Numbers 15.38-39 commands Moses, speak to the Israelites and tell them that throughout their generations they are to make tassels for the corners of their garments, and put a blue cord on the tassel at each corner. These will serve as tassels for you to look at, so that you may remember all the Lord’s commands and obey them and not prostitute yourselves by following your own heart and your own eyes.

A few years ago the w.w.j.d. bracelets were popular, created to serve as reminders to us for asking what would Jesus do in any given situation. Of course the answer to what would Jesus do was to be found in the Scriptures and not to be determined by our own feelings. I’m not sure this part of the message ever got delivered to the adherents of the bands.

God is all for reminders because we have a propensity to forget His commands and to be lazy at study. We are not to follow our own heart and eyes, for these things are corrupt at birth, and are bent upon our own pleasure and welfare. We gauge life by what is best for us rather than by what is God’s will even at the cost of our life.

In my pride I believe I am good and therefore I will always make good decisions. Even when those decisions go awry I justify them by believing my intent was pure. The humble person believes God over men and therefore takes God at His Word rather than taking his feelings as facts. The Word of God tells me my heart is deceitful and that I am oriented from birth toward selfishness and therefore rebellion against God.

The only way to do the will of God is to understand and apply the Word of God. God has told us what He demands from us so that we can do what pleases Him. The value of the Scriptures is not only for knowing God’s will but for comparing men’s words against God’s will so that I can know and obey the truth. The Bible is our objective source of truth from God for knowing Him and doing His will.

We do not know God or what He commands of us inherently, we must go to the source, then we must do what we need to remember to go to that source so that we always are about the business of obeying God regardless of how we feel or what others say.