By Pamela Rose Williams
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5)
The word “love” is thrown around these days to mean everything but its original meaning. In today’s verse we see this word in the deepest sense. How much should we love the LORD? As much as humanly possible, “with ALL thine heart, and with ALL thy soul, and with ALL thy might.” That is a BIG love. This means that nothing should come between us and the love that we have for God.
If only we could love God with the same kind of love that He loves us. We say we love Him, but what are we doing to show Him we love Him? Love involves action. Are we telling people that the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23)? Are we taking the message to people we see, that He gave His only begotten Son as the Savior from certain death because of that sin? Are we telling people the good news that Christ died for our sins and rose from the dead (1 Cor 15:3-4)? God’s love for us is expressed through His Son as He gave of himself for the good of the whole world (John 3:16). God demonstrates His love for us continually by caring for us and providing for us as we live on this planet. Does God need our love? No, He does not need anything from us; He is God. He is all powerful and the Creator of Heaven and Earth. The better question is, How and Why do you love God?
We are commanded to love God wholly; that heart, soul and might kind of love … that is the “how”. We love God because He first loved us … that is the “why”. True love is acted out wholly without strings. What are you doing to show God that you love him wholly.
Things to think about and do:
1. What are you doing to show God that you love Him wholly. Jot down your answer to this question.
2. Find at least one Bible verse that tells us why we love God.
3. Find three other words in the Bible that describe “love”.
