The Great Commandment

[elijah23]

[36] "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"
[37] And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.
[38] This is the great and first commandment.†Matt 22:36-38 RSV

What does this mean to you? Do you agree with me that we should be in prayer all day, every day, as we go about our daily activities? Before you disagree, please read this:

Pray constantly. 1 Thes 5:17 RSV

 

[Theofilus]

[36] "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?"
[37] And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.
[38] This is the great and first commandment.†Matt 22:36-38 RSV

What does this mean to you? Do you agree with me that we should be in prayer all day, every day, as we go about our daily activities? Before you disagree, please read this:

Pray constantly. 1 Thes 5:17 RSV

How about looking at the entire sentence, and not just take two words out of it?

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (I Thess. 5:16-18 NIV)​

If we are to take verse 17 literally and pray constantly, all day, everyday, then should we not take the other two verses literally as well and rejoice and give thanks all day, every day? So, if we are at a funeral of a loved one who wasn't saved, while everyone else is mourning, we should be singing and dancing and rejoicing, because we're supposed to do that all the time? Or maybe a pastor going to give someone some bad news should be smiling and laughing and say "Pray with me, brother, and let us thank the Lord that your daughter got run over by a car on the way home from school and was killed".

Should we really be praying, rejoicing and giving thanks all the time, or is it possible that it wasn't meant to be taken that litterally?

This isn't about how we should spend every second of every day. It's more about not giving up on God. If we pray for something and don't get it right away, then don't give up, but keep praying about it. This is the same as Jesus said in the parable of the widdow and the unrighteous judge.

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. (Luke 18:1 NIV)​

"Always pray" doesn't mean to not stop for so much as a second, but to not give up, even when we don't see the answer right away.

 

[elijah23]

How about looking at the entire sentence, and not just take two words out of it?

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (I Thess. 5:16-18 NIV)​

If we are to take verse 17 literally and pray constantly, all day, everyday, then should we not take the other two verses literally as well and rejoice and give thanks all day, every day? So, if we are at a funeral of a loved one who wasn't saved, while everyone else is mourning, we should be singing and dancing and rejoicing, because we're supposed to do that all the time? Or maybe a pastor going to give someone some bad news should be smiling and laughing and say "Pray with me, brother, and let us thank the Lord that your daughter got run over by a car on the way home from school and was killed".

Should we really be praying, rejoicing and giving thanks all the time, or is it possible that it wasn't meant to be taken that litterally?

This isn't about how we should spend every second of every day. It's more about not giving up on God. If we pray for something and don't get it right away, then don't give up, but keep praying about it. This is the same as Jesus said in the parable of the widdow and the unrighteous judge.

Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. (Luke 18:1 NIV)​

"Always pray" doesn't mean to not stop for so much as a second, but to not give up, even when we don't see the answer right away.

If you spent the day with a brother or sister, you would probably have fellowship with your brother or sister throughout the day.

Well, the Lord is always with us, so shouldn’t we have fellowship with him throughout the day? I think a lot of people ignore him most of the time, don’t they?

 

[Theofilus]

If you spent the day with a brother or sister, you would probably have fellowship with your brother or sister throughout the day.

Well, the Lord is always with us, so shouldn’t we have fellowship with him throughout the day? I think a lot of people ignore him most of the time, don’t they?

If I spent the day with my brother then, by definition, I would be having fellowship with him. There's no "probably" about it. But fellowship doesn't mean talking non-stop. Also, I don't think I quite agree with you that people ignor God most of the time. At least, Christians don't. They may not be praying all the time, but that doesn't mean that they're ignoring God. Maybe I can explain what I mean with an analogy.

Suppose a man is in the kitchen fixing a leaking faucet while his wife is in the laundry room doing the laundry. They aren't talking to each other, but does that mean that they're ignoring each other? The man needs clean clothes, and his wife is attending to his needs. She needs a faucet that works when she's in the kitchen, so he's attending to her needs. Even though they're in different rooms, they aren't ignoring each other.

Disclaimer for any feminists who might read this: The above remarks are not intended to be sexist. I know women can fix things and men can cook and do the laundry. These aren't intended to be men's or women's roles, but are only for the sake of this analogy.

It's the same with us and God. Just because we aren't praying, reading the Bible or singing His praises doesn't mean that we're ignoring him.

 

[elijah23]

If I spent the day with my brother then, by definition, I would be having fellowship with him. There's no "probably" about it. But fellowship doesn't mean talking non-stop. Also, I don't think I quite agree with you that people ignor God most of the time. At least, Christians don't. They may not be praying all the time, but that doesn't mean that they're ignoring God. Maybe I can explain what I mean with an analogy.

Suppose a man is in the kitchen fixing a leaking faucet while his wife is in the laundry room doing the laundry. They aren't talking to each other, but does that mean that they're ignoring each other? The man needs clean clothes, and his wife is attending to his needs. She needs a faucet that works when she's in the kitchen, so he's attending to her needs. Even though they're in different rooms, they aren't ignoring each other.

Disclaimer for any feminists who might read this: The above remarks are not intended to be sexist. I know women can fix things and men can cook and do the laundry. These aren't intended to be men's or women's roles, but are only for the sake of this analogy.

It's the same with us and God. Just because we aren't praying, reading the Bible or singing His praises doesn't mean that we're ignoring him.

I do not talk to the Lord nonstop. I do let myself enjoy what I’m doing. There needs to be a balance of work and play, right?

The Lord is never in the other room—he’s always in the room you’re in.

I don’t share your confidence that most Christians don’t ignore the Lord most of the time. I think some stop and pray two or three times in a day, and that is the extent of it.

 

[WIP]

I do not talk to the Lord nonstop. I do let myself enjoy what I’m doing. There needs to be a balance of work and play, right?

So, do you consider talking to God as work?

I think prayer can be anything from a conscious act to an attitude. Prayer is communication and communication with God does not necessarily require verbal expression. Remember that we are with God all the time but do we acknowledge His presence either aloud verbally, silently in our thoughts, or by the way we present ourselves to those around us? God knows what is in our hearts and minds and he knows if we are carrying an attitude of prayer.

 

[elijah23]

So, do you consider talking to God as work?

It depends on what I’m talking about. Service takes effort, doesn’t it? Otherwise it isn’t service. I imagine the Lord exerts a lot of effort serving each of us each day.