““Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” Deuteronomy 6:4-5 ESV
Reflection: how is this commandment even possible while we live in the world?
Being on a long overseas flight yesterday, I had a chance to catch up on a few movies. And while there is so much trash that we just need to stay far away from, there were a few good ones. One that caught my attention was about a young woman who had moved from Portugal to England, mostly for work. But not only was her job pretty monotonous, her life seemed so very empty, so meaningless. She, as many of her colleagues, lived every waking moment on the mobile phone, watching some series or staring at social media. It was very difficult to even watch. And, while this was a secular story and movie, I am afraid it is representative for so many young, and not so young, people these days. Spending hours on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, or whichever app, not realizing they are completely being consumed or emptied; even brainwashed. The great promise of the internet, and associated tools, were supposed to help and lift humanity. Not destroy it, which is what is happening now.
As I was preparing to do my morning study today, I decided to open an older bible. And to my surprise, I found a note from my mom who passed away a few years ago. It was a reminder from her to me about the importance of spending time, of staying in the word of God, of filling myself with it. And the word she used to highlight this point was from Deuteronomy 6, where the highest commandment, our highest purpose is given. You might recall that Jesus was asked, ““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 22:36-40 ESV. That is our purpose.
And I was thinking about the vast contrast, so easy to see if you think about it, between filling ourselves with the only source of life, only found in God through Jesus, versus the draining emptiness of this world. One fills you up with the energy of life, of life itself, while the other drains your life. One is representing our true purpose of life; the other is death, represented by what we find in this world.
So how do we do this, fulfill this commandment that leads to life, this highest purpose that we are created for? The commandment is in fact pretty clear. We need to focus 100% on life, not leaving any room for death. Which means we need to reject death; not consume or dabble in it. Because it says “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” Deuteronomy 6:5 ESV. Notice the first commitment is our hearts. The essence of who we are. We are to give God our hearts (and minds), not our things or money, not even our spouses, children or families. All our hearts must be given to God. Then we are to prepare and give God our souls. To love and give God our eternal, spiritual beings. And finally, to do this with all our strength, our might. Which means this is not meant to be easy. Not enough to go to church on Sunday, then live our lives in the world the rest of the week. It is a full commitment to God. All the time.
But it is the only way we find the meaning of life. Our highest calling and purpose for living. And that is what we must pass on to our children, and children’s children.
