January 15, 2022
Deuteronomy 6:4-9 NIV
4 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 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. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.
CONSIDER THIS
It is interesting how the very next words after the central words in all of Scripture (a.k.a. the Shema—vv.4-5) are these:
And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. (ESV)
Simple translation. TO LOVE GOD IS TO LOVE HIS WORD.
I marvel at the way so many believers think and approach the love of God as a matter of feeling and affection. I feel some manner of affection for God therefore I love God. It’s not bad, just super thin and quite superficial. I marvel at how so many apparently “committed” Christians have very little touch with God’s Word. They believe it. They salute it. But when it comes to any significant engagement with God’s Word, it is just not there. They tend to read the thoughts of others about God’s Word, even mine, and yet they have very little significant engagement with the source of God’s Word.
By significant engagement with God’s Word I do not mean Bible study. To be sure, Bible study is good, but what I am talking about is far simpler on the one hand and far more comprehensive on the other.
SIMPLE:
And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.
COMPREHENSIVE
Impress them on your children.
Talk about them
-when you sit at home
-when you walk along the road,
-when you lie down
-when you get up.
Tie them as symbols on your hands.
Bind them on your foreheads.
Write them on the door frames of your houses.
Write them on your gates.
The Word of God will be impressed on our hearts only to the extent it shows up in our every day walking around lives. I think we would all agree with the simple aspiration. The challenge comes with the comprehensive expression. Can I bottom line this for us? If we are not pressing the simple aspiration into a comprehensive expression we are fooling ourselves about the Word of God being anything more than a naive sentimental reality in our lives.
One more thing. We are not yet talking about implementing or practicing the Word of God in our lives. We must begin with the simple and comprehensive exposure and expression of the Word of God itself—sitting, walking, lying down, getting up, children, hands, foreheads, door frames, gates, . . . Why? Remember:
The grass withers, and the flower fades, but the Word of our God endures forever. Isaiah 40:8.
THE PRAYER
Yes, Lord, I want to impress your Word on my heart. Forgive me for leaving it at that level; the wanting to level. I want to make this practical, tangible and real. Would you show me practically how I might get the Word of God our of the Bible and make it present and visible in my every day life? This seems challenging and even strange in ways. I need leadership, but more than that I probably just need nerve. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
THE QUESTION
How have you found ways to do these kinds of things with the Word of God in your every day life? Please consider sharing your practices and ideas with our growing Seedbed Daily Text Facebook Group.
For the Awakening,
J.D. Walt
Sower-in-Chief
seedbed.com
One Response
This is such a powerful word for me this morning. You helped me realize that I have been approaching my daily scripture reading and “study” the same way I approach (and feel about) reading the latest leadership book on my stack. As “nourishment” to feed my growth and betterment.
You helped me realize that the “nourishment” I need from God’s word is not the “feed my soul” kind of nourishment. It’s the “sustain my life” kind of nourishment. The “food, water, sleep and shelter” kind of nourishment. Totally different approach (and purpose).
Thank you JD!