To Encourage You

Deuteronomy 11:26-28 “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:  the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you today,  and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside from the way that I am commanding you today, to go after other gods that you have not known.”

In some ways, life can be very complicated.  In other ways, however, it is not.  In fact, it can all be boiled down to some very simple principles.  That’s one of the things the Word of God does for us. It simplifies life.  The God Who created, sustains, and rules the universe with all of its incredible complexity has simplified all of life for those He has created if we would only listen to what He has said.  

One such principle, and perhaps the most critical one to know, is given to us in the passage above. It talks about blessing, which anyone in their right mind should want, and cursing, which no one should want.  God has told us that there are two and only two ways in life.  Here it’s called the way of blessing as opposed to the way of cursing. In other places it’s described as the narrow way and the broad way (Matthew 7:13-14), the way filled with light and the way filled with darkness (John 8:12), and the way of life as opposed to the way of death (John 5:24).  And what differentiates these two ways? What’s the one thing that separates them?  As the verses above tell us, it’s our reaction to the commandments of the Lord God, the only true God, the One who has all authority and Who rules over all things.  He is life (John 1:4), so what He says about life is the truth about it.   

As we follow in His ways, we follow the ways of Truth.  As we obey His Word, we walk in the path of blessing. On the other hand, if we rebel against His ways and if we disobey His Word, we align ourselves with what is in opposition to the Truth, and to live according to lies is to walk in the ways of a curse.  And what’s the greatest commandment? What’s the surest way of blessing?  It’s to simply put our faith in and believe the words of Almighty God. It’s to put our faith in the One Who is the Word of God (John 1:1-18), the only begotten Son (John 3:16). It is to love Him with all that is within us and to love our neighbor as our self (Matthew 22:34-40), things that are possible only when the Spirit of God’s Son lives within us.  It’s the Spirit He gives to us the moment we put our faith in Him.  

In Psalm 1 we are told that the way of blessing and eternal prosperity is to meditate on God’s Word day and night. It describes the many blessings that come to those who read, think about, and obey what God has said, and it compares it to those who do just the opposite. It warns us that a life lived without regard to what God has said will be like chaff that the wind blows away in the end.  Jesus told us that to follow Him by loving and obeying His commands will result in eternal treasures in Heaven. To do otherwise is to put our trust in things that moth and rust corrupt and that thieves can break in and steal (Matthew 6:19-21).  

So, which way will you go?  Will you follow the way of obedience to God’s Word, the way of blessing, or will you disregard the One Who holds the whole world in His hands, and so align yourself with the way of cursing?  It’s a simple question, one that calls for a simple yes or no answer, but the choice we make is so profound that it will take all eternity to fully comprehend its significance. May God help us to choose the narrow way, the way of life, the way of truth. May we choose to follow the One Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, for to follow any other way will never bring blessing in the end.