Scripture Passage
Scripture Focus
“4 Listen, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. 5 And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. (Deuteronomy 6:4-6 NLT)
Observation
It is known as the “Shema”—so designated because of the first word of the verse in the Hebrew language—“Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God, the Lord is One!” Something of the monotheistic significance of the passage is lost, I think, in the New Living Translation (from which I’m reading this year). Still, the practical impact of the declaration is not.
Recognizing who God is calls forth two responses: Wholehearted love and wholehearted commitment. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength…commit yourself wholeheartedly to these commands…”
Of course, it seems to me that the two go hand in hand. Love flows automatically to commitment. What I love, I’m committed to. I can say all I want that I love calculus or Nascar or needlepoint, but if I never do calculus, watch Nascar, or create needlepoint, I don’t love those things.
And commitment without love…well, it exists, but it sure is a drag. Nothing sucks the life out of life than begrudgingly following through on a loveless commitment.
But properly understood, that’s not an issue here. Taking what we read yesterday—“Remember!”—rehearsing in our hearts what God has brought us out of in the past and what he’s promised for our future births the love that makes commitment a joy rather than a burden.
So who’s brought you out? Who holds your future? Who do you love like no other? What commitments are you joyfully embracing?
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