The Pharisees were at it again, those ole tricksters, trying to get Jesus to misspeak. Last week it was about paying taxes and now they question Him about the greatest commandment. Will Jesus’s teaching be in line with devout Jewish scholarship?
Jesus’s answer to the Pharisee (Mt 22:37-40) is that the greatest commandment is “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments.” We know this was more than they expected since no one dared ask Jesus any more questions.
It is easy to say that you love God. But is He truly first in your life? Our life is full of distractions. The demands of family and work vie for our attention. Daily news aggravates us. Advertisers bombard us with enticements. We want more, so we strive more to earn more to get more. Does all this put you at risk for loving your lifestyle, your comfort, status, and money more than you love God? Do you put other “gods” before God?
With all that goes on in our life and in the world, how do we love God above all things? It is not too late to take corrective action to do that – even if in baby steps. And you know how. The Church teaches us how:
- Pray first before all things.
- Fast from the desire to want more and more.
- Give alms. Jesus tells us in Luke 11:41, “But as to what is within, give alms, and behold, everything will be clean for you.”
Follow the greatest commandment and put God first in every area of your life – in all of your time, in using your talents and treasure. Try Him in this, “and see if I do not open the floodgates of heaven for you and pour down upon you blessing without measure! (Mal. 3:10). See if you don’t then have more meaning in your life and begin to realize the peace you truly seek.
Photo Credit: Robert Davis
Podcast: Play in new window | Download