The Word is Full and Enough!
Monday Reflection – 20 November 2017
You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take anything from it, but keep the commandments of the Lord your God. Deuteronomy 4:2
When I reflect on the life of Moses, with this text as the backdrop, I find an incredible character who took the high road. Moses had just begged God to allow him to enter the Promised Land, but God told him a flat out no. God told him that he could climb Mount Pisgah and view the land, but he wouldn’t enjoy the priviledge of entering it. He had spent a large part of his life following God’s instructions – headed to Egypt, brought the Israelites out, led them for 40 years through the wilderness, and now on the brink of the realization of the promise. Yet, unfortunately Moses would not enter.
Moses may have reasoned that he had every reason to be angry and walk away, BUT he took the high road. He spent the rest of his life teaching, imploring and challenging the Israelites to obey God and serve him. In today’s text, Moses warned them to follow God’s commands in its fullness and to neither add nor subtract from it. God’s word is full and enough – it requires nothing more and anything less than the full word falls short.
Here are some thoughts:
- God’s word must be taken in full– We are in danger of confusion and falling short if we live by selected passages of Scripture. One of the challenges of the Church and of many a preacher is the desire and/or practice to just randomly quote scriptures, especially to support a viewpoint, without any regard for the contexts of the texts. This is not being faithful to the word. We ought to take God and the fullness of his word together.
- The fullness of God’s word is summed up in the following:
a)Love God with everything we’ve got – heart, soul, mind and strength
b)Love our neighbors as ourselves
- Jesus is the supreme and ultimate Word– While we come to know God through the written word, the greatest expression of God’s word was through his Son, Jesus Christ. Hebrews 1:1 posits that, “…in these last days, he (God) has spoken to us through his son.” John declares Jesus to be, “the Word made flesh”. (John 1:14) We should study the written word, but of far greater importance is receiving Jesus, the Word.
- We ought to read, receive and respond positively to God’s word – These are the appropriate actions regarding God’s word. While we read and receive, we must also act. In this way we build our house on the rock, not the sand. (Matt. 7:24-27) The doctrinal text is so beautifully relevant: Jesus said to them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.” Luke 8:21
May the fullness of God’s word dwell in you richly!
Till next week, let’s affirm that God’s word is full and enough and live by it.
Jermaine Gibson