When a religious leader asked Jesus what the most important command in Scripture was in Matthew 22, Jesus gave them an answer. He said, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord, our God, is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength’” (verses 29-30). This was the greatest commandment. It is still the greatest commandment today and one we can follow as we wait for Jesus to return.
The first part of this commandment from Jesus is to love God with all of our heart. What does this mean, however, to love God with all of our heart? After all, we use the word “love” so loosely today. Jesus shed light on what it looks like to love God with our whole hearts in Matthew 6. He said, “Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal” (verses 19-20). Then Jesus made a statement that cuts to the heart of the issue: “Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.” This, friends, is the crux of the matter. Clearly, there is a connection between what we treasure and our hearts. The things we treasure are the things we love with all of our heart. Jesus calls for followers of Christ to love God with all of our heart and nothing else. Not money, not people, not positions. Him and Him alone.
While we wait for Jesus to return, one of the things we can do is to love God with all of our hearts. This means treasuring and valuing Him over everything else in this world. After all, “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Take some time now to evaluate your life. What are you treasuring over everything else? Evaluating how you spend your time and resources is a good way to understand where your treasure is. Take an honest inventory of these things and answer honestly, “Where is my treasure.” If you find that you have placed your treasure in other things, now is the time to make changes. How can you re-prioritize your life so that you love the Lord with all of your heart?
“Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. 21 Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.
22 “Your eye is like a lamp that provides light for your body. When your eye is healthy, your whole body is filled with light. 23 But when your eye is unhealthy, your whole body is filled with darkness. And if the light you think you have is actually darkness, how deep that darkness is!
24 “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.
25 “That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? 27 Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?
28 “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, 29 yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. 30 And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?
31 “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.
34 “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today."
