19"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, 20by loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them." Deuteronomy 30:19-20

As God's chosen people, Israel had the daily opportunity to choose life. We are offered that same choice every day as followers of Jesus. We can choose to walk in death (absence of life; the flesh; Romans 8:6) or we can choose to walk in life (Spirit empowered; Romans 8:11)! How do we make that choice?

In Deuteronomy 30:20 above Moses says, "by loving the Lord your God." I so enjoy the fact that God puts life in real simple terms. Very consistent with what Moses was saying, Jesus answered the question of the greatest commandment in Matthew 22:37 by saying "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind." He then paints the picture of loving God real clearly in Luke 14:26-27, 33:
26"If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. 27"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. 33"So then, none of you can be My disciple who does not give up all his own possessions.

In verse 26 Jesus is not telling us to hate anyone! He's saying if there are any personal relationships in our lives that are more important to us than He is, we cannot be His disciple. In verse 27 Jesus tells us we must be willing to die to our own personal goals, dreams, and ambitions or we cannot be His disciple. The cross was for one purpose, death. We must be willing to die to ourselves and live to Him. Verse 33 needs little explanation; if we have any personal possessions (home, bank account, car, vacation, etc.) that are more important to us than He is we can't be His disciple.

Any wonder why the first of the Ten commandments is "You shall have no other gods before Me." To love God is to have no personal relationship as a god in our lives; no personal goal, dream, ambition as god in our lives; no personal possession as god in our lives.

"Father please search me, try me and see if there are any other gods in my life. Lord God my Father please forgive me for ever placing anything in my life as more important to me than You. Please do whatever You must to rid me of these false gods and make You alone the Lord and King of my life. Help me Father! In Jesus magnificent Name I beg you! Amen!"

His Kingdom Come,
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