by Kaye Johns

Is a love relationship with the Lord an option in our Christian lives? What does His Word say?

In Deuteronomy 6, we're commanded to "Love the Lord our God with all our heart...." That commandment -- it's not a suggestion -- is repeated in Deuteronomy 10 and Joshua 22. And in Matthew 22, Jesus not only repeats it, but gives it weight as the "first and greatest commandment."

So how important is it to the Lord? It's essential -- but we can't love an idea or a concept, can we? We can only truly love a person, and it has to be someone we know intimately.

The Lord is a person -- He's Spirit, but He's real. And He promises we can know Him. In Deuteronomy we learn if we "seek the Lord our God, we will find him if we look for him with all our heart and with all our soul." That's not a casual effort. It takes time and commitment and discipline.

Oh, but if we make the time! In John 14, Jesus says, "He who loves me will be loved by my Father." In John 17, He prays to the Father: "...the world will ... understand that you love them as much as you love me." And, in John 15: "As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you."

Let's get this straight. God the Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus. Jesus loves us as much as the Father loves Him. Perfect love. Complete love. Unconditional love -- meant to be experienced through a personal relationship. And some of us are missing it.