1-3).

Verses 1-3, “Now this is the commandment—the statutes and the rules —that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you, that you may do them in the land to which you are going over, to possess it, 2 that you may fear the Lord your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments, which I command you, all the days of your life, and that your days may be long. 3 Hear therefore, O Israel, and be careful to do them, that it may go well with you, and that you may multiply greatly, as the Lord, the God of your fathers, has promised you, in a land flowing with milk and honey.” (ESV)

We all want to live a blessed life. But how can we? Moses said that God gave us his commands, “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…and increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey…” (2,3). (NIV) If we and our children fear God by keeping his commands, he will bless us forever.

What does it mean for a Christian to keep God’s commandments? It is not just keeping the law legalistically. It is more spiritual than that. It is all about entering into, and maintaining a relationship with Jesus Christ, the living God. It is about remaining in Jesus through faith. It is about living by faith and walking by faith. It is about loving God and loving our neighbor as ourselves. These all can be gathered under one category, “The Missio Dei” of our lives. That is… “The Mission of God.”

There are some basic laws that we need to adhere to live as human beings. But to spend eternity with Christ and bear the fruit of the spirit in our lives, we must know what it means to live by faith in Christ. Obedience to certain truths of God is very personal. Though there are certain parameters, the Spirit of God needs to tell each person what to obey and when to obey it and how to obey. They need to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit. When God’s spirit speaks to their hearts, they need to learn to respond like the living creatures around the throne of God in the Book of Ezekiel, like all of creation in Genesis chapter 1. I pray to be able to hear the still, small voice of God and know what it means to obey the law of God in my personal life. May the people of our land learn how to follow the law of God.

There is some benefit to obeying some laws. Those who obey some Godly laws will be blessed by God. Let’s face it, the Jewish people, with all of their legalistic practices, are very successful and fruitful people in this world.  The nation of Israel is very strong despite of many forces against it. If you about thy Ten Commandments, you can not go wrong. You can only go the right way. Obedience to these laws will not get you to heaven, but they may get you money, stability and security in this life. It is only faith in Christ that can get us to heaven to be with God.

Part 2: The Lord Our God, The Lord Is One (4-5).

Verses 4-5, “Hear, O Israel: The Lord 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.” (ESV)

Jesus declared that this is the foremost command of God (see Mark 12:29-30). Christianity is based on this intensive love relationship with the only Creator God as the Lord. He loved us first and gave his one and only Son Jesus so that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16) Therefore, we also should love God, not superficially or half-heartedly, but with all our heart, soul and strength all the days of our life.

The problem is, even with our best efforts, we end up loving God superficially and half heartedly. We may start out feeling like we love God. We have some confidence that we have the right attitude and the right feelings, but these easily fade away. This world seems to drag us away. There are so many things that distract us away from sincere devotion to the word of God. Everywhere we go environments are made for eating and talking and socializing, but there are rare and few environments for Bible reading and prayer. Everything seems to be pushed into the church and not into the environments of our everyday lives. In 2014 I want to make environments to seek the face of God. I want to take opportunities to strengthen my relationship with the Lord.

Loving God is not just about procuring the right emotion. Sometimes we don’t have the right emotions. Sometimes our hearts are heavy. Does that mean that we don’t love God? Not at all! Loving God is a matter of truth. If we depended on our feelings then we would love God one day not love him the next. Satan may accuse you of not loving Christ as you should be doing. But all we need to do is know that we do love God. But we may not be feeling it.

We love God because Jesus first loved us. This is a fact. Jesus came to this world as a tiny baby in a manger. He spent his life loving and serving others and leading them to the Kingdom of God. He suffered and died on the cross so that we can know that we are forgiven of our sins. He rose from the dead to give us a living hope in the Kingdom of God. He dwells in our hearts and shepherds us even though he is the holy, almighty God and we are forgiven sinners. He will come again to gather his elect from the four corners of the world…even me. He loves me every day, despite of my sins, failures and weaknesses. He heals my heart and mind and soul. He strengthens me. He guides me and teaches me. He whispers words of love into my heart. This is Jesus Christ. This is the love of God. This is a fact. This fact is why we can love God, despite of how we feel.

We can ask God for help to love him. There is nothing wrong with confessing our lack of heart and passion to love God. At that moment we can say, “Lord, my love for you has grown cold. Help me to have the right heart towards you.” God will surely help us when we humbly come to him and ask.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for loving us first. Help me to love s the Lord with all my heart, soul and strength too.

One Word: Hear O Israel!