SWORD OF THE SPIRIT                                                                                               1246

“Greatest Commandment”

Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law? And he said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets. – Matthew 22:36-40

I don’t like a lot of rules and regulations. It is estimated that our Congress has enacted over 30,000 statutes since 1789. Some estimate that there are over 18 million laws in the United States overall. It is impossible to live a righteous life measured by obedience to secular or religious laws.

God gave us only ten commandments. Jesus summarized them into two: Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind and to love others. Simple enough? No. Not really.

Our heart is the part of our eternal spiritual being that contains our emotions and desires. Our soul is our psyche comprising our unique identity and personality. It defines how we manifest what is in our heart. Our mind is our thought life. It is the catalyst for our heart and soul. All three: heart, soul, and mind must be in synergistic unity if we are to obey the great and first commandment. None of us can do so.

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it? – Jeremiah 17:9

For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”- Mark 7:21-23

How often have we sought to pray and to worship God only to have our mind go on a walkabout chasing after the desires of our heart that are contrary to Him.

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. – 1 John 2:15

How many times have we acted in a selfish and less than loving manner toward others: Our spouse, family, neighbors, coworkers, and so on?

And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ – Matthew 25:38-40

Three times Jesus asked Peter, ‘Do you love me?’ With each affirmative reply by Peter, Jesus commands him to feed and care for His sheep.

Jesus asks us this same question today. We may reply as Peter did but if we are honest with ourselves, we know that we do not love Him with ALL our heart, soul, and mind. We are truly wretched as Paul states.

For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members.  Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! … – Romans 7:22-25

The Lord searches our heart, and He knows our frailty.

 I the Lord search the heart and test the mind … – Jeremiah 17:10

For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. – Psalm 103:14

We can never achieve righteousness and salvation through a system of laws, even when condensed into the ‘first and great’ commandment.

Jesus’ summation of all the law and the prophets into the greatest commandment provides a driving force to the reality of our wretchedness before Him. It drives us to the only Person who can save us: Jesus, Our Lord. Salvation is found only through Him.

But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. – Romans 5:8

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. – John 3:16

Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. – Romans 10:9-10

May the Holy Spirit abide in you and continue to help you grow in loving Him with ALL your heart, soul, and mind.