Matthew 22:37 – LOVE THE LORD WITH ALL THY HEART
Matthew 22:37 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.
Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment was. Jesus replied that we are to love the Lord with all our heart. This verse is easy to quote, but it is much harder to live. One of the reasons it is so hard to live is because it is too easy to fall in love with the things of this world.
When was the last time you slept in rather than get up and do your Bible study in the morning? Most likely, it was not that long ago. It is easy to make the soft choice to roll over in bed and enjoy a few more minutes of sleep then it is to put the Lord first in your life.
When was the last time you found enough time to exercise but did not find enough time to pray? Most likely, it was not that long ago. It is easy to love yourself and take care of yourself but it is much harder to spend time to develop a closer walk with God.
When was the last time you found some way to cut back on your finances so that you could purchase something for yourself but you failed to make the same cuts to give to some project that God brought to your attention? Most likely, it was not that long ago. It is easy to make sacrifices when you are the beneficiary. However, it is much harder to make those same sacrifices when you do not perceive a personal value gained as a result of your gift.
Abraham is one of the best examples in the Bible of someone who demonstrated that their love for the Lord was their highest gain. For 25 years, Abraham had been promised that he would have a son. Finally the Lord blessed him with a son and one could just imagine how much Abraham loved Isaac. God knew that Abraham loved Isaac and God asked Abraham to go up into the mountain and sacrifice Isaac. Abraham loved the Lord with all his heart and was willing to put the Lord first so he obeyed.
You must add temperance to your life if you are going to put the things of this world as a distant second in your life. You are not here in this world to see how much praise and glory you can obtain. Instead, your focus needs to be to love the Lord with all your heart. You need to learn to sing forth HIS praises and to recognize HIM for what HE has done for you.
It does not matter if you love the Lord with all your heart or not, trials will come into your life. However, when you love the Lord with all your heart, you have a foundation in your life that is sure. Because you have a firm foundation, you will be able to stand strong in many difficult situations.
Job was a man who faced many difficult trials. However, because he loved the Lord with all his heart, he was not focused upon the fact that he lost his wealth, his health, and his family. Yes these things meant a lot to him, but the Lord meant so much more. Job was told to curse God and die but Job would not do that because he understood that it was God who gave him every good thing that he had.
The things of this world will draw our attention away from God. We need to be bold and say no to the things of this world so that we can put the Lord first in our life. HE is our Creator, HE is our Provider, HE is our Protector, He is our Director, and HE is all that we need. Why do we need anything to be more important in our life then God?