Matt. 22:37-38
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”
Yesterday we looked at what God wants us to do first. Today we will look at what Does God Want Me to Do Second? One day Jesus was having a conversation with some religious leaders. One of the leaders came to Jesus with a simple question. He asked Jesus, “Teacher which is the greatest commandment in the law?”
Now the question was simple but tricky. There were hundreds of laws laid out in the Bible for the Jews to follow. How could Jesus narrow it down to one great commandment that was better than all the rest?
Well he didn’t pick one. Instead, He summarized the entire law in two statements. He said, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 22:37-38)
Jesus’ answer to these religious leaders was applicable then, and it’s applicable to us today. It serves as the second thing God wants you to do with your life. If you’ve already believed in Jesus, then the
next steps are pretty clear. We are to:
Not that these two things are easy. We have issues [i.e. sin, habits, other desires] that get in the way of and disrupt our love for God. And we also have things that get in the way of us loving those around us.
However, those two things are clearly His desire for us. Jesus said all the laws and prophecies of the Bible have their origin in those two commands. If we try our best to fulfill both of them, we will be right on track to doing what God wants.
But what about all the difficult circumstances in life where we don’t know what to do? God has an answer for that too, although it’s not going to be the same for all of us. Catch me tomorrow for Part 3.
ACTION STEP: Truly ask yourself if you are doing these two things: Loving God with all your heart, soul and mind and loving your neighbor as yourself. If the answer is yes, great. If the answer is no then have a little talk with Jesus and He'll make it right.
I believe in you and you need to believe in yourself.
Now the question was simple but tricky. There were hundreds of laws laid out in the Bible for the Jews to follow. How could Jesus narrow it down to one great commandment that was better than all the rest?
Well he didn’t pick one. Instead, He summarized the entire law in two statements. He said, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 22:37-38)
Jesus’ answer to these religious leaders was applicable then, and it’s applicable to us today. It serves as the second thing God wants you to do with your life. If you’ve already believed in Jesus, then the
next steps are pretty clear. We are to:
- Love God with all our heart, soul and mind and…
- Love our neighbor (all people) as we love ourselves.
Not that these two things are easy. We have issues [i.e. sin, habits, other desires] that get in the way of and disrupt our love for God. And we also have things that get in the way of us loving those around us.
However, those two things are clearly His desire for us. Jesus said all the laws and prophecies of the Bible have their origin in those two commands. If we try our best to fulfill both of them, we will be right on track to doing what God wants.
But what about all the difficult circumstances in life where we don’t know what to do? God has an answer for that too, although it’s not going to be the same for all of us. Catch me tomorrow for Part 3.
ACTION STEP: Truly ask yourself if you are doing these two things: Loving God with all your heart, soul and mind and loving your neighbor as yourself. If the answer is yes, great. If the answer is no then have a little talk with Jesus and He'll make it right.
I believe in you and you need to believe in yourself.
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