Deuteronomy 6:4-9

“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 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. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Dear God, I should probably commit verses four and five to memory as many Jewish people still do today. 

“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.”

Maybe I should print it and put it on my bathroom mirror, saying it every morning as I get ready, making it a reminder to me that I am to love yo with all my heart, soul, and strength. I’m often amazed and disappointed at myself for how much I don’t love you with all of my heart, soul, and strength. If I were to assess myself for percentage of heart, soul, and strength with which I love you, I sadly might venture as high as 40%–maybe. Even that feels like it is being generous. In fact, I don’t even think I can envision what it would look like to love you with 100% of my heart, soul, and strength. 

Father, I’m about to speak at a church this morning. I’m going to talk about hearing your word, repenting, and then following your call to do the work you have for us to do. I’m going to tell my story from the last 21 years. Be with me as I tell it. Holy Spirit, be in the room with me. Stir hearts. Speak to souls. Inspire others to love you with all of your heart, soul, and strength. Inspire them to repent, ask for your guidance, and then follow your call. Be glorified in what I do today. Not for my glory, but for yours.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 

Deuteronomy 6:4-5

“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.

Deuteronomy 6:4-5

Dear God, if I were Jewish I would know this verse and the verse that follow it by heart. It’s what Jesus went to when asked what the greatest commandment was. So what does it take to love you with all of my heart, soul, and strength?

• Heart: I give my heart to so many things, and I confess that sometimes I get tired of dwelling on holy things. It can be fun to indulge my heart with the things of this world. It’s a little like drugs and excessive drinking. I watched an interview yesterday with David Harbor, an actor famous for Stranger Things, and he was talking about getting sober. He talked about how miserable he and everyone else he was doing drugs and drinking too much. One of the things he noticed when we went to a 12–step meeting was how friendly everyone was. How happy. So why do people do drugs and drink to excess? Because of the little temporary pleasure of unplugging from reality–the high–that you get in the moment. But the cumulative effect leaves you empty and knowing you need something more. It’s at that point you can choose to break the cycle, or try to see if one more round will numb the bad feelings out of you.
• Soul: How do I find the definition for soul? What does it mean to love you with all of my soul? Especially in the pre-Jesus world in which this was written. I think it means, in this context, my inmost being. My core. My heart is my emotions, but my soul is my core. I need to love you with the core of who I am.
• Strength; I think this one is about my self-discipline. I need to love you with effort. It can’t be a passive love. I can’t just sit around and say, “Oh, yeah. Me and God. We’re tight.” I need to discipline myself to love you. I need to show you love. I need to give all I have to be in this relationship with you because you deserve that.

Father, some people would read that last part I just wrote and say, “Well then, I don’t need a God that is going to make me work that hard,” but what they don’t understand is that there is peace and joy waiting in the midst of that effort. When I don’t love you with all of my heart, soul, and strength then I find myself drifting further and further from peace and joy. But when I do it, the grace you give me in return floods me and I find myself at peace. It passes understanding, but it’s real. Help me to love you like I should today.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 

Deuteronomy 18:15-20

Moses continued, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you yourselves requested of the Lord your God when you were assembled at Mount Sinai. You said, ‘Don’t let us hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore or see this blazing fire, for we will die.’ “Then the Lord said to me, ‘What they have said is right. I will raise up a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell the people everything I command him. I will personally deal with anyone who will not listen to the messages the prophet proclaims on my behalf. But any prophet who falsely claims to speak in my name or who speaks in the name of another god must die.’

Deuteronomy 18:15-20

Dear God, there sure are a lot of “prophets” running around, and they have a much larger voice than they used to because of our technology. But I have to say that I don’t think many of them are for real.

So what is the litmus test I use? How do I determine whether or not a “prophet” is to be embraced or shunned? I had a coworker come into my office a couple of days ago and tell me that her husband really wants to go and hear a pastor in another city who has a large following not only in his city, but also around the world. My personal opinion of him is that he falls into the category of “false prophet,” and I told her exactly what I though of him. Why? What is it about him that makes me reject him so thoroughly? Am I right or am I wrong?

