Deuteronomy 4:1-4 – Living by God’s instruction

The Old Testament uses several terms to refer to the Word of God. Terms such as the Law, statutes, judgments, commandments, testimony, precepts and, etc. Each of these words carries with it a certain shade of meaning. Here in Deuteronomy the terms used to refer to God’s Word are “statutes, judgments, and commandments”. What Moses wanted the children of Israel to know was the fact that God’s Word must be central to their life. Its importance can never be over-emphasized.

Why was the instruction to listen to statutes and judgments of God important? Firstly, it was because the children of Israel were about to enter a land filled with idolatry. And the standards and values of the Canaanites would be vastly different from what God expected of them. Moses didn’t want them to be tempted to live like the Canaanites. Thus, it was needful for Israel to be mindful of God’s required standards. They were warned not to add or subtract from God’s commandments just to accommodate their new life in Canaan.

Secondly, Moses warned them against adopting the worship of Baal. He reminded them of the consequences which their fathers faced adopting the lifestyle of the followers of Baal. Moses reminded them in verse 4 that they did n0t perish because they held fast to the Lord their God and did not follow in their father’s footsteps.     

Listening to God’s Word and obeying it is critical to spiritual life. By obeying God’s Word one will flourish, by neglecting it one will languish. By acting on it one will delight the heart of God. By acting against it, one will set oneself up against Him. Our life must be governed by the Word of God. It is His prescription to a life that will honor and please Him.  So like the new generation of the children of Israel who was poised to cross into the promised land, we must also live the Word. How can we live the Word unless we take time to first read, study, listen to the Word? Our spiritual vitality depends on knowing the Word and acting on it. Hear the call of God through the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 2:15. “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”