LOVE. It’s a common word—perhaps so common that we have forgotten the depth of its meaning and all that it signifies. Certainly its meaning can vary from one individual to another. Most likely to most people in our society, the word connotes nothing more than a tidal wave of romantic affection that floods the soul, sweeping one off one’s feet. Indeed, the culture abounds with this meaning of love and even reinforces it. For example, from 1969 to 1974 there was a television series called Love American Style, a show that featured stories of ordinary people falling in love and having romantic encounters. The book market abounds with romance novels, and the film industry has contributed its fair share of this “falling in love” experience.

Although these takes on love are true to life to some extent, God’s command to love him involves a far cry from the “falling head over heels in love” meaning that is so often attached to the word nowadays. The divine requirement calls for nothing less than the complete devotion of one’s entire self to God. We are vividly reminded of this truth in Jesus’ words to a scribe:

28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” 29Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30And 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.’ 31 The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. 33And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions. (Mark 12:28-34, ESV)

The devotion that God requires of us is not to be taken lightly or minimized. Today, just as much as in Moses’ and in Jesus’ time, God not only demands but also deserves our utmost dedication. Nevertheless, many—myself included—have been guilty of falling short in this area. How often have we trifled with the first commandment, pursuing our own pleasures and interests to the exclusion of God’s as if we were not obligated to obey it? How often have we used grace as a cloak for self-gratification, using the fact that we are not under law but under grace as a justification for living for ourselves? Do we attempt to brush away the divine demands on our lives by saying, “I don’t want to be a Pharisee; I’m not under the law any longer”?

Certainly we must avoid becoming Pharisees at heart—to ourselves and to others—by taking the wrong approach to God’s law. We could easily become so engrossed in keeping the law that we lose sight of the fact that “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes” (Romans 10:4, ESV), deceiving ourselves into believing the lie that our righteousnesses are really not like filthy rags after all. We could even end up setting ourselves up as stern, unloving lawmakers who create burdens for others that have never once entered God’s mind—without lifting a finger to help ease them.

If legalism is to be avoided, we must avoid with equal diligence its cousin, antinomianism. We must always bear in mind that Christ did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17–18). The law cannot condemn those who are in Christ because Jesus has fulfilled all its righteous requirements on behalf of those who believe in him. Thus, obedience is not required for salvation. On the other hand, it certainly is required for living a God-glorifying life.

Where does such love come from? Loving God with all one’s heart, soul, mind and strength can spring from only one motive—a deep, abiding, heartfelt longing for holiness and to please God, begun at regeneration and continuing throughout one’s life. Far from being a self-righteous agenda to score points with God, it arises spontaneously and cheerfully from a heart that now loves what it once hated and hates what it once loved.

But, practically speaking, what does it look like in our everyday lives to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength”? Certainly there is a totality of life expressed in the words of this commandment. Our love to God should extend to all facets of our being—heart, soul, mind and strength. Simply put, we are to love God with all that we are. Perhaps a stronger way to say it would be, Love God as hard as you can. Are we doing our utmost to love God with our minds by striving to think pure thoughts? Are we loving God with all our strength, putting our utmost effort into glorifying him?

To help put this into perspective, imagine if someone said of a chef, “He cooks with all his heart, soul, mind and strength.” How would we interpret that? We would probably envision the man throwing himself into his culinary work with relish and reverence, striving to create culinary masterpieces. We might even imagine him taking classes after work hours so as to learn more about his craft. By contrast, what would it look like if this same man did not cook with all his heart, soul, mind and strength? Most likely he would show up late and try to leave work early, be slipshod in his sanitary practices and mix ingredients carelessly. More likely than not he would look for any excuse to take a cigarette break outside, and in his leisure time trying to learn more about cooking would be the last thing you would find him doing. Instead he would probably be watching television or pursuing something else that has nothing to do with the culinary arts.

I don’t know about you, but I’d rather eat at the restaurant where the food is prepared by the chef who cooks with all his heart, soul, mind and strength. Similarly, the love that God requires of us is a love that extends to our whole being. That’s love–divine style.