Love Like Jesus. Nothing Less.

Matthew 22:34-40 

When the Pharisees gathered to challenge Jesus—again—it wasn’t because they were hungry for truth. It was because they were looking for loopholes. They were experts in the Law, after all. They knew the Torah backward and forward. But even all that head knowledge couldn’t prepare them for the clarity and authority of Jesus' answer.

“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Matthew 22:37-39)

This wasn’t just a profound teaching—it was a mic drop. This was Jesus declaring the very center of God's heart. In just a few words, He boiled down all the commandments, all the laws, all the prophets… to love. Love isn’t just a command—it’s the commandment. It’s the thread that holds everything together.

Love is the Beginning of Everything

Long before there were laws carved into stone, there was love. Before God gave Israel commandments, He gave them Himself. Before the fall, before the exile, before the cross—God walked with Adam in the cool of the day (Genesis 3:8). Relationship came before regulation.

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 isn’t a rule; it’s a reminder: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.” This is not about earning eternal life—it’s about being so captured by the love of God that eternal life is just an overflow of relationship with Him. If your desire is heaven without Jesus, you’ve missed the point. Heaven is not the goal. He is.

Imagine a father who builds a home, long before the child is born. Every wall, every room, every color is filled with intention and affection. That’s what God did for us. Created by love. For love. To dwell in love. And when we wandered away, Jesus came—not to scold us, but to bring us back home.

Love Requires All of You

This love isn’t half-hearted. It's not “weekend love” or “when it’s convenient” love. It's everything or nothing. Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.” (Mark 12:30) That’s not poetry. That’s surrender.

This isn’t about more church attendance or checking off a devotional reading plan. This is total surrender. God is not after your Sunday. He wants your life. Your heart—where passion lives. Your soul—the eternal part of you. Your mind—your thoughts and decisions. Your strength—your daily grind.

John 12:24 says “unless a seed dies, it remains alone. But if it dies—it produces a harvest.” That’s what love does. It dies to self and multiplies life in others. Love costs you everything. But it’s so worth it.

Love Is Seen in How We Treat Others

Jesus didn’t stop with loving God. He tied it directly to how we treat people. “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:39) You can’t claim to love God while ignoring your neighbor. 1 John 4:20 says it plainly: “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar.”

Your theology is only as deep as your love.

It’s not enough to amen a sermon about love. Who are you inviting to your dinner table? Who have you forgiven that doesn’t deserve it? Love is messy. It’s inconvenient. It interrupts our schedules, our comfort, and our pride.

Tertullian said of the early church: “Look how they love one another… how ready they are to die for one another!” That kind of love turned the Roman Empire upside down. What would happen if we loved like that again?

Look—this means actually seeing people. Like, really seeing them. That person sitting a few rows away from you at church? The one you've never talked to? What if that’s the person God’s putting right in front of you—on purpose?

It’s not about signing up for another program or waiting for someone to organize a church event. It’s about being the kind of person who says, “Hey, come have lunch with us.” Or, “Want to grab coffee sometime?” It’s about saying, “There’s room at our table.”

But here’s the thing—we’ve got to interrupt our lives to do this. We’ve got to break the routine. Stop rushing out after service. Stop clinging to our comfort zones. Ask God to open your eyes and give you a heart that’s interruptible.

This isn’t some strategy or ministry model. This is just what the Church is supposed to be. This is what happens when the Spirit of God lives in us. We notice. We invite. We love. Not because we’re told to—but because He loved us first.

Love Leads to Transformation

Jesus ends by saying, “All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:40) He’s not being poetic. He’s being blunt. Everything we do—every act of holiness, every call to righteousness, every sermon, every service project—it all hangs on love.

1 John 4:8 says, “God is love.” That means love isn’t an emotion. It’s a person. It’s power. It’s the force that transforms everything. God’s love turns enemies into family. It heals trauma. It crushes shame. It gives identity to the orphaned and hope to the hopeless.

When Saul encountered Jesus, he didn’t get a new religion—he got a new heart. He was transformed. Because love changes everything.

Be the Love

You were made to love.

Not just to receive love. Not just to feel loved. But to be love.

“We love because He first loved us.” (1 John 4:19)
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:35)

Let that be our reputation. Let that be our mission. Let our worship not just be songs, but surrendered lives. Let our churches not just be buildings, but beacons of outrageous, inconvenient, self-sacrificing Jesus love.

So today—receive His love. Return His love. Reflect His love.
Be the proof that Jesus is real…
Because you love like He does.