By Kristen Entwistle
One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”
“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Mark 12:28-31
You’ve probably read this verse in one the Gospels many, many times. And there’s one word that shows up four times in the greatest commandment that we like to gloss over – that tiny little three letter word: all. Let me tell you what this verse doesn’t say. It doesn’t say, “Love the Lord your God with some of your heart, with a little of your soul, with as much of your mind as you can spare, and with a bit of your strength.”
No, it says:
ALL your heart,
ALL your soul,
ALL your mind, and
ALL your strength.
How do we do that? In a world where we struggle to give ALL of our attention to anything, let alone ALL of our strength to Christ? Why are we called to love Him with ALL of our lives? What did He give to us that we should give Him not only ALL of our heart, but ALL of our lives? Is God really good ALL the time, or only when things are going well?
Join us for a four week study on this very topic starting March 2:
On Monday, I’ll post the video for the week (it’s short, you don’t have to listen to me for very long!!) with a listening guide.
On Tuesday, I’ll post some questions and other Scriptures for you to ponder during the remainder of the week.
On Wednesday, I’ll post a blog here related to that week’s topic.
On Thursday, I’ll post a reflection on that week’s topic- either in video or text format.
On Friday, I’ll post a graphic that will relate to the week’s topic.
Would you consider joining us for this study? I pray that you will engage with the material, and start a conversation with your friends, family, and with me about what God is teaching you through this study and through the challenges of life.
All of the materials for this study will be found on the blog as well as under the Study Resources tab.