"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 neighbour as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.'" — Matthew 22:37-40
I've always been one to value and truly appreciate the universality of the greatest commandment as given by Jesus during His early ministry. The great command truly does stand out as the summary of all life and everything that we do. This holiday season, for instance, is a great opportunity to live out the great command.
We've heard it said over and over again how Jesus is the reason for the season, and that fits perfectly into the great command. In fact, it's impossible to make Jesus the reason for this season unless we live out and abide by the great commandment.
This Christmas and New Year, our goal is first and foremost to express our exaltation and adoration to God. As the old Christmas hymn goes, "O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord."
Two thousand years ago, shepherds and magi exalted the babe born humbly in a manger. Today, our Christmas season starts by remembering the birth of our Saviour and showing our love to Him with all our soul, mind and strength.
The other way we live out this Christmas season is to show our love to our neighbour. It starts first with family and friends. Christmas is also an opportune moment to be with those who matter to us and enjoy their company and fellowship. God created us to be relational beings and surrounded us with people for us to enjoy occasions such as Christmas as a time to love one another. I personally love Christmas because I get to spend it with family and friends.
Aside from expressing love to family and friends, Christmas can also be a good time to give back and to express love and compassion to the underprivileged, the hurt and the lonely. Not everyone gets to enjoy Christmas the way we do, but we can be a channel of blessing to others. It's not too late to use the remaining few days of the year to sacrifice a little time and finances to do simple things for others.
At the heart of this season lies a call to live out and be a light to others and to praise and worship God. Take the time this season to live out the greatest command by expressing your love for our God and for your neighbours.
