“Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.” (Matt. 22:36-38)

I think one of the main problems in the matter of discovery and clarification of truth is that, invariably, people tend to set up ‘infallibles’ (gods, idols) for themselves, besides Jehovah (as He has revealed Himself in Jesus). Examples of such ‘infallibles’ are: The pope, the church, the Bible, Ellen G. White, prophets, angels, the government, particular political parties, societal norms and even themselves. How many people are prepared to accept that God alone is infallible and that Jesus Christ is the only perfect revelation of Him? – recognizing even the possibility that there are imperfections in the gospel-writers’ portrayal of Jesus in some specific details but that the truth concerning His life and teachings can still be known, fairly accurately, by the corroborated evidence of the different writers?

Professed Christians do not even know why Jesus died or who killed Him. For the most part, they think that the Father required the death of His Son (or the death of the sinner) as a condition for His granting forgiveness and in order that His purposes might be fulfilled. In this, they portray God as being no different from pagan deities. Nothing could be further from the truth. They cannot even make up their minds as to who (whether God or the Devil) is responsible for natural disasters. Do they even care to investigate or seek clarification on these matters? Perhaps, it might not be possible to get them to move even if someone were to rise from the dead. They are so wedded to their idols and yet delude themselves that they are “rich, and increased with goods and have need of nothing” (Rev.3:17). Unless that should change, perhaps, nothing else can.

The first and great commandment recognizes God – Jehovah as the only infallible. Yet, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” (John 1:18). Therefore, to know and appreciate God, we must look at Jesus and take our queues and final authority from Him – not Moses, Elijah or anyone or anything else, regardless how good they might be (or perceived to be). In one of the rare cases when the Father Himself spoke audibly to human beings, on the mount of transfiguration, when Peter thought of making tabernacles (houses of worship) for Jesus, Moses and Elijah, the Father responded by pointing them to Jesus, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him” (Matthew 17:5).

After pointing out the first and great commandment, Jesus said, “And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:39,40). In conclusion, the very first step in the process of attaining righteousness requires liberation from the various ‘infallibles’- idols that hold the lock and key to our minds. In this, and all other regards, only Jesus offers salvation. But who will receive it? Only those who realize and accept that they need it.