Pray Thru the Bible

God Speaks

“These are the commands, decrees, and regulations that the Lord your God commanded me to teach you. You must obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy, ² and you and your children and grandchildren must fear the Lord your God as long as you live. If you obey all his decrees and commands, you will enjoy a long life. ³ Listen closely, Israel, and be careful to obey. Then all will go well with you, and you will have many children in the land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.

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. ⁷ Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. ⁸ Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. ⁹ Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

¹⁰ “The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. ¹¹ The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, ¹² be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. ¹³ You must fear the Lord your God and serve him. When you take an oath, you must use only his name.

¹⁴ “You must not worship any of the gods of neighboring nations, ¹⁵ for the Lord your God, who lives among you, is a jealous God. His anger will flare up against you, and he will wipe you from the face of the earth. ¹⁶ You must not test the Lord your God as you did when you complained at Massah. ¹⁷ You must diligently obey the commands of the Lord your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. ¹⁸ Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so all will go well with you. Then you will enter and occupy the good land that the Lord swore to give your ancestors. ¹⁹ You will drive out all the enemies living in the land, just as the Lord said you would.

²⁰ “In the future your children will ask you, ‘What is the meaning of these laws, decrees, and regulations that the Lord our God has commanded us to obey?’

²¹ “Then you must tell them, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the Lord brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand. ²² The Lord did miraculous signs and wonders before our eyes, dealing terrifying blows against Egypt and Pharaoh and all his people. ²³ He brought us out of Egypt so he could give us this land he had sworn to give our ancestors. ²⁴ And the Lord our God commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. ²⁵ For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us.’

Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com

We Respond

Reflection: Consider the following questions regarding Deuteronomy 6:

1. What does this chapter tell me about God?

2. What does this chapter tell me about the human beings He created?

Here is one possible answer to each of these questions. Ask the Holy Spirit if there are any others for you personally to ponder.  

1. God is the One who freed the Israelites from slavery in Egypt and laid out the way they were to demonstrate their gratitude. 

2. Because of our ingrained sin nature, people cannot fulfill the laws God laid out without the help of His grace provided to us by Jesus’ death on the cross.   

Prayer:

3. How might I pray regarding Deuteronomy 6?  

Thank You, LORD God, for rescuing me from my sin, self, and Satan through Jesus’ death on the cross. I’m determined to show my gratitude by listening carefully to Your instruction and by doing whatever You say. LORD, help me to think, say, and do everything You want me to and nothing that You don’t. Then I will get to enjoy all the blessings and benefits You have planned; however, I cannot do this without Your Holy Spirit giving me the knowledge, wisdom, and strength to fulfill Your commands. Please help me to know and carry out Your laws and to continually teach them to future generations. Thank You, LORD God, for the promises You made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and to Your followers down through the millennia. Holy Spirit, please help me to fear the LORD God and serve Him alone. Please help me to avoid the sins of the early Israelites and other ancestors. Please help me to be a good role model for future generations and to faithfully teach them the laws and regulations You have provided for our benefit and blessing. Jesus is the only one righteous enough to completely fulfill all of Your commands and decrees. Thank You, Jesus, that at the cross You bore the penalty of all human unrighteousness. You also transferred all Your righteousness to whoever will believe and receive it. What an awesome God You are! I will be forever grateful and pledge to love You with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength.  AMEN    

Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)

4. What action does the LORD want me to take in response to Deuteronomy 6?

• I will study the laws of God (Ten Commandments) so that I might experience the benefits God has provided.
• I will memorize Deuteronomy 6: 4-9 so that I can carry it out on a daily basis.
• I will thank the LORD daily for the blessings He has and will give me and the people I love.
• I will keep a journal of my obedience and God’s blessings.

Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.