The Greatest Commandment
Deuteronomy 5-7
The Greatest Commandment, Deuteronomy 5-7. Think of the volumes and volumes of books written containing the laws of the land in the USA alone. Yet, what would our world be like if everyone just obeyed the Ten Commandments.
4 “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our
God, the Lord is one. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul and with all your might. 6 And these words
that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them
diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your
house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when
you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall
be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the
doorposts of your house and on your gates.
Deuteronomy 6:4-9, English Standard Version
The Greatest Commandment
Deuteronomy 5-7
As I read through today's Scripture reading, I was reminded of a passage in Luke 12 where Jesus was asked by the scribes, "What is the greatest commandment?" Jesus answered by quoting from Deuteronomy 6:5.
29 Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
Look at the two commandments given by Christ as the greatest, then look at the 10 Commandments found in Deuteronomy 5:1-21. You will find that verses 29 & 30 shown above are actually a summary of the first five commandments, and verse 31 is a summary of the last five commandments.
Think
of the volumes and volumes of books written containing the laws of the
land in the USA alone. Yet, what would our world be like if everyone
just obeyed the Ten Commandments? The real problem, of course, is that
no one can truly obey the Ten Commandments. This very law eventually condemned the Israelites just as it condemns each of us.
Only
through the blood of Christ can we be made obedient to God's
commandments; even then we must continually go before Christ asking
forgiveness for the sins which we commit each day. Only in heaven will
we be free from this law of sin and death that binds us in this world.
Think
about the greatest commandment found in Deuteronomy 6:5, and then
quoted by Christ in Luke 12 as you go about your duties this day. Christianity is a religion of the heart. If the heart is right before God, then the correct actions will follow.
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
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