I enjoy watching the Seahawks. I like it when they win—especially when they beat the Patriots. But my wife’s devotion to her home team operates on a different level entirely. She prefers the Seahawks over all 31 other teams. I cannot say the same. We all recognize that there are different intensities of affection, and that who and what we like most varies.
I genuinely care for everyone I meet. I even say that I “love” them, and I mean it. But the love I have for my wife and kids is absolute—beyond compare. Full transparency, I love my wife far more than I love my children, as it should be. This isn’t difficult to understand. We all recognize there’s a hierarchy to love: the affection we have for family versus those outside our immediate circle.
Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. We would all think it strange if I put time, effort, and diligence into picking out the perfect gift, followed by selecting the most meaningful card with just the right sentiment—and then gave it to my neighbor’s wife, while giving nothing to my own. Imagine if on February 14, I bought flowers and chocolates for someone else’s spouse. What a stir it would cause! Or if I lavished time and attention on someone else’s children while neglecting my own. Yet we do this with God all the time. No wonder God continually calls the people of Israel adulterous (Jeremiah 3:20, Ezekiel 16:32, Hosea 3:1)—it perfectly describes their behavior. That same pattern should trouble us as well.
There is order to our world; we operate on hierarchies and magnitudes, and Jesus says it starts with one singular, distinctive priority. We must get one thing straight if all other things are going to fall into place, Jesus calls this the greatest commandment.
Matthew 22:37-38: “[Jesus] 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.’”
There are those who love God, and those who LOVE God. We should not confuse the two. Only one person can make that determination, only you know where your heart truly lies. So, which one are you? How much do you love God? Is He one among many, or is He your greatest love?