Love is the most important Word

When Jesus was asked what the most important commandment was, he responded by quoting from the book of Deuteronomy. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.” (Mark 12:30, NIV) When the Word of God himself was asked about the most important word, he said love. Specifically, Jesus said to love the Lord our God comes before any other loves. That means that when we are confronted with the choice of love for God and love for a person or a possession or an activity or even an idea, love for God wins out over them all. To love God first is to never do something for a person or because of a person which the Lord says not to do. To deceive a family member or a friend is to say to the Lord, “I don’t love you.” To be greedy or to steal is to say to God, “I don’t love you.” To allow our lusts to control our bodies is to tell the Lord, “I don’t love you.” How can I say this? I didn’t. Jesus did. “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me.” (John 14:21, NIV) Of all the words we have heard from the Lord, love is the most important. However, it is not just any love. Love for the Lord our God which holds to his commands – that is the most important word.