Loving God And Man

Matthew 22:36-40  

"Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, 

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, 

and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And

the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 

On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." 

    Here Jesus laid down the complete definition of religion.  Religion consists in loving God. The verse which Jesus quotes is (Deuteronomy 6:5), "And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." What Christ said in plain English is this; 

It means that to God we must give a total love, a love which dominates our emotions, a love which directs our thoughts, and a love which is the dynamic of our actions. All religion starts with the love which is total commitment of life to God. 

    The second commandment which Jesus quotes comes from (Leviticus 19:18). "Thou shalt not avenge, nor bear any grudge against the children of thy people, but thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself: I am the LORD." Our love for God must issue in love for men.  We must notice in which order the commandments come; it is love of God first, and love of man second. It is only when we love God that man becomes lovable. 

    The Biblical teaching about man is not that man is a collection of elements, and not that man is part of the brute creation, but that man is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). It is for that reason that man is lovable.  Take away the love of God and we can become angry at man,we become the unteachable; we can become pessimistic about man the unimprovable; we can become callous to man. "My Friends, We must remember, The love of man is firmly grounded in the love of God." 

Amen!

Reading: Matt. 22:34-40

Devotional Scriptures

Ref: HGSB

May God Bless You

And Your Family

Minister Robert A. Lail Sr.

The Cross Life Ministry