Easter Devotional - Day 3 - Tuesday of Holy Week
The Two Greatest Things
Scripture: Matthew 22:36–40
"'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" — Matthew 22:37–39
If someone asked you to summarize the entire Bible in one sentence, what would you say? That's basically what a religious expert asked Jesus. He wanted to know: among all of God's commands, which is the most important?
Jesus didn't hesitate. He said the greatest commandment is to love God with everything you have, your whole heart, your whole soul, your whole mind. Every part of you is pointed toward God. That's number one.
But then Jesus kept going, because he knew you can't talk about loving God without talking about loving people. He said the second commandment is just like the first: love your neighbor as yourself. And then he said something remarkable, he said all of the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. In other words, everything else God has ever said to His people comes back to these two things: love God, love people.
Now, loving God and loving people sounds simple. But anyone who has tried it knows it isn't always easy. It means loving the people who annoy you. It means loving people who are different from you. It means putting others first, even when you don't feel like it. It means choosing kindness when you could choose to be rude.
Here's the thing, though: Jesus didn't just teach this, he lived it. Every single thing he did during Holy Week, and in his entire life, was an act of love. Love for God, his Father, and love for every person he met. Even the ones who were unkind to him. Even the ones who would eventually betray him.
As your family walks through the rest of this week, watch for these two commands showing up in everything Jesus does. Love God. Love people. It really is that simple, and that hard. And it’s worth it.
PRAYER
God, help us to love You with everything we have. And help us to love the people around us the way You love us — patiently, generously, and without giving up. Show us one person this week that we can love a little better. Amen.
DISCUSSION
What do you think it looks like to love God with your whole heart, soul, and mind? What does that actually look like on a regular Tuesday?
Who is your 'neighbor'? Does it just mean the person next door, or could it mean something more?
Is there anyone in your life who is hard to love? What would it look like to try anyway?