The Greatest

Something to think about.

The Greatest

And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
Matthew 22:36-37 ESV
 

Why is this the greatest commandment? Is it because God needs our love?

If you believe God is perfect, then you have to include in His complete lack of need. He is totally complete, without need. He does not need or want our love.  He is perfect without it. So again I ask why is this the greatest commandment? It does nothing for God.

Commandment,  is a rule. In this case, it is the single most important rule. It is a guiding principle as crucial to our existence as breathing. It is something we must do. If we must comply? If the recipient of the action does not need it why it's it so important? Since it is commanded, we can not assume it is not optional. We must love God completely. I've written all of this to ask one question. Who does loving God benefit? If God is complete and perfect our loving Him, it does not benefit Him. My love for my wife benefits her because it fulfills her need to be loved. Her love for me fulfills my need to be loved, but that is not the case with God. God will be perfect with or without our love.

We have to look at Jesus's answer in a different light.  The only way to understand the answer is by answering the question who does it benefit? Jesus's response is intended for our benefit, not God's. Jesus was not setting up a priority of laws. He is not putting the compliance of commandments in order of importance.  Even though that was the question and at first glance, it appears as a direct answer. . He answers the question with the commandment most beneficial to humanity.

All of Gods commandments were given for the benefit of man. None of them benefit God. This is no different. He answered the question in the single most important way in which man would benefit. 

So what is it about loving God that is so important?

Loving God provides us with the most beneficial existence available to man. By loving God, we receive acceptance, love, security, freedom. Our eyes are opened to realities and blessing that do not exist for blind humanity. We are set free from hopelessness and emptiness, we are adopted into the family of God we are recipients of all that God has made available to us. Our future in this life and the one that is to come is blessed for all eternity. Loving God sets us apart and allows us to enter into places only the family of God is invited to. We receive forgiveness. We are restored to our original intended existence. The benefits of loving God of obeying his commandments are that we are bestowed with all the beautiful blessings that are available to His children. It adds everything to us and nothing to God, but it is the greatest commandment because it allows God to bless us going out and coming in. Loving God is not about what we give Him.  It opens the door to us receiving the fullness of his blessing.

Just like every other commandment, it is for our benefit, not His. The only difference is that by loving God, we open the windows of heaven upon our own lives. It is the most important commandment because it is the one commandment that encompasses all the desires of God for our good.