There is a very simple reason for this, and it is found in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 22.
The religious leaders of the day ask Jesus, “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”.
Jesus replied, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind”.
Jesus continues on by saying that a second law is equally important: “Love your neighbor as yourself”.
Jesus then says that the entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.
Jesus was trying to tell us all something very important - to love God and to love people is what God our Father desires us to do above everything else.
It’s important for us to understand that the word, ‘love’ that Jesus uses in these passages is the verb version of the Greek word ‘agape’.
What Jesus was saying was that this ‘love’ is about action and choice, not feelings. It means to actively show preference for what God wants instead of what we want and to do this with every ounce of our being.
Jesus uses the same word for love in John 14:15 where he says “If you love me, keep my commandments”.
God has a plan for each of our lives. It’s a better plan than we could ever think of.
When we show preference to His plan instead of our own, in every decision we make, we are obeying the two greatest commandments given by God.
Jesus, being willing to die on the cross for us is God’s demonstration of love for each and every one of us.
Surely our response to God’s love for us should be visible in our everyday actions and decisions as we show preference to God’s way instead of our own.
~ Contributed by Terry Hargreaves of Ignite Life Church, Deniliquin on behalf of the Combined Churches of Denilqiuin.
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