Not As Easy As You Think

by Bryan Gibson, based on a sermon by John Gibson

Of all the commandments found in the New Testament, which one asks the most of us? It just might be the one found in Mark 12:30, “And you shall love the Lord your God with ALL your heart, with ALL your soul, with ALL your mind, and with ALL your strength.” Jesus calls this the “first and great commandment” (Matthew 22:38). There is much more to this commandment than most people think, evidenced by the fact that some people think they’re keeping it, when in reality they are not. Jesus very bluntly told some Pharisees in John 5:42, “You do not have the love of God in you.” They may have thought they loved God, but according to Jesus, they didn’t. To help us see whether or not we’re keeping this commandment, let’s look at what the love of God requires of us.

Love for God requires love for others.

“If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also” (1 John 4:20-21; see also 1 John 3:10-18). You can tell those who love God by the way they treat their brethren.

Love for God requires obedience to His will.

Read carefully the following words from Jesus: “If you love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15); “He who has my commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me” (John 14:21). Consider also 1 John 5:3: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments.”

Love for God requires the surrender of everything; a complete self-sacrifice.

Everything we are, and everything we have, must be completely devoted to serving God. Are you familiar with the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10:17-22? This man told Jesus about the commandments he had kept, but then Jesus gave him another one: “Sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.” His response? “He was sad at this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.” Did this young man love God? No, because there was something he was unwilling to give up for God—his money or possessions. Those who seek first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33) will be willing to make that sacrifice.

Perhaps money is not the problem; maybe it’s time. Sometimes we’re unwilling to give up our time—and it does take time to do the things God want us to do. It could be any number of things, but this is the point. The life of a Christian is one of many sacrifices; those who are willing to make these sacrifices are the ones who truly love God.

Love for God requires putting Him even before family.

Family is certainly important. The Scriptures teach us to honor our parents, love our children, care for our grandparents, etc. But as important as family is, God must still come first. Jesus taught this in Matthew 10:37: “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me.” What do we do if family is pulling us in one direction, but God is pulling us in another? If we truly love God, we will do what He says, even at the risk of alienating our family.

Can we begin to see now how far reaching this commandment really is? So how do we develop the love for God that we should have? By learning more and more about His great love for us. After all, “we love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). The more our love for Him increases, the more willing we become to do all that this love requires of us. Look at it this way. He certainly deserves our all, because that’s exactly what He has given us (Romans 8:32).