Love God
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LOVE GOD
LOVE GOD
Intro:
I trust you all had a great easter!
I hope that you were able to spend time with family and friends but most importantly you had a chance to celebrate KING JESUS!
We have two weeks left of messages, tonight and next week, then we are off for mothers day— Celebrate your MOM!
Then we come back for our senior night!
Which is a breakout night for everyone else.
You can decide what you are going to do but you have to be back here by 7:30 as we celebrate the seniors!
Then we are off the next week due to graduations and what have you.
Then we kind of soft launch into a new year.
The 8th grades will be joining us over the summer they can start June 2!
We will be here at Bethel, as we kick off our summer nights!
We will be here for that night and then we meet at other people’s houses the rest of the summer!
I should have a calendar next week for everyone!
That is what the next month looks like here at BSM!
So as the year was winding down, I wanted to close out the year with talking about the greatest.
The greatest is referring to something Jesus said in the book of Matthew chapter 22.
I have found myself going to his passage often this year, when dealing with hot topics, I would ask the question what does love require of us.
The whole idea is that if we love God and we truly love Him, then how do we respond to people?
What does it mean to be loving to Christians?
What does it mean to be loving to Non-Christians, Jews, Hindu, Buddist, Muslims?
What does it mean to love someone who is transgender, or claims to be gay?
How about someone who is dealing with a hard time of life?
When depression hits?
When you have people running your name through the mud?
What does love require of us?
What does God require of us?
That is the ultimate question that we have to come face to face with in the next two weeks.
Lets start by praying and then we will dive into the text!
But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 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. 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 22:34-
So verses 39-40 we will look at next week but this week we are going to focus on verse 34-38.
So lets unpack this a bit:
Jesus was being approached by people, the religious leaders at the time- the Sadducees, the scribes and the Pharisees.
Jesus was in consistent battles with them!
We pick up with Jesus being asked two questions previous to this one.
Here is why they were asking questions look at verse 15
Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words.
Matthew 22:15
They were trying to trip Jesus up!
Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words. And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances.
They wanted him to fail.
Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
Meaning that they are going to ask him some hard questions!
So they ask three total question here are the first two.
Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
The first one up was the pharisee’s disciples
Jesus responds by saying give me coin
who is on the coin- they say Caesar.
Jesus then says then yes give it to Caesar!
Yet give to God what is God’s
They marveled at him and then left.
Next up the Sadducees.
The same day Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked him a question,
Matthew 22:
Matthew 22:
They give this example of a man and wife and the man dies and in jewish custom the wife would then pass to the brother
The first husband has 7 brothers:
First up up they marry no children
#1 Husband dies
She goes to the next brother
They marry no children
#2 Husband dies
They go to the next brother
They marry no children
#3 Husband dies
They go to the next brother
They marry no children
#4 Husband dies
I think you get the idea all the way down to number 7, what do you know he also dies, no kids nothing
Here is the question they ask!
In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her.”
Jesus responds
You are wrong!
You do not understand the resurrection, which they did not believe in anyway,
They were sadducees because they did not believe in the resurrection.
THEY WERE ASTONISHED!
Here is what we have the next question!
The pharisees are up!
They just saw Jesus work over the other two groups.
You can just picture them all huddled togehter
And then emerges a lawyer (an expert in the LAW) from the mist, who a question so hard they know he won’t get it right!
Teacher! which is the greatest commandment in the LAW!
OH SNAP!!!! The Pharisees just thought they laid down the hammer!
Why this question!
These Pharisees were experts in the law and they know the law- the OT front back and upside down!
So why this question.
This was a hotly debated topic in Jewish circles at the time
Whatever Jesus was going to say here was going to argued against the pharisees.
The pharisees where going to say nope that law is lower to this one!
I am sure Jesus is annoyed by this point, because he often got annoyed with silly questions.
Jesus knows what they are trying to do and he not give them a chance to trip him up:
This is what he says:
But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 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. 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.”
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. This is the great and first commandment.
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.
BOOOOM MIC DROP!
Matthew 22:34-
No rebuttal
No objection
Nothing
The Pharisees were waiting for Jesus to most likely quote one of the ten commandments.
They thought they were going to trip Jesus up with the great commandment debate question and Jesus just threw them a curve ball that they could not answer back to.
The Pharisees were waiting for Jesus to most likely quote one of the ten commandments.
Because if Jesus would have responded with I think all the ten commandments are perfect they would have said we said only one!
If he would have said well keep the sabbath holy, they would have responded with— So you think that not making an idol of God is less important then keeping a day holy!
If Jesus answered this way he was going to be met with a challenge no matter what he said!
Jesus decides to quote:
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
Then he goes even further and quotes:
You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the Lord.
Leviticus
We will get into the second part next week.
Lets looks at the first part here instead.
Jesus did not misquote here.
Jesus did not misquote here.
Do not be tripped up because Jesus said mind instead of might.
