Reading the Word

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 (ESV)

4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Understanding and Applying the Word

Do you love the Lord? I am sure most of us would affirm that we do. But how much do we love him? Do we love him with all of our heart and with all of our soul and with all of our might? If we are honest, we probably do not. We have many other things that consume us and occupy our thoughts and affections. Those other things may even be good things, like our spouse or children or our work. It is not wrong for us to care deeply about these things and others, even love them, but we must not allow them to become our central love. That must be for God alone.

When our love for God is rightly central in our lives, all of our other devotions will fall into their proper place. Our love for God guides all of our other loves because we love the things the Lord loves and we love those things as he loves them. Let us turn our affections to him and let our love for God guide our lives.

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