MATTHEW 22:34-40 – “But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. “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.””
THEME OF THE DAY: OUR GREATEST PRIVILEGE, RESPONSIBILITY, AND EXPERIENCE. Psalm 8 is a beautiful portrait of the majestic nature of God’s name, the awesomeness of His creative power, and His condescending reach to His choice creation – us. The Psalm is short, and here it is in its entirety. Meditate and be in awe of the greatness of our God . . .
“To the choirmaster: according to The Gittith. A Psalm of David. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!”.
In the middle of the Psalm, David puts forth a heart penetrating question, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” How do we answer it? David doesn’t. He can’t. Neither can we. Think about it. Why would God take notice of us? Why would the God of all creation, forever satisfied with Himself and the fellowship enjoyed by God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit pay attention to us finite, sinful people? Well, we may not be able to answer this astounding question by human reason, but we may provide some biblical ones.
God takes notice of us because we are His image-bearers. He created us to reflect Himself and thus His interest in us is naturally high. Another reason for God being mindful of us is that He is love, and love always looks out for the good of others, and nothing is better for us than our God showing delight in us by coming to us. But there is one more reason, and really, the chief reason for God being mindful of us.
Today’s scripture answers David’s question. God not only condescends to us, but does so to save us from Satan, sin, and ourselves so that we might fulfill our greatest privilege, responsibility and enjoy our greatest experience – loving Him, and loving people. The Apostle Paul tells us “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). Life is all about love and not selfish love.
A fitting conclusion to our devotion of the day would be in the form of a question – Are we living daily seeking to implement and enjoy life’s greatest privilege, responsibility, and experience and that is loving God with all our being and people as ourselves? These commandments define a life well-lived fulfilling the reason for God delivering us from Satan, sin, and ourselves.
PRAYER: Father, thank You for granting me new life that I might fulfill my purpose in life – loving You.
REFLECTION: To love God and people is life’s most rewarding experience and purpose for our existence.