Articles
The Whole Duty of Man
The Whole Duty of Man
Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
A Scribe once asked Jesus what commandment was foremost of all; to which Jesus answered, the Lord our God is one God and you shall love him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength (Mark 12:28-30). There are a lot of people who claim to love God but there is a big difference between making that claim and actually meaning it (Matthew 7:21-22, Luke 6:46). Listen carefully to these words from 1 John 5:1-3, Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments; and his commandments are not burdensome.
Fearing God and keeping his commandments is a test of whether or not we truly love him. Fear of God is defined as a reverence to him and his laws which will lead us to hate and avoid those things that will lead us into evil conduct (1 Thessalonians 5:22, 1 John 2:15-17, Colossians 3:5-10). It is this fear that leads us to completely submit our ourself to him (James 4:17, 1 Peter 1:13-16, 2 Corinthians 10:4-5).
Truly loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength will find us diligently providing for our eternal safety (2 Peter 1:3-11). We will be found laboring for and with him, ready for every good work, abounding in the work of the Lord (1 Corinthians 3:9, Titus 3:1, 1 Corinthians 15:58). We will be found praising, glorifying and pleasing him in what we say and do (Romans 15:5-11, Psalms 118:28-29, 1 John 3:22). Psalms 111:10 proclaims “that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do his commandments; His praise endures forever”. Psalms 112:1 continues with these words, “Praise the Lord! How blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments”. Fearing God, we will delight in his law and diligently meditate on that law (Psalms 1:1-2, Psalms 119:15-16, 2 Timothy 2:15, James 1:21-26).
Everything about us in this life is temporary in nature, even our physical life itself. We are mortals and the day is coming for each of us when we will fold up this earthly tent and leave this world behind (1 Samuel 20:3, 2 Corinthians 5:1, Hebrews 9:27). Today, while we still have the opportunity to do so, we need to pay careful attention as to how we live each day. We must be watchful, wary and cautious to guard our lives against every danger that threatens our eternal security (Proverbs 4:4, 23, 1 Corinthians 16:13, 1 Peter 5:6-9, Romans 12:1-2, 2 Peter 1:2-11). Today, I pray each of us will take to heart the advice of Paul found in Ephesians 5:15-17, namely, ‘Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil, therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.’
Fear God, keep his commandments and by so doing, one day reap the greatest reward imaginable!
Charles Hicks, Gallatin Tennessee
