Joshua 22:5
But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.
*Strong's Ex. Conc. No. 1692
Cleave: cling, keep close, hold fast, be joined together
From the Hebrew word 'dabaq' (pronounced daw-bak'). Examples:
Joined Together--Genesis 2:24 (as man to wife).
Cleave To--Ruth 1:14 (as friend to friend)
Hold Fast--Joshua 23:8 (as a people to their God)
JOINED AT THE HEART
Psalm 63:8 "My soul follows hard after Thee: Thy right hand upholds me."
Follows hard after is a phrase which means 'clings tightly to'. Think Gorilla Glue stuck, unable to separate from.
This is the fourth command in this verse.
1. Love The Lord Your God
2. Walk In All His Ways
3. Keep His Commandments
4. Cleave To Him
5. Serve Him With All Our Heart and Soul
When we choose to love God above all else (1), the others will happen automatically in the Spirit. Our hearts need to be right with God, aligned in Him according to His Word. (2) Loving God will cause us to want to walk in His ways. (3) Loving God will instill a desire within us to keep His commandments for we will always want to be found in His favor. (4) Loving God will cause us to cleave to Him, wanting always to be near Him, near enough to hear Him speak softly to us, to hear His voice call us. (5) Loving God will give us a desire to serve Him faithfully and with honor.
Just as in a personal relationship with our spouses or best friends, we will desire only the best for the other. We speak truthfully and honestly with each other. When we speak as friend to friend in our interpersonal relationships, we not only need to speak the truth, but we need to speak it tactfully at times, so as not to hurt feelings: speak in words of love.
WHOLEHEARTED LOVE
Again, in a wedding ceremony where the man declares his love and fidelity to his bride, and she declares her love and fidelity to him, the promise of lifelong commitment is made. A wholehearted commitment to be faithful to each other, to honor the other above all others, to work together in raising their children (seed) in the Love of the Lord. It is a joining together of God plus the husband plus the wife: an intricately woven life, a tapestry of love.
Matthew 18:20 "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them."
Psalm 73:25 "Whom have I in heaven but You? And on earth I desire no one besides You."
Romans 6:17 "But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed."
We, the born again, are God's church. He creates us for Himself. Through the blood of His only begotten Son and the power of His Holy Spirit, He woos us to Himself, drawing us close. And when we respond to His call on our hearts, we offer our whole lives to Him, not wanting to hold anything back. We are His beloved and He is ours.
Sometimes marriages dissolve. Even God divorced His beloved Israel. But for good reason: she left Him first and worshiped other gods. In other words, Israel whored herself out to the service of idolatry. (Jeremiah 3:8). Yet, still God loved Israel and Judah. He called them to repent of their wicked ways and return to Him. (Jeremiah 3:11-20). His people had not cleaved to Him and their relationship was severed; not with a finality, but with a promise of restoration of only she would repent and return to Him.
WORLDLY vs WORDLY
A worldly heart will make worldly decisions and also follow through on those decisions. But a heart that has chosen God needs to make Wordly decisions and follow through, stand strong, in those decisions. Which includes the decision to LOVE GOD and CLEAVE TO HIM ONLY. He wants an exclusive relationship with us.
Have you made the decision to cleave to Him, to be in this exclusive relationship with Him? He's calling your name even now.
