Episode 2337 - Lesson 12 - Monday March 17 - The Two Greatest Sins

According to Jesus Himself, the two greatest commandments are love for God and love for one another. And carrying out these commands involves sacrifices that tangibly show love to others, which is what following in the footsteps of Jesus is really about.Now, if the two greatest commandments are love for God and love for others, what are the two greatest sins?Read Psalm 135:13–19. What does this reveal about a common sin emphasized throughout Scripture?The Old Testament continually emphasizes the importance of love for God above all (see Deut. 6:5). This is closely related to the great sin of idolatry, which is the opposite of love for God.Read Zechariah 7:9–12. According to the prophet Zechariah in this passage, what does God decry? How does it and the sin of idolatry relate to the two great commandments?It is not just idolatry to which God responds with the anger of love but the mistreatment of His people, whether individually or corporately. God becomes angry at injustice because God is love.The two great sins emphasized throughout the Old Testament are failings relative to the two great commandments: to love God and to love one another. The two greatest sins are failings of love. In short, then, you cannot keep the commandments if you do not love God and if you do not love others.Indeed, 1 John 4:20, 21 states: “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also” (NKJV).How do you explain why love for God cannot be separated from love for others? How do you understand this unbreakable link?