We should not take this as a major difference.
Because both ways are expressing the point that love for God should be wholehearted devotion, involving all three:
Heart, Soul, Mind
You shall love the Lord with all your Heart!
Love with all your heart:
Love with your Desires
Love with all your soul
Love with your Actions
Love with all your mind
Love with your Thoughts
Let’s look at Love the Lord with all your heart.
Love with your Desires
Love with your Desires
So often we hear phrases like listen to your heart
or follow your heart.
In our world we see the heart as desire central.
if you are dating a mate you may be tempted to say i love you with all my heart
Or maybe you have some other desires that you are feeling?
My desires are for you.
Our desires of the flesh are not normally positive:
Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
Colossians 3:
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
Galatians
Evil desires— Left on our own we will let our desires rule us.
That is what we desire
But what does God desire?
God desires intimacy with you.
I’m not referring to sex here so please do not go there.
Intimacy means: close familiarity or friendship; closeness.
God wants to be close with you and our desire should be to be close with Him.
Do you desire to be close to God?
If you desired this— you would seek God.
You have said, “Seek my face.”
My heart says to you,
“Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
Seek my face!
Is your response LORD I SEEK YOUR FACE!
How often do you put other things before God.
Maybe a better question what do we put before God?
I’m not here to beat up on anyone, I am just asking a question.
Maybe you are desiring after God and you are growing in your relationship with Him.
However, I was in high school once and let me tell you something, there were many days where I was not seeking after God.
I chose
I picked the status of the world over my relationship with God and it only left me empty, and looking for others things— that could only be filled once I started to seek after God with all my heart.
All my desires!!!
YES LORD I WILL SEEK YOUR FACE!
Do you love God with all your heart.
Do your desires line up with His desires?
Love with your desires
Love with your Actions
Love with your Actions
You can walk the walk but can you talk the talk!
You say you are a Christian but does your life reflect that claim
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Ephesians
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans
Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.
1 John
I could keep going about how often the apostles and the writers of the scriptures say it about actions not words that we show we are Christians!
They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
Do your actions say you are Christian?
How do you talk to others?
I am not even talking about cursing?
I am just talking about are you nice, do you use kind words?
Do you gossip?
Do you knock others down?
Because reading the accounts of Jesus I don’t see Jesus running to Peter going, DUDE did you hear about JUDAS?
And Jesus had every right to knock Judas down a few pegs!
He never talked down to the people who had less then Him
He just loved on people.
poor, rich, man, woman, greek, jew, tax collector, prositite!
I DID NOT MATTER!
Look at:
I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Here is the action, Here is loving God with our soul!
Present our bodies as a living sacrifice!
This is worship!
Do not let the world take you down!
STAND STRONG!
BE Changed!
Be different!
You are going to met difficulties!
See what God is trying to do!
Find out His Will!
You can’t sit on your hands though!
Love God with your soul!
Everything you do, do it for the glory of God!
Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,
Love with your desires!
Love with your actions!
Lastly
Love with your thoughts
Love with your thoughts
What do you think about?
What do your thoughts say?
Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
Set our thoughts on things above not things here on earth.
Think about what is true, Honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellence, praiseworthy!
Think about God, Think about Jesus, Think about the Holy Spirit!
Think of heaven!
Think of the character of God and who he is!
Think about Jesus and the sacrifice that he paid and that he is alive and he is interceding on our behalf!
Think of the Holy Spirit who is dwelling inside of you, giving you wisdom, and helping you discern.
That gives us reason to lift high the name above all names!
Love God with your thought!
Your Mind!
LOVE GOD with every fiber that is inside of you!
DON’T JUST SAY IT! BUT DO IT!
SHOW IT!
Talk with God
Be in his presence
Read His word
Listen for His voice!
Be a doer!
Pray for those who are hurting!
Listen to those who are hurting
Speak kindly
Share each other burdens
Stop following the ways of the world!
and set your thoughts on things above.
LOVE GOD
Jesus told us the greatest commandment was to LOVE GOD
Are you following this wholeheartedly?
Or are you just dabbling?
In the book of Joshua we come to the end of Joshua’s life and he charges the nation of Isreal with a command that says chose this day who you will follow
Listen to his words:
“Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua
Seniors the safety nets is being cut, who are you going to follow?
Juniors you have one more year here; who are you going to follow?
Sophomores two more years; who are you going to follow?
Freshmen three more years who are you going to follow?
Chose this day who you are going to follow and do it with all your heart, soul and mind!
Let’s Pray
Next Week we will talk about the second half of the greatest commandment— and why the phrase the second is like it really means on the same level.
I would like the sophomores to hang behind really quickly
The rest of you are dismissed- You are loved
Questions:
Why is the greatest commandment?
What does it mean to obey God wholeheartedly?
How are you doing with your obedience to God?
Tell us some ways that we can be obedient to God?
