the mind of christ: love, part 1

" 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 you heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."
-Matthew 22:36-40

This will be our main passage on the love of Christ. It is one of the heaviest passages in the Bible.

Honestly, there isn't much more that you can say about love than what Jesus told the Pharisees questioning him. However, even though it is simple, it is extremely deep. So lets just take some time and answer a few reflective questions to get started.

1. How are you loving the "Lord your God?"

2. Are you loving him with all your heart, soul and mind?

3. How has this act of loving God changed your life?

4. In what ways could you love him more?

5. How are you loving others?

6. When is the last time you have done something for somebody in love?

7. In what ways could you love others more?

8. Are you sacrificing yourself for them? (remember the discussion of humility below)

In verse 40, Jesus says that all of the Law and the Prophets hang on this commandment. This is so true! If we are truly loving God with all our heart soul and mind and loving people, all of his commands will be fulfilled in our lives. Now, of course, we have just scratched the surface of this subject. It is impossible for our finite minds to grasp the full love of God. The love of Christ could be discussed for years upon years and never be described fully. Therefore, if we are to have this love we have a lot of work to do. Meditate on your answers to the questions above to see where you stand in the love category of the mind of Christ. In the second part of this post we will discuss these questions more in depth.