I like to read different Bible translations to not become complacent in my study. You may know what I mean.
Ever come across a passage and think, “I know that already,” and then just skim over it?
In responding to the Tempter, Jesus said, “… It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4 KJV, emphasis mine).
Every word is spoken by an eternal God deserves my undivided attention, even if I think I already know its purpose—for there may always be more to that word than what meets the aged eye.
For example, my understanding quickened when I read Deuteronomy 7:11 In the ESV. Note the comparison:
• Deuteronomy 7:11 KJV: “Thou shalt therefore keep the commandments, and the statutes, and the judgments, which I command thee this day, to do them.”
• Deuteronomy 7:11 ESV: “You shall therefore be careful to do the commandment and the statutes and the rules that I command you today.”
To ‘be careful’ means to be cautious in one’s actions; to be watchful, guarded…circumspect.
Thus, Moses articulated so plainly those things Israel needed to be careful to obey:
• Commands (the Law)
• Statues (appointments—that is feasts, seasons, etc.)
• Rules (verdicts, specifically to pronoun a sentence)
By application it means for you and me to keep:
• God’s commands (to love the Lord…)
• His statutes (appointments—meeting with Him and the brethren)
• His verdicts (to focus on those things in our lives that need changing in our desire to be like Jesus.)
In Ephesians, Paul adds the “why” we need to be cautious.
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15, 16 ESV).
Kenneth Wuest writes,
“’Time’ is not chronos, ‘time as such,’ but kairos, ‘time as regarded in its strategic, epoch-making, seasonable, opportune seasons.’ The idea is not to make best use of time as such, which is what we should do in the sense of not wasting it, but of taking advantage of the opportunities that present themselves.”
By being cautious in obeying the commands, statues, and judgments of God, we are in the right place spirituality to impact people’s lives in their opportune seasons as we all walk in these evil days.
And there is no skipping ahead in that.
