A public witness passed through generations
“You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples…”
Deuteronomy 4:6a
The people of God have always existed as a people bearing witness to the goodness, wisdom, and love of God.
In today’s passage, the newly birthed people of Israel are charged with the task of faithfully following God’s commands. Not just for the sake of their covenant with God, but so that they can draw the attention of surrounding nations to God. They are a nation bearing witness to the character of the God who saved them.
Each generation, learning from the generation prior, picks up this mantle and is meant to understand its life together as a testimony to God before the world.
Today, as Christians, we don’t believe this task falls to one nation, but instead to the people of God committed to following Jesus in the Kingdom of God. We look to Jesus as our king, and savior, and exemplar for living. It is our calling to live out our devotion to God together as a witness to the goodness, wisdom, and love of God.
“They will know that you are my disciples by this,” Jesus told them, “That you love one another.”
Our witness is directly tied to our ability to love one another well. And like Moses’ words to Israel, we must see this task passed down from generation to generation. When we forget to pass down the true faith, we risk seeing it flounder and fade, or become fraught with capitulation to the world.
So let us be faithful, and let God’s name be lifted high for the salvation of others in love.
Our Prayer for Today
Loving God,
You have called us to be light and salt in the world. May we not hear this call first as a call for individuals, but let us find new ways to be known as witnesses to the kingdom by the way we love one another well.
Amen