The Rest is Easy

                                

 4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.[a] 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.

 10 When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, 11 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied, 12 be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

 13 Fear the LORD your God, serve him only and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you; 15 for the LORD your God, who is among you, is a jealous God and his anger will burn against you, and he will destroy you from the face of the land. 16 Do not put the LORD your God to the test as you did at Massah. 17 Be sure to keep the commands of the LORD your God and the stipulations and decrees he has given you. 18 Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land the LORD promised on oath to your ancestors, 19 thrusting out all your enemies before you, as the LORD said.

Have you ever considered why the Lord first said to love Him with all our hearts, souls, and strength? All the rest of the commandments come after this because obedience is an easier task when we are head-over- heels in love with,  sold out for, and dedicated to being in relationship with, walking in obedience to and pleasing the object of our affection- the Lord of our lives. It's all about love, everything that the Lord God is - is about love, the scriptures read "God is Love". Everything else - recorded in the Book, is the result of, or warnings against,   our failure to love Him with everything we are. Many are stumbling through their existence, not understanding this huge truth- God just wants all of love and adoration, and we can love Him because He loved us first-He showed us what real love is through Jesus. Jesus said that loving God like this, and loving our neighbors as ourselves sums up everything in the Torah and the Prophets!
Love Him today, with every fiber of your being, and everything you can muster - because He is worthy!