Jesus identified Deuteronomy 6:5 as the greatest of all commandments (Mark 12:28-34) and, in doing so, he also identified the essence of the biblical faith. It is all about our relationship with God. It is not primarily about ethics, religion or doctrine. It is about a relationship. Everything else either serves the relationship or flows from it. The biblical faith is not a religion that we observe but a relationship that we enter into. It is simple: God loves us, and he wants us to love him. If you don’t have a relationship with God, then you have nothing. It doesn’t matter how morally upright you are, how zealously you serve God or how much you give, without the love-relationship it is nothing. What is the point of doing church, ministry, and even calling yourself a Christian if you don’t have a personal relationship with God? A personal relationship is not a business contract or an employment arrangement. It is like a husband-wife or parent-child relationship. Personal relationships are defined by mutual commitment, communication, mutual enjoyment, shared experiences, affection and time spent together. Seek God, not for some other purpose, but to be with God. Talk to God, not as a means to some other end, but because relationships are built on communication. Complain to God if you feel he is distant. Appeal to his promises. Don’t settle for life without God. God loves it when we seek him earnestly and persistently because it demonstrates our love for him.
Do what I have suggested.
Read Deuteronomy 6
