Take My Life and Let It Be
“You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” ~Deuteronomy 6:8-9
Let’s re-visit something we passed over in last Sunday evening’s sermon on family worship. I’m sure you’re familiar with the Shema: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (Deut. 6:4). This verse oriented Israel’s whole existence. Their lives were to be lived with regard to the reality of this God — the Lord. And in response to His covenant faithfulness, they were to love Him with all their heart, soul, and might (Deut. 6:5). But in verses eight and nine we see further instructions given to Israel: they were to bind the commandments of the Lord on their hands and put them before their eyes; to write them on the doorposts of their homes and the gates of their property (or perhaps, their cities). As you are probably aware, this is literally what the Israelites did. They built small boxes to fasten to their hands and heads, within which were tiny scrolls with the Law written upon them. They also built small boxes for their doorposts in which to put the words of the Shema. This is still practiced in some Jewish circles today.
The problem, of course, is that wearing a box on your hand or head, or having a tiny scroll on your front door, doesn’t make you a better worshiper! It guarantees nothing concerning your love for God and obedience to His commandments. It’s just a box. It’s just a scroll. Rather, we should think of God’s instruction in these verses as His way of saying that everything we do (how we use our hands), and our worldview (how we “see” things), are to be in submission to His revealed will and commandments. Even our homes are to be under the rule and direction of His Word. Our property should be used in ways that exalt His glory and extend His Kingdom.
When we consider how these words apply to our practice of family worship, the connection is simple: we must instruct our covenant children to submit their entires lives — school, work, recreation, possessions, relationships, and even their own future homes — to the Word of God and the God of the Word. This is whole-souled love for God: to commit our entire lives to His glory and honor, and to do nothing that might bring His name into disrepute. In reality, what verses eight and nine say is the same as verse five: love the Lord with your whole being!
As you embark on a new year of family worship, will you commit to submitting all of life to the Lord? Will you intentionally teach the next generation — whether they be your covenant children or mine — to love the Lord with all their heart, soul, and might, and to act, think, and live in every way to the glory of God alone? I trust He will bless this kind of instruction in our homes and in our church.
Rev. Kyle Lockhart, Associate Pastor