Devotional
After Jesus answered the scribe’s question about the greatest commandment, something remarkable happened. The scribe agreed with Him. He said that loving God and loving your neighbor was worth more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices in the world. And Jesus looked at Him and said He was not far from the kingdom of God. Not far. What a phrase. The man understood it in his head. He just had not yet let it reach his heart.
That is where many of us live. We know the greatest commandment. We can recite it. We agree with it. But knowing it and living from it are two very different things. The gap between those two places is not filled by more information. It is filled by surrender.
The greatest commandment is not complicated. It really is not. Love God. Love people. But it is costly, because it asks for everything. It asks you to let go of the things you have been holding onto more tightly than you hold onto Him. The encouraging thing is this. You are not on your own in this. The same God who calls you to love is the One who makes that love possible. He is not standing at a distance waiting to see if you can figure it out. He is with you, in you, working in you. Let Him.
Bible Verse
“And he said to him, ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'” – Matthew 22:37-40
Reflection Question
What would it look like for you to move from knowing the greatest commandment in your head to actually living it from your heart this week?
Quote
“The greatest commandment is not complicated. It is just costly.” – Pastor Jerry Madden
Prayer
Lord, I do not want to be someone who knows the right answer but never lets it change me. Move what I know in my head down into my heart, and make me someone who actually lives this. Amen.