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The First Commandment: Statutes and Precepts (29)
Deuteronomy 32.45-47
45 Moses finished speaking all these words to all Israel, 46 and he said to them: “Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you shall command your children to be careful to observe—all the words of this law. 47 For it is not a futile thing for you, because it is your life, and by this word you shall prolong your days in the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess.”
“Set your hearts.” Here was the great stumbling-stone for Israel, for they did not have a heart for God (Deut. 5.29). It would take a great work of God to give them a new heart (Deut. 30.1-10). Christ’s work of redemption opened the way for the Spirit of God to come and give God’s people a new heart, so that they could learn and obey His Law (Ezek. 36.26, 27). Now God’s mandate to Israel remains for the people of God today: Take the Law to heart!
But what does this entail? Certainly we cannot take the Law to heart if we choose to remain ignorant of it. We must read, study, and meditate on God’s Law, listening for the Spirit to show us specific applications of this holy and righteous and good Law to our everyday lives. We must also learn to love the Law of God above our own best thoughts or the opinions of others (Ps. 119.97). The more we understand of God’s Law, and the more we act in obedience on it, the more we will see the wisdom and love of God in it, and, hence, the more we will love this Law and take it to heart.
Evidence that we have taken the Law of God to heart will be found in the thoroughness with which we teach God’s Law to the coming generation – and not merely as an intellectual exercise, but as a standard for daily practice. Teaching only accomplishes its aim when it brings forth obedience in the lives of those taught, the obedience to God’s Law which results in love for Him and neighbors (Matt. 22.34-30).
God’s Law marks out the path of full and abundant life in Christ (1 Jn. 2.1-6). If we will take it to heart, live in it day by day, and pass it along to our children, then we will know the fullness of God’s precious and very great promises (2 Pet. 1.4 – symbolized in the Law by the land).
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.