The religious figures of his time sought Jesus to test him. One of them, a legal expert, asked him, “Teacher, what is the greatest commandment of the law?”

Jesus said to him, “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.”

This response surprised the religious figure greatly. He expected the Savior to emphasize some ritual or traditional custom that did not involve the heart.

Jesus completely changed the meaning of the word “commandment” in his time. Things would no longer be done to alleviate guilt, out of fear of punishment, or for social convenience; but rather out of love and gratitude.

Loving God with all our hearts involves loving him with all our emotions. Loving him with all our souls involves loving him with the entirety of our being. Loving him with all our minds is to constantly think of him and yearn to know him more. While loving him with all our strength is to focus all our energy and everything we do with the goal of pleasing him.

“We love him because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).