The Interconnected D's in Love

UV 1469/10,000 The Interconnected D’s in Love

In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply: and the LORD thy God shall bless thee in the land whither thou goest to possess it.

Deuteronomy 30 v 16


Our view of God is not that He being all powerful and infinite is authoritarian and dictatorial. We are commanded to love the Lord our God as the love of God is as necessary as air and water for our spiritual sustenance and well being. The love of God needs to fill our hearts even as our nostrils and lungs fill with air. This is devotion. We study His word and directions as we trust in His words. This is diligence. We subject ourselves to the discipline of His Word and His correction out of love and not out of fear. This is discipline. If we love Him, we will walk in His ways. This is dedication. In order to walk in His ways and make the right choices in life, we need to read, learn, study, remember and retain the Word or His commandments, precepts and promises in our heart. This is discernment. When we keep His Word in our hearts, our lives are blessed. The Lord will bless us and our children in the land where we live. He will multiply us, our blessings and our impact. We need to show our love for the Lord every living day and not save it for our dying day. IF we are devoted to the Lord, we will be diligent with His Word. If we are diligent with His Word, we will be disciplined in our ways. If we are disciplined, we will be discerning and determined to be all the Lord wants us to be and to do.

It is more important to be blessed than to be successful. Loving God is a mandate for man. It is not a luxury or an unnecessary appendage. It is not an imposition. It is the very purpose of life- to experience the love of God and to love Him. The Bible is not a set of elaborate rules and instructions but it is a love letter to mankind. It is Immanuel’s manual for man. It urges us to choose life and not death. Bereft of the love of God and love for God, our hearts are inclined to evil or to self-destruction. The love of God is to constrain us from making the wrong choices in life. He hates to see us hurt and defeated. He wants us to overcome the world even as Jesus overcame the world.

Our personal relationship with God is the closest we can get to any being on earth or in heaven. It is a love affair like no other. The Song of Solomon expresses the devotion of the lover of God. The reference to the beloved as a virgin shows the emphasis the Lord lays on purity of heart. The love relationship is expressed in these words, “ My beloved is mine and I am His and His banner over me is love.” The Lord covers our lives with a banner of love, of protection, of celebration, of blessing, of provision, of eternal joy. Every day the Lord writes something different on our banner to demonstrate His love. There are mutual and reciprocal claims and proclamations. We first need to commit our lives to the Lord, affirm His existence, our belongingness to Him and His belonging to us, our complete assurance and sense of celebration of this one aspect of life over all others. We define ourselves not by who we are or what we have done but by whose we are.

Prateep V Philip