What is the greatest thing you've ever witnessed? What about the greatest thing you could ever do, see or experience? Do you ever think about that? Jesus said the greatest thing we could ever do is Love the Lord our God with all of our heart, mind, soul and strength (Matthew 22:36-40). The Second command is just like it: love our neighbor as our self. All of the law and prophets, Jesus says, are engulfed by these two things. Think about it a moment: If we love God with all we have, are, and every part of our being, it would be impossible to sin against Him. Why? Because our entire lives would be about pleasing Him, just as Jesus' life on earth was. It's not an impossible task. Our problem is we let other things get in the way. We use our mortgages, our bills, our families, our friends, our obligations to school, work, etc. control our lives as opposed to letting the greatest commandment rule every aspect of our lives. We worry about things that are, ultimately, out of our control, and we chase after health, wealth, happiness, security, and things that are never, EVER, assured. If we're seeking after God, there'll be hardships, true, but if we seek Him with our whole heart, we'll get and have all we need, because He is enough. In fact, if we love Him with all we are, we'll, by nature, love our neighbor as ourselves, because in doing so, we're imitating His nature and character. He becomes our forefront, and so in our marriages, to our kids, in our jobs, whatever our circumstances, we learn to be content (Phillipians 4:6-13). If God is all we have, then we have everything we could possibly ever need, and He will provide the rest.
Matthew 6:25-34 English Standard Version (ESV)
Do Not Be Anxious
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?[a] 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
34 “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Footnotes:
Matthew 6:27 Or a single cubit to his stature; a cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
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