You’re reading JESUS: LESSONS IN LOVE, by Eric Elder, featuring thirty inspiring devotionals based on the greatest “lover” of all time, Jesus Christ. Also available in paperback and eBook formats in our bookstore for a donation of any size!

Scripture Reading: Matthew 22

For Harry Potter fans, the week I wrote this devotional was one of the biggest double-headers of all time:  the fifth movie came out the weekend before, and the seventh, and final, book in the series came out the following weekend.

Here’s what I wrote:

Whatever you think of the various themes in the Harry Potter series, there’s one theme that seems inarguably good:  the theme of sacrificial love.  In the first book, readers found out that Harry’s parents, and his mother in particular, loved Harry with such a deep and sacrificial love, that even the most vile person on earth couldn’t break through it to kill him.  Even though Harry’s parents died in the process, they succeeded in demonstrating their profound love for Harry.

Now, in the seventh and final book, readers are about to find out the answer to the question that has persisted throughout the entire series:  what’s going to happen to Harry Potter in his final conflict with evil?  Will he live or not?  It’s almost guaranteed that either Harry will die, his archenemy will die, or both of them will die.

But there’s another question I think readers will get an answer to this week.  Although some people say there’s no such thing as a dumb question, I still think that some questions are better than others!  If we ask the wrong question, we’ll often come to the wrong conclusion.  Asking the right questions is key to life.

Beyond the question, “Will Harry live or not?” I think readers will find the answer to an even more important question:  “Will Harry love or not?”  In other words, “Will Harry Potter demonstrate his love for others as it was demonstrated by his parents to him?”   The answer to these two questions could be entirely different, regardless of whether Harry lives or dies.

If the test of success in life is dependent on whether we live or not, none of us will pass!  But if the test of success in life is whether we love or not, then all of us will have an equal chance of passing, regardless of whatever else we may do in life.

People asked Jesus all kinds of questions―some to trap Him, others to trick Him.  But one man asked Jesus a question that was so wise Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”

The question was this:  “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.  Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’  There is no commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:29-31 and Matthew 22:37-40). 

The man had asked the right question.  And Jesus gave a brilliant response.

We may have heard Jesus’s answer so often that we don’t realize the incredible power of His words.  Jesus says that the goal of everything in life―everything―boils down to whether or not we love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength; and whether or not we love others as ourselves.  Love is the ultimate goal of life.

Will Harry Potter live or not?  I don’t know.  I’m curious, but I’m even more curious if Harry Potter will love or not.  Will he demonstrate his love to others as it has been demonstrated to him?  The answer to that question will determine the success or failure of Harry Potter’s life.  And it’s the same question that will determine the success or failure of our lives.

Will we love God and others as God has loved us?  Will we succeed in life, by demonstrating our love for others as Christ demonstrated His when He gave His life for us?  If our answer to these questions is a resounding “YES!” then it won’t matter what else we might do in life.  We will have succeeded in the ultimate goal of life, the goal of love.

Prayer: Father, help me demonstrate my love for You and others as You have demonstrated it to me.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.