First, I’ll categorize him as a prosperity gospel preacher. His sermons are all about the individual and the wonderful things you have for us here on earth. Now there’s a place for positive attitudes, working hard, self-discipline, etc., but I think characterizing you as being there to fulfill our dreams is false. At its most basic level, life is about us being here to worship and serve you, giving up our lives so that you might use us however you need to use us. Four hundred years of Israelites lived and died and slavery in Egypt so that you could build the Israelite nation. The widow who put her two coins into the collection serves as an example to us 2,000 years after her death, and yet she probably died as poor as she was when she woke up that morning that Jesus saw her. Frankly, I often look at my own life and wonder why I have it so good. Yes, my life has had challenges, but I cannot believe how good I have it.

So what does a real prophet do? One, I think they challenge me with my sin. They make me confront where I am failing you, my loved ones, my community, and myself. You did this through Moses, Elijah, Nathan, Jonah, and many other prophets. Second, I think they teach us to serve and to decrease as you increase. I heard a sermon a few months ago that I’ve mentioned in these prayers to you a few times by Andy Stanley called “Not in it to Win It.” In that sermon, he talked about how Jesus was willing to lose any number of battles so that he could win our souls. How much more should we be willing to lose battles too? Third, I think they teach us to die to our rights. Andy mentioned in that sermon that the church is at its worst when it is fighting for its own rights, but it is at its best when it is fighting for the rights of others. When we fight for our own rights then we start to look like the world. When we fight for others we look like Jesus. There are any number of truths that real prophets teach us, but I think that is a good start. In essence, it is all about you and not about us. It is about our utmost for your highest. It is all about us decreasing and you increasing.

Father, help me to find your prophets who can pour into my spirit, and help me to be someone who can bring your words to others. Be glorified through me. Love through me. Help others through me. For your glory’s sake, oh Lord. For your glory alone.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 

Deuteronomy 18:15-18

Moses continued, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you yourselves requested of the Lord your God when you were assembled at Mount Sinai. You said, ‘Don’t let us hear the voice of the Lord our God anymore or see this blazing fire, for we will die.’ “Then the Lord said to me, ‘What they have said is right. I will raise up a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell the people everything I command him.
Deuteronomy 18:15-18

Dear God, it is easy to criticize your leadership style. Speaking through flawed and frail humans instead of speaking to us directly. Giving us a collection of books written over the course of hundreds (thousands) of years with inconsistencies that can be glaring (two different creation stories back to back in Genesis that are different?). Sending Jesus to live, die, and come back to life to atone for our sin. You allow all of this suffering to happen in the world–from human on human crimes to natural disasters. These are just a few examples.

But what’s the alternative. What would be a better way? Would it be better if you actually spoke to us directly in an audible voice, gave us a 100-page instruction manual on how to live, made us work for our atonement, and made earth heaven, removing all obstacles in life as well as our free will? I’ve thought about this some in the past. Yes, sometimes this system of yours can be frustrating, but it is always better than any alternatives I can come up with.

Father, thank you for your gentleness. In terms of your prophets and scripture, thank you for a chance to get to know you in a more personal way through both stories of your interaction with people over millennia and through the life and examples of Jesus. And thank you for the struggles. Yes, there are times when I’d love to ask you if you regret free will, but I know the world would be pretty miserable without it. In the end, I suppose it come down to the fact that I trust you, and I also trust that this vague system that leaves room for flawed interpretations of your nature and how I should live my life also leaves enough latitude for me to be wrong and still be in relations with you.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 

Deuteronomy 13:1-4

“Suppose there are prophets among you or those who dream dreams about the future, and they promise you signs or miracles, and the predicted signs or miracles occur. If they then say, ‘Come, let us worship other gods’—gods you have not known before— do not listen to them. The Lord your God is testing you to see if you truly love him with all your heart and soul. Serve only the Lord your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.
Deuteronomy 13:1-4

Dear God, one of the things that is good about getting the “verse of the day” from Bible Gateway is that it will occasionally give me a random verse with which I’m not familiar. In this case, I’m sure I’ve read this before, but it’s been a long time and I’ve forgotten it.

The actual verse was verse 4, the last two sentences: “Serve only the Lord…” but I think the most important part is pointing out the false prophets at the beginning. I need to being everything I read or hear to you and the Holy Spirit in discernment. Even from people I trust.

