Thursday's Devotional - 4/30/2026

Good morning! Jesus was once asked what the greatest command was. He answered, "To love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength. The second is like it, to love your neighbor as yourself." He lumped them together for a reason.

Sometimes, people like to do good works to show off how righteous they are. But Jesus said the greatest works we can do is to love God and love others. All the other works we do mean nothing if we miss these two things.

What good is it to give a tenth or more of your earnings if you do it out of vanity or religious duty rather than out of a love for God? What good is it to help maintain the church property if you neglect holding the door for the single mom with four kids? What good is anything really if your first motive is not love?

Love fulfills the law. Jesus didn't come to fulfill the law just to prove how holy He was. He came because without Him, all of humanity was hopeless in sin. He did it because of love (John 3:16). The debt we owe God is to love Him with all of our being and to love others like we love ourselves. This is the greatest commandment. Find ways to love others today and show them the love of God as you make a great day!