Religion in the Home

Deuteronomy 6:4-12

GOLDEN TEXT: “Every day will I bless Thee: and I will praise Thy name for ever and ever.”—Psalm 145:2

WHEN Jesus was asked which was the first and greatest commandment he quoted Moses’ summary of the Law, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with thy soul, and with all thy might.” “And these words,” Moses continued, “which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart.” What a truly great vision Moses had of the Law’s true significance!

Twice this faithful leader of Israel had been on the mount and had received the commandments engraven upon tablets of stone. Truly these were remarkable experiences, yet Moses realized that there was more to the commandments than merely so many “thou shalts” and “thou shalt nots.” He knew, too, that wonderful though it was to realize that the commandments had been miraculously written on stone, it was much more important that their spirit be in the hearts of the people. Moses knew that if the people loved God supremely because of their delight in him, there would be no danger whatever of their worshiping and serving other gods. He knew also that supreme love for God would mean that they delighted to obey every single requirement of his will for them.

For those who think of their religion as merely something they are under a certain obligation to observe, a sort of necessary evil, as it were, Moses’ instructions to Israel concerning their use of the Word of God would be irksome indeed. “And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children,” he said, “and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.”—Deut. 6:7-9

Those who have truly learned to know the Lord, who have tasted that he is good and have learned to delight in his law, find that there is no truer or higher joy than to think and talk about him. He is their constant delight, their all-in-all. This was true in Moses’ day, and it is still true. Those who now know the Lord through an understanding of his divine plan of the ages, want to talk about him all the time.

David wrote, “The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart.” (Psalm 19:8) Every true servant of God throughout all the ages has found this to be true. Whether we think of God’s “statutes” as the expressions of his will, or the doctrines of his glorious plan of the ages, they are truly delightful. In Moses’ day the Israelites had the various laws associated with the covenant into which they entered at Sinai, and besides, they had the promises of God contained in the Abrahamic covenant. This was a rich heritage, and those who esteemed God’s blessings above every other consideration doubtless found their greatest happiness in discussing these things which were so dear to them.

Those who know the Lord today can testify of their joy in the privilege of keeping him always before them—in their thoughts, words, and deeds. We today are not under the Law given to Israel at Sinai. Rather, we have a “new commandment” of love. It is not new fundamentally, for this was the true meaning of the Law to Israel—they were to love God supremely; and as Jesus said, their neighbors as themselves. (Matt. 22:37-40) But its application to the Christian is new. Our supreme love for God impels us to lay down our lives for God’s people, and to do this regardless of the hardships involved.

And today we have a much grander vision of the divine plan than that enjoyed by typical Israel. Now we know more about the “seed” of Abraham. We know that it is to be a spiritual seed, and have heard God’s call inviting us to become a part of that seed by presenting ourselves in full consecration to do his will. In response to this call we enter into a covenant with God even as the Israelites did, but the terms of our covenant are quite different.

Through the prophet God wrote, “Gather my saints together unto me; those that have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.” (Psalm 50:5) Having entered into this covenant, God’s “statutes” to us demand sacrifice—the giving up of our all. But even this rejoices our hearts. Jesus delighted to do his Father’s will, and we are following faithfully in his steps, we too, delight to lay down our lives for the brethren and to be baptized for the dead world.

Knowing the plan of God, and the place to which we have been called by God in that plan, it is truly a. delight to talk about these blessed truths. As long as our vision of the truth and of God’s will for us is clear, nothing will be more pleasing than to talk about the Lord and his goodness. God and his love will be the paramount theme of our lives if we are living up to our privileges.

QUESTIONS:

Where is the most important place for the Law of God to be written?

What is the nature of the Christian’s covenant with God?

How does supreme love for God manifest itself in the Christian life?

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