Why Is It Important to Love God with Your Heart, Soul, and Mind?

Clarence L. Haynes Jr. Contributing Writer
Updated Jul 22, 2022

In Matthew 22:37 we are confronted with what Jesus calls the greatest commandment. Here is what Jesus said:

“’Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’ Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment” (Matthew 22:36-38).

Have you ever taken a moment to think why Jesus said to love God with all your heart, soul, and mind? Why did he mention all three of these, and do you really need all three to truly love God? For a few moments I would like to examine the heart, soul, and mind to give some clarity so you will know how they work together and why they are necessary if you are going to love God.

Let’s Understand the Heart

In this verse, the word for heart is the Greek word kardia, which is where we the word cardiologist comes from. This word is used more than 800 times in the New Testament. For the most part, when this word is used it is never talking about your physical heart, but your spiritual one. If you have never considered it, there is a correlation between how your physical heart works and how your spiritual heart works.

As you know, the physical heart is the seat of human life. When we check to see if someone is alive, we check their pulse because that means their heart is still beating. Your ability to live is a result of your beating heart. You could simply say that everything you are able to do is because your heart is working. When your heart stops, you stop.

Your spiritual heart is very similar. It sits at the center of your life, and everything you do in your life flows out of it. Here are a few thoughts to consider about your spiritual heart.

1. The heart is where your moral compass resides – Your ability to know what is right and wrong is because God has placed a sense of morality that dwells within your heart. That’s why no one needs to tell you certain things are wrong, you simply know it because of the moral compass God has placed in your heart.

2. The heart is where your affections lie – The things you love and have affection for dwell in your heart. It’s why when someone falls in love, we use expressions such as “she captured his heart,” or “he melted her heart,” because the heart is the seat of your affections (just think back to when your boo captured your heart.) When you truly love something or someone, that affection will be evident in your heart.

3. The heart is where your devotions lie – Within your heart lies the things that you are devoted to. In Matthew 6 Jesus was talking about storing up treasure and he said this – “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21).

A little later he said you cannot love both God and money. What he means is you cannot have divided devotions. What you are committed to reflects what is in your heart and where your heart is you will devote your time, talents, and treasure.

4. The heart is where your desires lie – The things you want and desire in this life are reflections of what is in your heart. That’s why the Psalmist wrote, “Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).

In this Psalm, God is responding to your desires and notice where they are flowing from – out of your heart. Clearly when you understand the heart, it is no wonder that Jesus said first love God with all your heart.

Some Verses about the Heart

Just to reinforce the point, consider these verses about the heart and it will underscore the importance of the heart in loving God.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it” (Proverbs 4:23).

“As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart” (Proverbs 27:19).

What about the Soul?

The word for soul in the Greek is psyche which we get the word psychology from. The soul is the seat of your will and your emotions. Both the emotions you feel and your determination exists in the soul level. Our emotions, good and bad, our drive to achieve and overcome, all dwell within the soul level.

What about the Mind?

The word for mind used in this verse can mean your mind, your thoughts, your intellect, your disposition, or your understanding. The mind is also the place where your decisions are made. That’s why when we want to make different choices, we need to renew our minds as Paul mentioned in Romans 12:2. If we are going to love God, it is not just strictly an emotional decision, but is a choice or decision of the will.

How Do We Put This All Together?

I want to reiterate love is a decision of the will. However, it is understanding the roles the heart, mind, and soul play which allow you to come to this decision. When you love God with your heart, this means you are turning your affections towards him. The love of God sits in a special place in your heart. When this happens, it begins to affect your moral decisions. Remember Jesus said if you love me, you will obey my commands (John 14:15). This love of God in your heart also affects the things you are drawn to, the things you choose to devote yourself to and the things you desire. In fact, another understanding of Psalm 37:4 which we looked at earlier, is that as you delight yourself in the Lord, he will put the desires he wants in your heart.

When you love God with all your soul it affects your emotions and shapes your will. This is why there are moments when you think about God, or you enter God’s presence that you get emotional. Your soul is engaged, and because of that your emotions come along with it. It’s why sometimes you might cry, or rejoice, or shout, or even be silent because your soul is overcome by the majesty of who God is. In Psalm 103:1 David said, “Bless the Lord O my soul and all that is within me.” Within this expression of praise, David was bringing his emotions with him as he offered praise to God. Don’t ever apologize about being emotional or having feelings of love toward God. It is how you were created, and it is normal and healthy to feel that way.

When you love God with all your mind it affects your decisions and choices. Since we make decisions in our mind, it is here that your decision to love God is sealed. It is important to note that you cannot love God without understanding. In other words, you can’t love God if you don’t know him. If you are going to know him, you must bring your mind along in the process because the love of God which begins in the heart is sealed in your mind.

Tying It All Together

Here is what happens when you combine all these things together: the heart, mind, and soul. These three things together give you the capacity to love God with everything in you. The reason this happens is because this love has engaged you in your innermost being (heart), in your emotions and will (soul) and in your actions and choices (mind).

Allow me to leave this final thought with you. The heart impacts the soul. The soul impacts the mind, and when all three are combined it’s how we come to the place to truly love God. This process begins in your heart and remember everything you do flows out of it. By the time it passes through your soul and reaches your mind it will ultimately impact the way you live. This is why it is so important to love God with your heart, soul, and mind. When you do this, it goes beyond an emotional level and begins to shape how you think, feel and ultimately what you do. When you get to this place, then your love of God is truly impacting every part of your life.

Clarence L. Haynes Jr. is a speaker, Bible teacher, and co-founder of The Bible Study Club. He is the author of The Pursuit of Purpose which will help you understand how God leads you into his will. His most recent book is The Pursuit of Victory: How To Conquer Your Greatest Challenges and Win In Your Christian Life. This book will teach you how to put the pieces together so you can live a victorious Christian life and finally become the man or woman of God that you truly desire to be. Clarence is also committed to helping 10,000 people learn how to study the Bible and has just released his first Bible study course called Bible Study Basics. To learn more about his ministry please visit clarencehaynes.com.