Our relationship with God should be the most important relationship we have. Why? “Jesus said…You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments 1hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matt. 22:37-40) 1Kremannumi: to be suspended.
You see, when man was created, everything was done by God, to make man comfortable. God desired to have a friendship with Adam, His Creation, and of course, to have Adam love and worship Him. As we know the devil deceived Adam and Eve and they were put out of the garden. Then, because of the sin nature that mankind inherited from Adam, there was a continuous struggle to be faithful and loyal to God.
The Lord says: “These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.” (Isa. 29:13)
God selected a people who became Israel, to be His people and gave them the Law and commandments. His plan was to put all His desires in their hearts but they refused so He wrote them on stone tablets. Then He sent prophets to them but they would not listen. All of these attempts God made to restore the relationship failed, so God sent His Son to be the perfect sacrifice.
“In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome…” (1 John 5:3)
When Jesus was asked the question about the most important commandment, His reply that we must love God with our all, was what all the attempts by God to have mankind return to the original love relationship, was hanging on. When God commands us to love Him with all we are, and to love others with the same care and concern and grace and compassion and patience with which we love ourselves, He is not commanding us to sacrifice real, lasting, true, satisfying comfort. He’s commanding us to pursue our real, lasting, true, satisfying comfort, by loving with our all…
“You make known to me the path of life; IN YOUR PRESENCE THERE IS FULLNESS OF JOY; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (Psa. 16:11)
-Bill Stockham