“And now,
Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God,
to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all
your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and
decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.” Deuteronomy
10:12-13
This is part of Moses lengthy speech to the people of
Israel. Why should what was said to the
nation of Israel be of concern to believers today? In Romans 11:11-31, the Apostle Paul explains
how God’s forgiveness was and is offered to the gentiles because of Israel’s
rejection of Christ. A gentile is any
non-Jew. So we have been grafted into
the body of Christ. What applies to Jew
applies to gentile. While we are not
bound to follow the Ten Commandments as a means of salvation, we are to follow
God’s decrees. Why, because they provide
a standard to live by. They provide
boundaries between what is right and what is wrong. They lead us into those things that are most
beneficial for our lives.
All God asks of us is to revere Him, obey Him, love Him and
serve Him. We are to do this completely,
with no reservation. The last four words
of these verses tell us the why of it – “…
for your own good.” If you do follow His decrees, it doesn’t benefit
God, it benefits you. Autonomous man
wants to follow no one. Autonomous man
believes he can make his own decisions and run his own life. He cannot.
Following God’s game plan will bring about all the success the Lord has
preordained you to have. Sidestepping
His plan for your life will keep that from happening.
Our life in Christ can be summed up in four words: reverence,
obedience, love and service. It requires
a level of selflessness which can only be realized with God’s help. Until next time, walk with the King and be a
blessing!
