Deuteronomy 28:1-2 And it shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments which I command this day, that…all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.
We respond to God’s Law and Gospel by hearkening to God’s Word. Hearken means to listen with faith and then do. Fear and love are two strong motivating factors for desiring to keep the Law, the Ten Commandments. A blessed and a good life will result, and these blessings are listed in detail in chapter 28. If we believe God we will selfishly want to do it, since it will be for our benefit. On the other hand, a cursed and troubled life results when we do not listen and do. These curses are listed in gruesome detail. The graphics are abundantly clear, if we believe God’s Word. This so-called Deuteronomist History (blessed if you do, cursed if you don’t) unfolds in the rest of the Old Testament.
“These things are written for our learning.” The same Truths unfold in our individual lives as well. We cannot see the cause and effect nor can science study it. Therefore, it is revealed to us in the Bible so that we can believe it. We can see that life is good at the same time that we see it is not so good. However, we resist laying the blame on our own sin until the Spirit of God convicts us. He leads us to repent and believe the Gospel. In it we see by faith the forgiveness of sins, the Love of God, and the righteousness of God granted by grace. Thus by listening we fear and love God so that we do. God reveals this: listening makes a difference.