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Napoleon the Great once said, “Alexander, Caesar, Charlemagne and I founded empires; but upon what did we rest the creations of our genius? Upon force.” Jesus Christ alone founded His empire upon love; and at this hour, millions of men would die for him.” Napoleon knew that love endures far longer than force. Jesus, our Lord, stressed the necessity of love in our relationships with both God and people. He explained this to a man who wanted to know which of the 613 commands God gave was most important. We read Jesus’ reply in Mark Chapter 12. Jesus said, “The most important commandment is this, ‘Listen, O Israel! The LORD our God is the one and only LORD. And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” Genuine love for God engages our total being: heart, soul, mind, and strength. Jesus connected love for God and love for people. Both are essential. Yet we can do neither unless God gives us the power to do so. We receive power to love when we submit to God and to His Son Jesus Christ. If more of us practiced genuine love, we would have less hatred and violence, and our world would be a better place to live and be productive.
