This is a very important question. Death can come to any person any day. Man knows there is a day ordained by God for us to be born and another day ordained for us to die in God’s perfect will.
With regard to our earthly life, its duration is limited. For the majority it can be 80’s. For others it can be lesser than that as well for others greater than that. We can choose to be foolish and intentionally make the wrong choices and have our life cut short to a duration much lesser than what God had intended. We can also be surrendered to God and take care of all what He reminds us to be careful off and live a wholesome life upto the time span God has purposed for us. Others can also choose to do things contrary to God’s will and extend one’s life beyond God’s perfect plan for our lives.
Who asked this question?
A lawyer asked Jesus this question. This question is asked by many every day, every hour? This is one of the most important and significant questions anyone can ask. As the question is most significant, the answer is very important.
Jesus’s response to the question
Jesus is a great teacher. He asked the lawyer in return, what is written in the law? What do you understand about it?
The lawyer followed the instruction of Jesus and replied.
27 So he answered and said, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbor as yourself.’ ”( Luke 10:27 NKJV)
Jesus confirmed the answer and told the lawyer, You have answered correctly, you do this, you will get eternal life.
The simple and straightforward
Only two things one has to do to inherit eternal life.
- Loving God with all heart, soul, strength and mind
- Loving your neighbor as yourself
The lawyer asked who was his neighbor. Jesus told the Lawyer about the parable of the good Samaritan who went from Jerusalem to Jericho and whom the thieves had attacked.. Then Jesus the good teacher asked the lawyer which of the three men was a neighbor to the person who was attacked by the thieves? And the Lawyer said that it was the Samaritan man who showed mercy to him as the man’s neighbor. Then Jesus told him to do so likewise.
Is Order important
Doing the second item without the first does not work.
Whereas when you do the first the second item is followed by default.
So the priority to Love God is most important. The order of the 10 commandments also list Loving God as the most important. So start with the very top priority one. We have this beautiful verse pointing to this truth.
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. ( Mathew 6:33 NKJV)