For example, I really like the preaching of Andy Stanley, and I’m sure he works hard to vet his teaching for authenticity and accuracy. I’m also sure he’s been unknowingly wrong about some things. I have had the opportunity to preach and I am sure that I’ve made mistakes that made you wince. I’ve worked hard to make sure what I say is supported by scripture and consistent with what I know of you, but I’m sure I’ve been wrong. Heck, I’m sure I’ve put wrong things and incorrect conclusions in these prayers to you, and, because I blog them, someone might accidentally receive and start to believe some wrong theology.

There is a Christian denomination in town that teaches that the congregation must accept what is taught from the pulpit regardless of their personal response to it. Therefore, they cannot visit other churches and they cannot hear teaching from anyone outside of their denomination. That’s too bad on two counts. It’s dangerous to give any human that much power over a group, and it’s so limiting to only hear limited perspectives on you and all that you are.

Father, in the end, there might be some mistakes made, but it finally comes down to verse 4: “Serve only the Lord your God and fear him alone. Obey his commands, listen to his voice, and cling to him.” Help me to serve only you and to fear no one but you. Help me to obey your commands, make room to listen to you and your Holy Spirit, and simply cling to you for all of my life.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 

Deuteronomy 6:6-7

Deuteronomy 6:6-7
And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 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.

 

Dear God, I think it’s impossible to be a good parent. Well, I take that back. I think there are some people out there who are good parents. I’ll rephrase. I really tried, but as I look back on my parenting all I see is failure and mistakes. I wasn’t strict enough here. I was too strict there. I didn’t pray enough here. I was too spiritual there.

I was talking to a woman yesterday who adores her father and talked about all of the lessons and wisdom he imparted to her. I was sitting there admiring the heck out of the guy and wishing I was more like him, but then I remembered something. This woman, who is in her late 20s now, ended up leaving home and moving in with her boyfriend while she was still in high school. She is married to the boyfriend now, but I am sure that that felt like tremendous failure to that father in the moment. Of course, now, the woman is one of the most admirable people I know. I admire both her and her husband greatly. But I’m sure her life and how things were going didn’t always look that promising to her parents.

One thing that I tend to get from you more and more the closer I get to you is that you have made room in your plan for my failures. While I can do some damage, to be sure, in the broad scheme of things, your overall plan has allowed for my mistakes. You are always working for the good for those who love you (Romans 8:28), whether we can see it or not. In the case of this woman, she talked about the struggles she experienced through her choices and how they made her stronger. Her father is very pleased with her now. I’m sure he couldn’t see it at the time, but you were working all things together for the good of those who love you.

Father, I have a lot of work today, and I have a lot of opportunities to really blow it, but I am going to trust you that this path is ordained. Whether it has struggle waiting for me, or even failure, I trust that you will use my work–my life–for your glory. I submit it all to you. To paraphrase an “invitation hymn” from my Baptist days, all to you I surrender. All to you I freely give. I will ever love and trust you. In your presence daily live. I surrender all. I surrender all. All to thee my blessed savior, I surrender all.

In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen

 

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

“Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 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. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Dear God, I suppose that if there is one thing I am supposed to know and remember to pass on to my children it is what the Jewish people call the “Shema Yisrael.” You are God, you are one, and I must love you with my whole heart, soul, and strength. Boy, is that harder to pass down than it sounds.

Over 20 years ago, I was at a Promise Keepers conference at Texas Stadium in Irving. One guy was talking to us and he used an illustration of three chairs. Each chair represented a level of love for and commitment to you. Chair #1 was VERY committed. Chair #2 was kind of committed. Chair #3 was not committed at all. He said that it usually goes that of generation #1 starts out in the first chair, it is likely that the next generation will be in the second chair and the third generation will be in the last chair. I think this is probably true which is why you gave Moses this passage to Still into the Israelites. We need to do everything we can to keep our children (and their children) in the first chair.

Father, you know what my wife and I tried to do with our children when they still lived at home. Now, they are both out in the world, and they will take those lessons (some of them anyway) with them. Give them what they need to live in that first chair. Help my wife and me to live in that first chair and stay there. It’s hard to not be distracted or tempted to follow our own way. But you are our God, you are one. I will love you above all others and with everything I have.

In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen