The Necessity of Love

Introductory questions to chew

What is it like to love God with my all?

Have I placed any command higher than loving God?

How about above loving my neighbor?

How is the second commandment "like unto" the first?

What are some implications of loving my neighbor as myself?

Am I ever exempted from the second commandment?

How should the first two commandments affect my adherence to the others?

What shall I do if I'm hanging "all the law and the prophets" on something else?

Am I also supposed to hang all my life "on these two commandments"?

What if I don't love myself?

We don't solve this problem by trying harder to love ourselves. Having this problem reveals a greater root problem. The root problem, in fact -- the most basic problem anyone can have. Look again at the answer the lawyer provided to his own question.

To inherit eternal life we must first love God fully, thoroughly, and unreservedly. Not loving God is the root that gives life and nourishment to all other problems. Thus the answer to the question does not lie in trying harder to love ourselves. We find the solution in loving God with our all. Those who thus love God also love themselves as they ought.