“This” refers to “all the ways which the Lord your God has commanded you, that you may live and that it may be well with you, and that you may prolong your days in the land which you shall possess” (Deut. 5.33), as well as everything which is to follow. Notice again how Law and promise are intertwined. These must not be separated. If we desire to know God’s promises (live in the land) we must hold fast to what He has revealed (all that He has commanded).

If we do what God commands – He Who has redeemed us by grace through faith – we will realize what God has promised. This is how we demonstrate love and fear of God, and this is how we enjoy the benefits of full and abundant life. Obedience keeps us on the path of promise – here typified by the “land flowing with milk and honey” – and leads to ever higher stages of promise realization.

All these statutes associated with the first commandment thus emphasize the role of grace, faith, and obedience within the covenant of the Lord. There is no separation of promise and law, grace and obedience, faith and love. These all define the way of covenant faithfulness and full and abundant life in the redemptive grace of God.

T. M. Moore

The Law of God is the soil which, fertilized by the rest of God’s Word and watered by His Spirit, brings forth the fruit of Christian life. If you’d like to understand this process better, and how to make best use of the Law in your walk with and work for the Lord, order the book, The Ground for Christian Ethics, from our online store.

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.