“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.” MT. 22:36-40 ESV.

Sometimes (maybe even most of the time) we lose our focus and pursue the latest Christian fad rather than the essence of life. Someone may write a book on the purpose of life and everyone jumps on it as “the answer.” Or a new movie comes out that makes us forget the basics of life for the more entertaining possibilities. Or another life guru appears chanting something new that the social media picks up and leads the masses toward another bubble burst.

When people now ask me what is life all about, I now give them the same simple answer that Jesus gave the lawyer. I don’t point toward heaven, salvation, or transformation.  Neither do I give them a long list of do’s and don’ts. Instead you will find me pointing toward the primary character of God Himself.

Jesus combined two statements from Scripture to capture the entire essence of what the Law is all about and the basis of what the Prophets of old stood for. Again, most of the religious leaders of His day either lost the central purpose of what God was doing or just never understood in the first place.

The purpose of life is built around the Creator of life. God is Love. Everything that we see physically around us is the end result of His Love for us. He created the universe because He loves us. He created us and shares His life with us because He loves us. He sacrificed His Son for us because He loves us. He is transforming us because He loves us. He disciplines us because He loves us. He blesses us because He loves us. Everything He does is from the position of Love. He can’t help it because His naturally essence is Love.

When Jesus stated that the reason behind the entire Law and the sending of Prophets was that we would learn to love God with our entire being and likewise love others and ourselves, wasn’t He clarifying for his chosen ones what the purpose behind God’s plan was and is?

When you break down the components of love, one quickly recognizes that everything of substantial worth and value comes from the heart of love. Jesus, salvation, transformation, eternity, marriage, family, work, enjoyment, blessings, etc. are just the end result (the byproduct, the fruit) of the life giving essence of God Himself – LOVE. Isn’t that what God wants us to learn now? How a life built around LOVE surpasses everything else.

Rooting For You in Christ!

Dr. Mike

Executive Director & Founder
Marketplace Bible Institute
& Resource Center, Inc
Author of e-Books:
 *  Great Business Emulates a Good God
 *  Be Radical…Follow Christ!
 *  Simply The Messenger
 *  Unequally Married

Does a Friend Need Encouragement…Share Today’s Message!