Matthew 22:36, 37 - The Greatest Commandment.
Matthew 22:36, 37 (NIV) "Teacher, which is
the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37 Jesus
replied: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind.'
COMMENTARY PEARL
Heart, Soul, and Mind
When the Pharisees were trying to set a
trap for Jesus, they asked Him this question:
Teacher, which is the most important commandment in
the law of Moses? (Matthew 22:36 NLT).
Jesus told them, You must love the
Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul,
and all your mind. This is the first and
greatest commandment (verses 37"38 NLT).
In our culture when we speak of the
heart, were generally referring to our emotions.
For instance, we might say, My mind is
telling me one thing, but my heart is telling me
another.
So, what did Jesus mean when He said,
You must love the Lord your God with all your
heart, all your soul, and all your mind?
Is this saying that we should merely do
this from our emotions and disengage our
intellect? No. In the original language, the heart
refers to the core of a persons being. The soul
refers to what we would call emotion. And the mind
refers to intellectual vigor and determination.
Therefore, our love for the Lord should
be intelligent, feeling, and willing. Notice
that God wants all three.
However, some may love the Lord with all
their minds but not with all their souls. They
believe certain things to be true, but they are not
emotionally engaged. There are others who love God with
all their souls but not all their minds. They
relate to God emotionally, but they dont fill
their minds with Gods Word.
The Bible calls for balance. Its
telling us to love God with every fiber of our
beings. We love Him with our intellectual ability,
our emotional passion, and our strength. We
should love God with everything we have. [By Greg
Laurie from Harvest Ministries;
https://www.harvestdaily.com]
COMMENTARY
Whats at the Center of Your Life?
God wants to be at the very center of
your life. He doesn't want to be on the edge of
your life, and he doesnt want to be just a
segment of your life. The God of the universe - the
God who made you and loves you - wants to be the
hub of your heart and the axis of your
existence.
Heres another way to look at it: God
wants to have a love relationship with you.
The Bible says, Love the Lord your God
with all your heart and with all your soul and
with all your mind. This is the first and
greatest commandment (Matthew 22:37-38 NIV).
The truth is, you're going to center your
life around something. You may center it around
your career, your family, or your hobbies. You
may center it around making money or being
popular.
But putting anything besides God at the
center of your life is an idol. Exodus 20:3-4 says,
You must not have any other god but me. You must
not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an
image of anything in the heavens or on the earth
or in the sea (NLT).
How do you know when something has taken
center stage in your life instead of God? Its
simple. When Gods not at the center of your life,
you start to worry and stress out; you get
fearful. These are the warning lights that God is no
longer the nucleus of your heart.
In contrast, how can you tell when your
life is centered on God? You're at peace. You
stop worrying. The Bible says, A sense of
Gods wholeness, everything coming together for
good, will come and settle you down. Its
wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at
the center of your life (Philippians 4:7 The
Message).
Ask yourself this: What's going to be
the center of my life for the rest of my
life?
Its the most important thing you will
ever have to decide. [Daily Devotional by Rick
Warren: https://pastorrick.com/devotional/]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
Matthew 22:36, 37 - Loving God With All Your
Heart, Soul And Mind.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20200929-1211.html
Mark 12:30 - The First and Great Commandment.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2021/20210510-0859.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/
