During the final week before his passion, Jesus found himself involved in several confrontations with the Jewish religious and political leaders. A scribe overheard Jesus disputing with the Sadducees about the future hope of the resurrection of the dead and came near to ask Jesus a question. Mark records it like this: "Which commandment is the first of all?' Jesus answered, 'The first is, 'Hear O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.'"
Like everything in the universe, it all begins with the God of Israel. Not just any god, but the one and only God - the God that is one. He created all things and by his powerful word, he holds together all things. And he is the one who will bring all things to completion. There's nothing that we have that we have not received. There's nothing we can do to deserve life - we didn't choose to be born - it is simply given to us as a gift. And our first response to the good gift of life is to love the giver of the gift.
How are we to love him? With everything we have and with everything we are. We are to love God with our emotions and our will. We are to love him when we feel like it, and maybe even more so when we don't feel like it. We are to love him on the outside and we are to love him on the inside. We are to love him through what we say, what we do, and even through what we think. And we are to love him with every bit of energy and strength that he supplies. Our love for God cannot be passive, it must be active. It is something we choose to do.
The greatest obstacles to our loving God comes from idolatry and selfishness. The two are linked together. Humanity's first sin was to love the creation rather than the creator. We pursued the gift, rather than the giver of the gift, and we did so with selfish motives.
But just as God has graced us with the breath of life, so he has provided the gift of his Spirit to those who respond in faith to the gift of his Son. Through the Spirit and the Son, over time, we can learn to love God with everything we have and with everything we are, including our minds. And of the four ways which Jesus claims we must love God, I believe that loving the Lord with our minds may be the most important.
Sadly, I think it is often the most neglected. The human mind is incredible. God has blessed this planet with minds that have unlocked the scientific structure of much of the universe (though there's still much that will probably always remain a mystery). He has given humanity minds that have learned how to treat all manner of illness and disease through modern medicine (though there's still much research to be done). The engineering marvels of the ancient world blow me away and 21st century mechanics and technology boggle my mind. Not to mention, philosophy, poetry, music, art, story telling, and creativity of all kinds points us towards the initial creative act of the Creator. The human capacity to discover and create has made the world an exciting place! And yet, so many believers, who are otherwise brilliant, choose to use sloppy and shallow thinking when faced with the question of God.
The single most important question that will ever confront humanity is sometimes not even pondered. And when it is, more energy and reflection is often given to work, hobbies, partisan political debate, and silly, time wasting distractions, than to faith. It's not that people are incapable of thinking deeply about such things, it's that they've chosen to put their time and energy elsewhere. I believe it's also down to the fact that rigorous theological reflection takes time and a healthy attention span. Many in our world have grown tired of waiting and lack the patience to think critically.
The result of failing to love God with our minds is that many within the church remain on a perpetual diet of milk - baby food! They are clueless about some of the basic teachings regarding the life and work of Christ, and have grossly misunderstood such rudimentary teachings as faith, repentance, baptism, and the resurrection of the dead (Hebrews 5:11-6:2). Isn't it time to move on!
Please, don't misunderstand me. I do not wish to imply that the legitimacy of our relationship with Jesus is primarily down to our knowledge and understanding of the Bible and theology. I am simply lamenting the fact that so many of the gifted, talented, and smart people in Christ's church haven't devoted their God given gifts to be used in the service of a more mature and robust faith. They have not taken the time to think critically about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. As Anselm of Canterbury said, theology defined is faith seeking understanding. It only stands to reason that the better we understand our faith, the more likely we are to allow it to penetrate the nooks and crannies of our lives. Knowing what we believe is important, but knowing why we believe it, is even more important. Don't forget to love God with all of your heart and soul. But don't forget to love him with all of your mind and strength as well! - Shay
Please, don't misunderstand me. I do not wish to imply that the legitimacy of our relationship with Jesus is primarily down to our knowledge and understanding of the Bible and theology. I am simply lamenting the fact that so many of the gifted, talented, and smart people in Christ's church haven't devoted their God given gifts to be used in the service of a more mature and robust faith. They have not taken the time to think critically about what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. As Anselm of Canterbury said, theology defined is faith seeking understanding. It only stands to reason that the better we understand our faith, the more likely we are to allow it to penetrate the nooks and crannies of our lives. Knowing what we believe is important, but knowing why we believe it, is even more important. Don't forget to love God with all of your heart and soul. But don't forget to love him with all of your mind and strength as well! - Shay
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