Scripture

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart . . . soul...mind, and . . . strength . . . And . . . you shall love your neighbor as yourself.
(Mark 12:29-31)

Devotional

Jesus said that the greatest of all the commandments is this: Quite simply, we are to love God more than ourselves, and we are to love others as ourselves. Our question should be, “How do we measure up to this?”
How do we manifest such love? In and of ourselves it is impossible. It is only attainable in Christ. I can only love God more than myself through total abandonment. That is, I have to come to the place in my life where I am willing to relinquish my will to His. I must come to the place where I realize that it is not about me. It is all about Christ.
Likewise, my relationship to others is not to be based on myself, but on Christ. If I love my neighbor as myself, I will ask, “What would Christ have me do for them?” not “What can they do for me?” To the world this will sound like loss. To those who are in Christ, it is life to the fullest.

Thought For The Night

“I go out to preach with two propositions in mind. First, every person ought to give his life to Christ. Second, whether or not anyone else gives him his life, I will give him mine.” Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), theologian and key figure in America’s Great Awakening

Evening Text

Mark 12:30, 31: “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,…soul,…mind, and …strength… And…you shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Looking for Answers

Does all of the law and the prophets truly hang on these two commandments? Consider Matthew 22:40.
What does it mean to love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength?
How do we do so?

Evening Study Guide

Defining: The Lord Jesus was quoting what is known as The Shema,” The Doxology (hymn of praise) of Judaism, the central prayer in the Jewish prayerbook, a command to hear, to be aware, to pay attention, to experience with our senses.

Referencing: “These words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up,” Deuteronomy 6:6-7.

Applying: By the grace of God, apply yourself to love the Lord Your God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. And endeavor to love people as you would have others love you.