And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’” Mark 12:28-30
The Greatest Commandment: Love God
Jesus said the greatest commandment begins with the God of Scripture -- and that we should "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" (30). I'm willing to bet you've heard this saying of Jesus time and time again -- love God, love neighbor, this is the sum of the law.
But, pause and think about it -- this is a commandment. The greatest commandment God imposes on us is to love him with everything we have and everything we are. We are commanded to love.
If anyone else laid down this mandate, it would be awkward. A husband cannot command a wife to love him. A parent cannot command a child to love them. And the surest way to lose all your friends is to command them to love you.
But the greatest commandment God gives is to love him. Because this is God we're talking about, it isn't narcissism, but love, that drives him to command this of us.
You see, God is worthy of our love. He is the great Creator and initiator of salvation. He laid it all down to save us, so he is worthy of our love.
But loving God isn't just about his worthiness, but our holiness. A love for God will keep you out of all kinds of trouble. When the love of God is the filter you use to make every decision in life, you become more sanctified. When love for God helps you decide who to date, what to consume, or how to work, your life becomes holier.
And from holiness springs health -- the best version of life imaginable. I'm not suggesting we should love God as a thin veil for self-love. I'm suggesting that God knows if we love him more than ourselves or anyone else, we will end up in a healthy spot. So his command to love flows from his love for us.
I hold out my own children as an example. I want them to love God -- and they all do. But I know a firm love of God will protect them from terrible decisions and great pain in life. I know that loving God above everyone and everything else will get them through some of the greatest pains and tragedies of life.
When Christina and I were dating, this was my singular question (and hers as well). We wanted to know: does this person love Jesus more than me? It has been a love for Christ that has enabled us to serve and love each other well over the years. Love for God must come above all other loves. If he isn't first, then life is inevitably ordered incorrectly. If he isn't first, the foundation is off, and the house of your life will eventually crumble.
The Greatest Sin: Lack of Love for God
This first commandment helps us understand the greatest of all sins. I know we often say all sin is the same. And, yes, if we are talking about falling short of God's glorious perfection, all sin is the same (Romans 3:23). But one sin breeds thousands of others, and it's a lack of love for God. The greatest commandment is to love him. And it is deadly not to love him.
Remember in Star Wars when the rebellion stole the plans for the first Death Star? It had a fatal flaw built into its core. With one direct hit from Luke Skywalker's X-Wing, a chain reaction was set off that destroyed the Death Star from within.
Well -- I am about to compare you to the Death Star -- the enemy is trying to blast away at your love for God. Without the fear of the Lord, we will commit all kinds of egregious sins. But the love of God preserves us from a chain reaction of errors.
Love Redefined
Up to this point, we haven't defined love. Our society is obsessed with it but is misled about it. Love is not only a feeling. Love does not permit everything. Love is not sex. Love does not justify disobedience to God.
Love is the dedication and commitment with everything you are to God. It is a decision. It is a practice. It is a walk. It is a constant war.
Are the emotions involved? Absolutely. When the gospel saturates your heart and mind, you become overwhelmed with who God is and what he's done. Love issues forth. But it must become a constant direction and impulse and drive within you. Everything you are should point in the direction of loving God.
Jesus illustrated this by telling us we must love God with all our hearts, souls, minds, and strength (30). Everything we are. Our wills, our emotions, our intellects, and our bodies can spend themselves on loving God.
What is in your heart? What is your main motivation for life? Loving God can be your main motivation.
What is in your soul? Where do you go for emotional fulfillment? Loving God can satisfy your soul.
How do you use your mind? What do you study, read, memorize, and watch? Love God by studying him in his word.
How do you use your energy? What makes you tired in life? Your work and service to others can be done with the aim of loving God.
Christianity Is Not a Bunch of Rules
All this helps us understand Christianity is not a bunch of rules. Some people come to this conclusion, but I think it's because they never understood the gospel. When you see all God has done for you, it makes you zealous for good works (Titus 2:11-14). With his love unleashed on your soul, you cannot help but respond in love to him.
Yes, all of the Christian life is a response to the love of God.
“We love because he first loved us.” (1 John 4:19, ESV)
Before looking at the secondary and offshoot command to love our neighbor as ourselves, I want you to consider how a love for God can be a driving force for your whole life. Over the centuries, many Christians got it wrong by thinking love for God required a hermitic lifestyle. Surely, many have thought, if we want to love God, we have to leave it all and join a monastery.
Certainly, when you love God with all that you are, things can and will change. He might even ask you to break the mold of your life and head in a radical new direction. Generally, however, this is not the way.
Instead, God infiltrates your everyday life. Through loving God, every relationship and endeavor comes alive. Soon, your career becomes a way for you to love God. Every interaction with coworkers is an outlet for your devotion to him. Marriages yield to his leadership. Families become healthy. Friendships gain depth. Churches become fruitful. The love of God invades all.
I keep my phone in grayscale, meaning the screen has no color. I think it cuts distraction down a little bit, plus black is my favorite color. But I can toggle it back to color mode when needed.
The other day, I was listening to one of my favorite albums, and my phone happened to be in color mode. I could not believe the vibrancy of the album cover on my screen. Apparently, I had only ever seen it in grayscale, but in full-color mode, it came alive.
This is what the love of God does to life. Everything is now in color. A commute becomes a chance to listen to a teaching of his word. A walk becomes a chance to pray. A work shift becomes a chance to demonstrate the work ethic of Christ. A friendship becomes a way to see God's image in another. It all comes alive because of a love for God.