Deuteronomy 4:1-9
“And now, O Israel, listen to the statutes and the rules that I am teaching you, and do them, that you may live, and go in and take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, is giving you. 2 You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you. 3 Your eyes have seen what the Lord did at Baal-peor, for the Lord your God destroyed from among you all the men who followed the Baal of Peor. 4 But you who held fast to the Lord your God are all alive today. 5 See, I have taught you statutes and rules, as the Lord my God commanded me, that you should do them in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 6 Keep them and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, ‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as the Lord our God is to us, whenever we call upon him? 8 And what great nation is there, that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today?
9 “Only take care, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things that your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life. Make them known to your children and your children’s children—
If you have ever played any kind of musical instrument, you may have heard this little sentence: “Practice makes perfect.” But, there is another version of this sentence that is a great improvement, “perfect practice makes perfect” Just rehearsing isn’t good enough. Why? If you have ever tried to play a musical instrument you also know this: It is all too easy to practice mistakes! Mistakes, if practiced, become nearly impossible to overcome.
If this is true when it comes to musical instruments, so much more is it true of holy living according to the Law of God. We may feel that we are practicing God’s will in our lives, but our opinion of ourselves isn’t the same as objective truth. There is one way to judge our performance. That one way is the revealed will of God in the Bible. There God give us His holy law. There God tells us what we are to do and not to do. There in the Holy Scriptures is perfection.
However, when we study the Bible, we don’t find that we are perfect, instead, God shows us our sins. God does this so that we will repent, receive His salvation through Jesus, and amend our sinful lives. God does this so that we will not continue to practice sin, but instead be set free from it!
Jesus, through His death on the cross forgives our sins. In His resurrection Jesus shows us that perfection and eternal life are ours. He has sealed them to us in our baptism.
Let us pray,
I thank you Lord Jesus for your Word. Grant me faith to study your word daily, share it with my family, and grow in grace and holiness. I thank you for you for the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. AMEN
The Lord’s Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name, Thy kingdom come,Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.