I often get overwhelmed as I study for sermon preparation but this week has been exceptional.  I am swimming in the deep end!  I have been studying a passage I can quote from memory and have referred to hundreds of times but I “feel” like I know so little in comparison to the immensity of the subject and its implications.  Anybody who has been in church for a little while should know the Great Commandment.  Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and with all your mind.  This is the first and great commandment.  And the second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”  The smartest human that ever lived said that this is the greatest command and the summary of the entire Old Testament!  Too often we pass over the familiar to get to the novel but it would be to our peril to skip over this marvelous teaching.  I’m almost afraid to open my mouth about the subject given its profundity.  In a few sentences Jesus addressed the questions of philosophers down through the ages.  He revealed why we are here.  He summarized the Law.  He gave the standard for ethics and morality and called people to an ideal that no one else has ever stated.  The apostles grabbed this and in their fulfillment of the Great Commission they taught everything Jesus commanded.  This double love command is at the heart of their writings.  In spite of this, think of how often we have let the main thing become subject to peripheral things.  How did the Crusades and the Inquisition ever even happen?  How have we let music, Bible translations and dress codes become a big deal?  How can we snipe our own brothers and sisters in Christ?  How can we make worship about us when it is clearly about Him?  May the Lord have mercy upon us.  That we should love God makes sense but how we should love God is another matter.  Jesus made it very clear that we cannot love God if we do not love people and that loving people is actually one way we love God but loving God is still the first command.  We’ll try to address the subject Sunday but at a minimum it seems that our love for Him would include praise for who He is, incredible gratitude for all He has done and contentment with His person.  God wants us to be satisfied with His goodness.  Our chief end is to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever.  That sure sounds like love to me.  As we prepare to meet with one another on Sunday, let’s think about the main thing…loving the Lord our God with all that we are and loving others as we love ourselves.  If we could meet together and do that, it will be a pretty spectacular day .