Deuteronomy 6
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Deuteronomy 6:1-2:
“Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the Lord your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, 2 that you may fear the Lord your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. |
One might call it a miracle, but actually its just Living wisely. Living wisely prolongs lifespan. It means knowing how to live, the purpose and meaning of our life. Your life depends on wisdom for strength and vitality. Wisdom "is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, And happy are all who hold her fast." (Prov 3:18) "Because God is God, the absolute lord and law-giver, fear of God is the essence of sanity and common sense. To depart from a fear of God is to lack any real sense of reality." -RJ Rusdoony "Institutes of Biblical Law" |
Fearing the Lord means to be in reverent awe of His holiness, to give Him complete reverence and to honor Him as the God of great glory, majesty, purity and power. For example, when God revealed Himself to the Israelites at Mount Sinai through “thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast,” they all “trembled” in fear (Ex 19:16) because of His great power. They even begged Moses to deliver God’s message to them so they would not have to encounter God Himself (Ex 20:18-19; Dt 5:22-27). Also, when the psalm writer reflects on God as Creator, he says: “Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere Him. For He spoke, and it came to be; He commanded, and it stood firm” (Ps 33:8-9). -Olive Tree Blog
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Deuteronomy 6:3:
"Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey." |
The reason for the giving of these commandments is to awaken the fear of God, and that fear might prompt obedience. Because God is God, the absolute lord and law-giver, fear of God is the essence of sanity and common sense. To depart from a fear of God is to lack any sense of reality. Second, "The maintenance of the fear of God would bring prosperity, and increase of the nation promised to the fathers.....The increase of the nation had been promised to the patriarchs from the very first." It is therefore necessary to maintain this fear and obedience from generation to generation.
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Deuteronomy 6:5:
And thou shalt love the Lord they God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. |
This is what was to be impressed upon the children, to be talked about day and night, in all opportunities. When Christ was asked which was the greatest commandment, this is what he quoted. This is the beginning of any understanding of love. We begin with a love of God which we seek to increase. Loving God with our mind requires that we try to understand His will with more than emotion. It is not unjust for God to claim this from His own works and gifts, Why should not the creature love his creator who gave him the power to love at all? And since we were created for this. it is by living it that we fully exist.
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Deuteronomy 6:6-7:
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart. And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, 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. |
There must be heart reality, not mere external conformity or ceremony. The training of children should take place in real-life situations and settings. The goal of education is to prepare the child to glorify God in real life, so the setting for education ought to be real life. Most modern education departs from the Biblical model in that it seeks to teach children in the artificial environment of a school surrounded by the peers.
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Deuteronomy 6:13:
Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name. |
Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him Serve him through fear; not through slavish fear, a fear of hell and damnation; but through filial fear, a reverential affection for that God that had brought them out of a state of bondage into great and glorious liberty, out of Egypt into Canaan's land, out of a place of misery into a land of plenty; and therefore should fear the Lord and his goodness, and from such a fear of him serve him, in every part of worship, public and private, enjoined; this passage Christ refers to ( Matthew 4:10 ) and shalt swear by his name; when they made a covenant with any, or were called to bear a testimony for the decision of any controversy which could not be otherwise finished; or whenever they took an oath on any account, which should never be taken rashly or on any trivial account, and much less falsely; it should be taken not in the name of any idol, or of any other but the true and living God; the Targum of Jonathan is, ``in the name of the Word of the Lord, in truth ye shall swear.'' |
Deuteronomy 6:24:
And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.
And the LORD commanded us to do all these statutes, to fear the LORD our God, for our good always, that he might preserve us alive, as it is at this day.
