Your Daily Devotional for August 29, 2007

 

August 29,  2007

 

 

The Greatest Commandment

by Dr. Paul Chappell

 

 

"But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, 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."

 

Matthew 22:34-38

 

 

I once heard the story of how a pastor and his wife adopted their child: "My wife and I waited fifteen years for a child that never came naturally. However, we were approached one day with a lead of a baby not yet born. I remember standing in front of the judge on our day of adoption. He pointed his finger and asked of me, 'Is anyone coercing you to adopt this little boy?' After we had assured him that we were doing so out of love for our son, he made this statement. 'From today on, he is your son. He may disappoint you, even grieve you, but he is your son. Everything you own one day will be his, and he will bear your name.'" This is exactly what happened to each of us on the day of our salvation. Because of God's love and the sacrifice of His Son, He adopted us into His family.

 

Over the past month we have focused on the Ten Commandments. We have learned that God desires that we live our lives in accordance to these commands. But there is one other command God has given us that we have not yet discussed. It is not found in the Old Testament with the other commandments. Rather, we see it in our verses today, "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." (Matthew 22:36-37)

 

God tells us that we are to love Him with the three parts of our being—our heart, soul, and mind. Over the next few days we will see how we can love God with our whole being. Today, let's see how we can make our love for God personal.

 

When we spend time in God's Word each day, we show our love for God. We must personally spend time with God! Although love has been defined as a feeling in today's world, we must realize that love is shown through action. When you love someone, you do nice things for them and you spend time with them. This is no different in our relationship with God. We show our love for God by spending time with Him.

 

We must also have a correct view of God's love for us. Many times we do not make time for God in our busy days because we do not see how much God loves us. Sit down right now and read John 19. Read it, and put yourself in Christ's place. Imagine receiving your just punishment. Now think of the love that God has for us that led Him to sacrifice His only Son to die in our place. Friend, God loves us so much that He gave Himself so that we may live with Him one day. How much do we love Him?

 

We show God our love for Him by spending time with Him. God commands us to love Him with all our heart, soul, and mind, yet if we are not in His Word each day, our love has not become personal. How is your time with God? Do you rush through it or even skip it when time is short? God loved us enough to give His Son to die in our place! We must love Him enough to spend time with Him each day. Take time to separate yourself from any distractions right now. Spend time with God, and make your love for Him personal.

 

 

Daily Bible Reading

Psalm 126-128 • 1 Corinthians 10:19-33

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