Jesus' Unwavering Allegiance to the Father

In a world that is becoming increasingly complex because of innumerable opportunities to which our cell phones connect us, it is refreshing to remind ourselves of what Jesus said was at the core of following 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 (Mt 22:37-38.) The primacy of this first and greatest commandment resonates with me. If I could just love God more:

• My heart would have less room to love sin.
• The pleasure of pleasing him would overpower my selfish pleasures.
• I would want the approval of God more than the approval of men.
• I would shut out the world more often to be in his quiet presence.

Jesus, the perfect man who fulfilled all righteousness, obeyed the great commandment—loving the Father perfectly. This episode seeks to throw back the curtain of that devotion to the Father, so we may be inspired and challenged by it.

For Further Prayerful Thought:

1. How do “emptying myself” and “humbling myself” to obey God demonstrate my love for him?
2. Jesus was confident of the Father’s love for him. He and Paul wanted us to be confident of God’s love for us. Why might comprehending such love be foundational for our everyday walk with God?
3. Why does it make sense that when you love someone, you want to see that person honored? When you are battling a bad attitude in a given situation, how can it strengthen you to know that Christ-like attitudes in us bring glory to God?

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