There Is Something Greater Than The Great Commandment

The lawyer stopped Jesus and asked, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law” (Matt 22:36)? Jesus responded, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind”

Matt 22:37

When the lawyer asked Jesus which commandment was the greatest, Jesus gave Him the perfect answer. We call it “The Great Commandment,” and as we read the impeccable wisdom of Jesus, we are encouraged, challenged, and humbled. Christians throughout all time have been, rightly, energized to love God more through this high calling. But I have to say this: There is something greater than the Great Commandment. Before you strike me off as a heretic, hear me out.

The Great Commandment is truly great. Jesus says that this commandment, with the second greatest commandment to love your neighbor, is the summation of the entirety of God’s Law. In other words, if you perfectly love God and perfectly love your neighbor, then you will find yourself in perfect obedience to the requirements of all of God’s commandments. Wow. As Christians, we rightly pursue a great love for God and neighbor in order to better please our God.

And yet, we don’t love God as we ought. Our hearts are so quickly moved by the worthless trinkets of the earth, and our love waxes and wanes with our circumstances. Moses endured as seeing Him who is invisible (Heb 11:27), but we, like children, can be all too satisfied with the visible and cheap. So, though the Great Commandment is truly great, we’re not great at keeping it. In fact, I’d argue that we have never fully loved God with all of our heart, soul, and mind. Which is why we need something greater than the great commandment.

We fail to keep the Great Commandment daily, so God did something greater: He loved us first. The greatest commandment is to love God, but in order for us to ever love God, He had to love us first. “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10). And how do we know that He loves us? “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom 5:8). Jesus laid down His life for sinners on the cross, perfectly displaying God’s love and justice. God loves us, not because we love Him, but simply because of His mercy and grace. And as we behold His love, we agree with the Apostle Peter: “Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory” (1 Peter 1:8).

So don’t try to obey the Great Commandment without first receiving God’s great salvation. He always loves first. Our love is merely a response to His great love toward sinners. Let us behold the cross of Jesus and love it more and more. Let us be moved by His amazing grace. And let us love the Lord our God with all of our heart, soul, and mind.

Jacob Crouch 2023