The Sunday Sermon Archive

Dear Friends in Christ,

Today we are to consider the greatest commandment. In today's Gospel reading, Matthew 22:34-46, Jesus answered this very question. Jesus tells us very clearly that the first and greatest commandment is to love God preferentially and completely. God is jealous of our love. In the book of Exodus we read: "I am the Lord thy God, mighty, jealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me: And shewing mercy unto thousands to them that love me, and keep my commandments" (Exodus 20:5-6).

Saint John Chrysostom said: "To love God with thy whole heart means the heart is not inclined to the love of any one thing more than it is to the love of God. To love God with thy whole soul means to keep the soul steadfast in truth, and to be firm in faith. For one is the love of the heart, another the soul's love. The love of the heart is in a certain measure carnal; as we also love God with our bodily heart: which we cannot do unless we withdraw our hearts from the love of worldly things. The love of the heart therefore is felt in the heart. The love of the soul is not felt, but perceived; for it consists in a judgment of the soul. For he who believes that with God is all good, and that outside of Him there is nothing of good, he loves God with his whole heart. To love God with thy whole mind means that all the faculties are at the disposition of God: he whose understanding serves God, whose wisdom concerns God, whose thought dwells on the things of God, whose memory is mindful only of His blessings, loves God with his whole mind."

Saint Augustine, in this same vein, said: "Or again. You are commanded to love God with thy whole heart, so that all your thoughts: with thy whole soul, so that your whole life: and with all thy mind, so that all your understanding may be devoted to Him from Whom you have that which you bestow. Thus He has left us no part of our lives that is not devoted to Him, nor wills that we should delight in any other thing. And whatever else has entered the soul, to be loved by it, let it be drawn into that channel in which the whole impetus of our love runs: for man is at his highest when, with his whole life, he goes forward towards the Unchangeable Good. Or with thy whole heart; namely, understanding; with thy whole soul, that is, will; with thy whole mind, that is, memory; so that you neither will, think or remember what is contrary to It."

God has not forbidden us to love other persons, as we see in the second commandment to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. But it seems clear that we are not to love anything else. Giving our hearts to inanimate objects or to animals that are beneath us in dignity is a clear inversion of right order. The rest of creation has been made to aid or assist us in drawing ever closer to God. In giving our hearts to these things, we place them above us, and the servant becomes the master and the master becomes the servant. This inversion of right order is manifest in all the vices. Avarice places money above all else and sacrifices all to obtain it. Rather than money serving man, avarice makes the man serve money. Gluttony serves food rather than food serving man. Lust loves passion or pleasure more than self, resulting in pleasure being served by man rather than pleasure serving man.

We may take pleasure, delight, joy, etc. from the material realm around us, but only in relation to our first and primary purpose and goal — loving God. When we enjoy anything, our hearts, minds, and souls should immediately be lifted to God. Thanking God for the gift He has given us. Praising and adoring God as the Creator and Dispenser of all good things. Our goal is that, when we see something good, like a beautiful sunset, our first thoughts and words be: "God is great!" "See how wonderful and beautiful God is?" "See how much God loves us?"

Even the "scientist" who might see the mechanical aspect of a sunset as merely the rotation of the earth on its axis, should be drawn to the love of God, because it is God Who has created all this and set it in motion and arranged the day as a single rotation of the earth on its axis and a year as the orbit of the earth around the sun. The beauty of the order and precision is just as wonderful as the beauty of colors and light. God is the author of all that is physically beautiful, rationally (intellectually or logically) beautiful, and emotionally beautiful. On every level of our being and existence, we should be drawn by love to God.

We exist in God, by God, and for God. Without God, we are nothing. All physical creation is nothing without humanity. It has all been created by God for us. Without us to see and use it, its sole purpose ceases. God does not need it, but we do. We exist for God, and the rest of the physical creation exists for us. It is a demonic disorder when we start to invert this order and love and worship that which is beneath us instead of God Who is above us.

May the Immaculate Heart of Mary inspire, guide, and protect us.

email: father@friarsminor.org Franciscan Benefactor Seraph Subscription Vocations Have you remembered God?

Would you like to make a donation?

Or, just log onto PayPal.com, after signing in you can send your donation to us at: Friars@friarsminor.org .

Blog with audio downloads

Return to Menu.

Return to Homepage.