What Matters Most, According to Jesus
My stepson Christopher (23) may have limited comprehension because of his mental disability, but he still enjoys learning about God’s love.
One of his favorite activities is when we read to him from a children’s picture Bible: he gets involved with the stories and responds with animated facial expressions and even verbal exclamations. He also loves attending church with the rest of our family, where he plays air guitar in the pew to the worship music.
He likes it when we pray for him, too.
For some time, it has been my practice that after I wake Christopher up in the morning and wipe the sleep out of his eyes, I take him with me before the throne of God. He has come to expect it by now, so he sits up in bed, slipping his hand into mine as if on cue, and waits for me to start the prayer.
I begin by giving thanks for God's love for us, for sending His Son to die on the cross for us, for giving us a roof over our heads and food on the table, and for watching over us while we were sleeping.
Then I ask God to bless our day, give us the strength we need, keep us safe and healthy, fill our day with gratitude and laughter, and help us always remember to put Him first. Finally, I ask God to remind Christopher of how loved he is—by God, his dad, his brothers, and me.
As of lately, whenever I pray with Christopher, I've also started asking God to give us more love for Him and the people around us.
You see, I've been teaching Christopher that to love God and others are the two things Jesus said are most important. (In Matthew 22:36-40, when an expert in the law asked Jesus, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied, "'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 foremost commandment. The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets").
During my prayer time with Christopher, I ask the Lord to help us in this area, which serves to reinforce my little teaching lesson. (It’s a good reminder for me, too, not just Christopher!)
Yes, love is THE big theme of the Bible…
Consider this:
Love motivated God to create humanity.
Love motivated God to step in and set His plan of salvation in motion.
Love motivated God to give us His instruction manual, the Bible, so we would know how to make wise decisions.
Love motivates God to maintain a relationship with us, His children, despite our flaws, mistakes, and sins.
It's no wonder, then, that LOVE is to be the driving force in the Christian's life! "Let all that you do be done in love," 1 Corinthians 16:14 sums it up.
Since 1 John 4:8 tells us God Himself "is love," and Genesis 1:27 says God made humans in His image, we may never be truer to our essence and our God-given purpose than when we love. When we love, we're being who we were designed to be: reflections IN the world TO the world of God's love FOR the world.
Indeed. The Bible teaches that when we make it our chief aim to love God and others, we discover the meaning of life. There's nothing more worthwhile.
In light of all this, it also makes perfect sense that our life's callings—the pursuits that allow us to maximize our gifts, passions, and experiences and that give us the deepest satisfaction—are always tied to loving God (by advancing His kingdom on Earth) and loving others (by helping enrich their lives).
But wait…there's even more! Although to love is a biblical command and not optional, God has made it so that love ALSO happens to be the path to JOY!
We already know this from experience, don't we? Probably nothing fills us with joy like making someone else smile. When we take our eyes off ourselves for a moment and selflessly serve another person, expecting zero in return, we experience real happiness and feel closer to God. This is especially true when love for Jesus is what propels our actions!
Which goes to show you the brilliant mind of our Lord: The number one thing Jesus commands us to do, namely, love God and one another, is the VERY thing He knows will give us the most fulfillment in life!
How awesome is He?!
L.B.
Jesus stated that it is more blessed to give than to receive (Acts 20:35). How have you experienced this in your own life? Share any thoughts or questions below in the comments section!
If you got value from this post, feel free to use the social media share buttons to share it with others!
