For Our Good – The Kingdom Curriculum V (6)

For Our Good

“You shall have no other gods before me.” Exodus 20.3; Deuteronomy 5:7

“And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and statutes of the LORD, which I am commanding you today for your good.” Deuteronomy 10.12, 13

It is good for us to “have” God!

God always has our best interests in mind. He wants only what is good for us; all His plans for us are bent on our realizing the best, happiest, and most satisfying life we can (Jer. 29:11). Sometimes, because the pull of shallow self-interest is so strong within us, we think we know better than God what we ought to be able to have or do (Prov. 14:12). But that is to put ourselves in His place as the ultimate definer of what’s best for us, and, given that we only finite persons, and affected in all our ways by the law of sin, we’re probably not the best ones to rely on for such insights.

God knows what’s best for us. He created us and all things good (Gen. 1:31). His plans for us are good. He is working all things together for our good, and He does all things well. When we “have” God as our God, and His Law as the light on our path, we have all the good that He is preparing for us as well.

The Law of God, Paul reminds us, is holy and righteous and good (Rom. 7:12). Thus we should expect that, whatever of goodness God intends for us will be bound up in our obedience to His Law. By guarding and obeying His Law we demonstrate our fear of God, further our walk with Him, demonstrate our love, and carry out His plan for the service we must render Him. Since the Law is a Law of liberty (Ms. 1:25), by keeping it we free ourselves from the guilt, shame, and fear of judgment that are associated with disobedience (Heb. 10.26, 27). By keeping the Law we avoid the power of sin to thwart our ministries of grace and truth. Having God and His Law as our daily companion and guide, we thus know the goodness God intends for us and show His goodness to all those around us.

God is good, and His Law is good. It is thus in our best interests to have Him and Him only as our God.

Be sure to order your copy of The Law of God by going to www.MyParuchia.com and clicking on Publications, then Waxed Tablet. Begin to make daily reading and meditation in God’s Law part of your discipline of the Word (Ps. 94:12-15).

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“In the Gates” is a devotional series on the Law of God by Rev. T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is editor of the Worldview Church. He serves as dean of the Centurions Program of the Wilberforce Forum and principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He is the author or editor of twenty books, and has contributed chapters to four others. His essays, reviews, articles, papers, and poetry have appeared in dozens of national and international journals, and on a wide range of websites. His most recent books are The Ailbe Psalter and The Ground for Christian Ethics (Waxed Tablet).

Scripture quotations in this article are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, (c) copyright 2001,2007 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Editor’s note: The use of a translation other than the Authorised Version in an article does not constitute an endorsement in whole or in part by The Christian Observer.