The Greatest Commandment

Jesus made it clear what is most important in the Christian life, commanding believers to love God with heart, soul, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30). The Greatest Commandment ought to provide the foundation for all learning in Christian education. Spurgeon (1857) interpreted the commandment simply: “We are to love Him with all our life, for that is the meaning of it.” Loving God comes before all other priorities because, according to Matthew Henry , this "will effectually take us off from, and arm us against, all those things that are rivals with him for the throne in our souls, and will engage us to every thing by which he may be honoured, and with which he will be pleased."

Spurgeon described the comprehensive nature of this love of God: “For we are to love Him with all our heart, heartily—with all our soul, that is, to the laying down of our life—with all our mind, that is mentally; and we are to love him with all our strength, that is, actively.”

Although disagreement might exist in determining under which “category” a human act or function might fall, the overall purpose of the command is for an all-encompassing love of God.

Heart and Soul

The heart (kardia) and soul (psychē) pertain to “the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavours” (Blue Letter Bible). Learning outcomes aimed at loving God with heart and soul would include the development of a personal relationship with God through an understanding of sin and grace, a lifestyle of prayer through the Spirit, and an attitude and practice of sincere worship.

Often in Christian schools, a profession of “being saved” is the extent of any emphasis on a personal relationship with Christ. Students are encouraged to “pray the prayer” and then behave appropriately. But all too often, no connection between the reality of salvation and the source of power for obedient living is made. Teachers can emphasize this principle by encouraging prayerful responses to difficulty, temptation, and failure, thus modeling for students that their relationship with God should influence all aspects of their lives. Sinful choices by students provide excellent opportunities to teach on the profound gift of the Cross. While sin has earthly consequences, and Christian schools should not gloss over these, the message of forgiveness and the unconditional love of God can only be understood when the reality of sin is realized.

Worship is also appropriate in the classroom setting. Praising God for success is a powerful reminder that the glory belongs to Him. The Old Testament offers examples of how musicians were at the front of the battle, and the singing of a praise song or hymn at an appropriate time in class can teach students that their relationship with God is active at all times, not just during chapel services.

Mind

The mind (dianoia) pertains to “a faculty of understanding, feeling, desiring” (Blue Letter Bible). Learning outcomes aimed at loving God with the mind would include an emphasis on the thought life and motives, the development of the intellect for God’s purposes, and effective Bible study through good hermeneutics.

Loving God with the mind starts with properly reading, interpreting, and applying His Word. The foremost goal of literacy in early childhood ought to be the reading of the Bible, and in the middle and high school years, development of hermeneutical skills becomes a priority. Bible study is not simply for morality development but for a proper understanding of and relationship with God:

Even where teaching the Bible to children is a priority, teaching Bible doctrine seldom is. Children hear the same Bible stories repeatedly, almost always as moral lessons on how to behave. Typical Sunday school lessons reduce Bible stories to moral tales much like Aesop’s fables. The focus is on the human being in the story, who becomes its main character. . . . When Bible stories are used in this way, God sits on the periphery of the narrative, like the genie in a fairy tale, blessing human actors for good behavior or cursing them for failures. Children seldom learn to see that God Himself is the main character of every Bible story. (Meade, 2000, p. 4)

While the school setting traditionally focuses on academic development, a distinctive of Christian education ought to be an emphasis on a personal relationship with God. Academics prepare students for success in their earthly lives, and as far as this is applied with a heart for fulfilling God’s call on a young life, this is appropriate. However, academic subjects ought to enhance spiritual growth as well, because there are elements of every subject that reveal the character of God. This aspect of academic instruction needs to be more fully explored to contribute to the learning outcome of loving God both with the heart and soul and with the mind.

Strength

The strength (ischys) includes “ability, force, might” (Blue Letter Bible). Learning outcomes aimed at loving God with strength would include physical activity to the glory of God, the care and purity of the body, and understanding of nutrition and fasting. Opportunities for using the body for God’s purposes, such as ministry in the community, could provide a model for an active love of God beyond emotions and intellect. Many Christian schools offer competitive athletics as part of their educational programs. These provide excellent opportunities for helping students learn to glorify God, and not themselves, through appropriate attitudes and actions.

A study of biblical roles of men and women and the practice of these principles in the daily life of a school, discussions on appropriate choice of dress for modesty, and a survey of biblical principles of purity would all help students understand what it means to love God with all their strength. As with all behavioral mandates, teachers must constantly remind students that living the Christian life is only possible through dependence on the Holy Spirit. Without this dependence, students will continually face frustration in their failure to live up to the standard.

An element of the Christian life often ignored in educational settings is fasting. Always considering individual nutritional or other physical needs, schools can implement fasting days to teach dependence on God for strength and endurance. Classes might choose creative fasts, such as giving up television for a week, choosing to spend that time in prayer, worship, and Bible study. As with many activities, this type of commitment can become an arena for competition and individual glorification, and teachers must clearly communicate the proper motivation and purpose for any fast.