Wholly Holy: The Greatest Commandment
Wholly Holy:
The Greatest Commandment
Scripture: Matthew 22:34-40
Lt. Colonel Allen Satterlee
Spiritual Life Development Officer
USA Southern Territory
Questions
In His last week of ministry on earth, Jesus was pelted with questions by three different groups whom He had constantly confounded. The Herodians, who advocated that collaboration with the ruling party was the best course, asked Jesus whether it was lawful to pay taxes. His unexpected answer silenced them (Matthew 22:16-22).
The Sadducees, known for their liberal watering down of the Jewish faith, were next. Using a scenario that stumped most people, Jesus not only answered them but rebuked them for their lack of faith (Matthew 22:23-32).
Finally, the Pharisees stepped up. Their name meant “pure ones” and while many were sincere followers of God, most showcased a religious conceit borne of the conviction that only they knew the true essence of religion. They were particularly noted for their keeping of the law as revealed to Moses which they had divided into 613 precepts, 248 of which were commandments while 365 were prohibitions. They were further divided into those considered “weighty” and those that were “light”. But there was constant disagreement as to the order of importance. This perplexing question seemed like a good one to ask Jesus.
The Greatest Commandment
A teacher of the law asked, “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.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:36-40).
Jesus said we were to love the Lord with all our heart. In biblical days, it was thought that the heart was the seat of the emotions and the will. The Bible accepts that people have emotions are important to being fully human. Emotions reinforce our decisions and empower us to move forward. They are God-created and as such each emotion is valid. In fact, some things can only be seen properly through emotions. Being a parent is more than following a book that tells what time a child eats, sleeps, and plays. Parenting only works through love.
When Jesus spoke of loving God with all our heart He meant that all of our emotions can be engaged in loving Him: joy, sorrow, fear, hope, shame, anger, contentment. God wants our life in Him to engage the fullness of our feeling so that we love Him with everything and in every way our hearts can feel and act. Adam Clarke noted, “He loves God with all his heart who loves nothing in comparison to Him and nothing in reference to Him, who is ready to give up, do, or suffer anything in order to please and glorify Him.”
All Our Soul
Then Jesus said we are to love God with all our soul. This involves the development of our spiritual lives to please God, to devote ourselves for His glory. It means to have allegiance to Him above all others with no rivals. At a time when many gods were worshipped, Jesus said that there was only one true God who demanded His exclusive place in their souls and who demanded all their worship.
An alternative idea is to love the Lord with all our lives. That’s all of life’s energy, all of the days allotted to us, all the best that I am whether I am 25 or 95. Through all the stages and circumstances of life we are to steadfastly love God with all that is our soul. An old Salvation Army chorus conveys this idea.
All my days, and all my hours,
All my will and all my powers,
All the passion of my soul,
Not a fragment, but the whole,
Shall be Thine, dear Lord,
Shall be Thine, dear Lord.
- Edward H. Joy
The Song Book of The Salvation Army #566
All Our Mind
Finally, Jesus said we were to love the Lord with all our mind. The original Greek indicates that this was our intellect, our thinking capacity. This means that we love not because we can’t help it, but we love God as a deliberate and voluntary choice. It is to subject our way to Him, our thoughts, our plans. It is to set ourselves on giving our best efforts to Him, to develop whatever skill, talent, education and resources for His glory. It is to embrace self-discipline and self-denial to seek God in all things.
And Our Neighbor
Jesus added another commandment to this one. We are to love our neighbor.
That means we are to seek our neighbor’s good, to look out for his interests, to actively promote what is best for him. Above all it is to seek their salvation. Our regard for our neighbor must reflect our acknowledgement that this one has been created in the image of God, fully deserves God’s love and all God has for him.
Love like this extends beyond those close at hand. The Bible is quite clear about the social component of holiness. In the Old Testament law provision was made for the poor. Grain in the corners of the field and unharvested fruit were to be left for the poor. Hebrew servants were to be freed after a specified time. The poor man was to be given back his cloak each day to warm him at night. All of this means we have an obligation to live differently in the world. That primarily is shown in how we treat people.
We must change the world where we live. We are to love as Christ loved – for love’s sake alone. Whether or not they treat us well, whether or not they accept our Savior, whether or not we are noticed or appreciated, even when doing so means loss to us. If there is no love of our neighbor, there is no genuine experience of God in our hearts.
The measure of what we are is in what and how we love.
Our Corporate Prayer
Dear Father, We are challenged by this greatest commandment that shared on that day of questions. Sometimes I admit I don't feel very loving toward You, at least not as I should. I want to love You with all my heart, with all soul, and with all my mind but sometimes my heart, my soul and my mind feel pretty small. Expand them with Your love so that I can better love You and then tackle the second greatest commandment better - to love my neighbor as myself. Let me be Your messenger in the flesh with my words, with my touch, with my actions so that others who may not know or even care about You, will be able sense Your Holy Spirit in me and be touched by Him and want to know You. Let me glorify You and bring praise to You, O Lord! I bring this to You in the name of Your Son who defined love for us, Jesus Christ, the King. Amen.
Our Worldwide Prayer Meeting
India South Western Territory
Thinking It Through
Is it harder to love God with the heart? the soul? the mind? Or is it harder to love our neighbor as ourselves? Or does the Spirit-filled life show itself in a natural overflow of love in all these areas?
Notable Quotables
If loving God with all our heart and soul and might is the greatest commandment, then it follows that not loving Him that way is the greatest sin. - R.A. Torrey
Make this song your offering: "My Jesus, I Love Thee."
We would appreciate any feedback and/or suggestions on how to improve these devotionals. Please email comments to: SpiritualLifeDevelopment@uss.salvationarmy.org or by going to our website: https://southernusa.salvationarmy.org/uss/spiritual-life-development.
We would love to hear from you.
Lt. Colonel Allen Satterlee
Territorial Spiritual Life Development Officer/THQ Chaplain
USA Southern Territory