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Vertical and Horizontal

Writer's picture: Brian DoyleBrian Doyle

I had the rare privilege this morning of sitting in the pew for church during the sermon. I wasn't at a different church, visiting on vacation, but in the church I serve every day, and I LOVED being fed! Today, the preacher spoke on relationships. How often do we miss that point in the gathering together for the Lord? Consider this, if you will: “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”37 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.38 This is the great and first commandment.39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

(Matthew 22:36-40) What did Jesus say? Simply put: It's all about relationship, both vertical (Between you and God) and how you exercise that relationship in every other part of your life by expressing that love toward everyone else. This is the greatest commandment, our Highest calling! To love God with all we are, and our neighbor with everything we are is the greatest thing we can aspire to! It's how we preach before we speak, how we demonstrate our love for God, the way He demonstrated it for us in sending His son: by loving each other unto our own death, sacrificing everything for the sake of bringing people to Jesus. This doesn't mean, necessarily, a physical death (although some of us may do so in our life time), but perhaps with out time, our treasures, and our talents, in how we love God, and use all He has blessed us with to love the people He loves (and, spoiler alert, that includes everyone). The early church took this very seriously: And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. (Acts 2:42) Perhaps, then, we should stop arguing over how someone is dressed, the music played in church, the lighting, the AC temperature, and other non-essentials, and get back to devoting ourselves to loving God and each other with everything we are. We need to fix, work on, build, and focus on that relationship, both vertical, with God, and horizontal, with one another. Perhaps, then, we'd see results, as the first church did, when the Spirit of God descends upon everyone and awe and wonder came upon them all when they were devoted to God and one another: And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. Acts 2:43-47


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