Nuggets from "An Urgent Call to a Serious Faith" by Dave Hunt - Love the Lord Your God

Nuggets from “An Urgent Call to a Serious Faith” by Dave Hunt – “Love the Lord Your God”

“Hear, O Israel, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” –Deuteronomy:6:4Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:
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“Jesus said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.” –Matthew:22:37Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
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“If a man love me, he will keep my words; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him.” –John:14:23Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
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Both the Ten Commandments given to Israel and the moral law God has written in every conscience (Romans:2:14For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves:
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This first and greatest commandment is given for our own good. God loves each of us so much that He wants to give us the greatest possible blessing: Himself. He does not, however, force Himself upon anyone, for that would not be love. We must genuinely and earnestly desire Him. “And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart” (Jeremiah:29:13And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
See All...) is the promise of God, who otherwise hides Himself (Isaiah:45:15Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.
See All...). And again, “He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him” (Hebrews:11:6But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
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This fervent seeking after God with the whole heart, without which no one can know Him, has always been the mark of His true followers. One of the psalmists likened his passion for God to the thirst of a deer panting for water (Psalm:42:1(To the chief Musician, Maschil, for the sons of Korah.) As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.
See All....2). David expressed it the same way: “O God…I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee…” (Psalm:63:1(A Psalm of David, when he was in the wilderness of Judah.) O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
See All...) What greater desire could one have than knowing God? Yet this most worthy pursuit is neglected even by Christians.

How astonishing that the infinite Creator of the universe offers Himself to such degraded creatures as ourselves. Nor is His love an impersonal cosmic force; it is intimately personal. Think of that! Such love should awaken a fervent response within us. Yet how many of express our love to God even once a day, let alone love Him with our entire being? Sadly, even Christians are caught up instead in the forbidden love of the world (1 John:2:15Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
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Loving God is the first commandment because our obedience to all His other commandments must be motivated by love for Him. Moreover, since God commands us to love Him with our whole being, then our entire life—yes, everything we think and say and do—must flow from that love. Paul reminds us that even giving everything one possesses to the poor and being martyred in the flames is in vain unless motivated by love for Him.