Mark 12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
The word paramount means to be chief in importance, to be preeminent, to be above all in authority, rank, power, or jurisdiction. This word is appropriate to describe what Jesus said in Mark 12:30. The Lord is to be above all else in our lives. He is to be the hub of our wheel and the preeminent foundation of our thoughts and actions. All our life should be about him. (Philippians 1:21) When the word “all” is used, (“all thy heart…all thy soul…all thy mind…all thy strength”) it speaks directly to the idea of something being paramount. We should be given over wholly to the Lord. It leaves no room for competition. There should be no rival for the Lord’s proper position of authority in our lives.
When the verse says “this is the first commandment” it does not refer to the first one given chronologically but to the one that is first in importance. (Again, it is being defined as the paramount commandment.) Everything about this command puts God first. The emphasis is on our relationship with the Lord and to the Lord. If this command is truly obeyed with all that we are, then everything else will fall into place.
But how can we do this? The answer is found in the verse. If we “love the Lord thy God with all…”. If our love for the Lord is what it should be, then our relationship with him will be right. Our love will give him our all. It is an interesting truth that if we give God all our love, then we can love others as we should. How can you give your all and then have something leftover? This is what a relationship with God can produce. Giving all of yourself to him will produce all he can do through you. When he is paramount, then we can live a life that brings honor and glory to him. It will be a life that makes a difference for the cause of Christ. It will be a life that makes a difference for eternity. When the Lord is paramount in our lives, we can get what God can do through us and he is “able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us.” (Ephesians 3:20) Let us all put God in his rightful place in our lives by placing him in the paramount position. He is worthy of no less.
In Christ’s Service,
Bro. Adrian Moore
2 Cor. 4:5