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Love The Lord With All Your Soul Series
Contributed by John Dobbs on Oct 10, 2025 (message contributor)
Summary: Last week, we talked about loving God with all of our hearts. But what does it mean to love God with all your Soul?
Love God With All Your Soul
Introduction
Jesus was asked a question about the most important command. In Mark’s Gospel he said, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’” (Mark 12:29–30 NLT). Last week, we talked about loving God with all of our hearts. But what does it mean to love God with all your Soul?
We talk about heart, soul, mind, and strength, each word adds a layer to the main command: Love God. It could be a mistake to treat each one in its own sermon! Many authors believe these elements overlap and basically say the same thing: Love God with everything you have. I agree, but I also see some shades of difference, and we will explore that together.
Many authors have had a hard time defining the word “Soul,” even though it is a common word in the Bible. Today I want us to explore for a moment what the Bible means when it uses the word “Soul”. Then I want us to think about what it means to love God with all of our soul.
1. WHAT IS THE SOUL?
The Biblical Words
- The Hebrew word is nephesh — used over 750 times. Can mean life, person, self, or being.
- The Greek word is psyche — the root of “psychology.” Often translated life, mind, or soul.
Scripture uses “soul” and “spirit” somewhat interchangeably … The word “soul” seems to stand for the entire nonphysical part of man. (Grudem).
Shelly: “Soul” refers to the ego, personality, and likeness [reason, emotion, social nature] to God. ?
Ogden: “We do not have souls; we are souls.” Though you might talk to yourself sometimes - or even argue - and even win the argument - you are still just one person. The soul integrates body, mind, and spirit into one person — the distinct self that God made.
Dallas Willard: “You’re a soul made by God, made for God, and made to need God….The soul is the life center of human beings.”
2. FIVE SOUL TRUTHS
Our soul comes from God. God Breathed Life Into Adam. Genesis 2:7 — “The Lord God formed the man from dust… and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (nephesh).” Our soul is God’s breath in us — His life animating ours.
We can lose our souls. In Mark 8:34-36 Jesus warns that gaining the world means nothing if you lose your soul.
When we live life without God, the Bible calls this being “lost”. When we say YES to Jesus, we are “saved”.
We experience a battle over our souls. 1 Peter 2:11 warns us, “keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls.” Our own desires and the Enemy’s work keep us alert to danger and draw us to practices of discipleship.
Our soul exists longer than our bodies. Jesus told the dying thief, “Today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43). They would both die in the body, but exist together in paradise.
We love the Lord with all our soul by dedicating the totality of who we are to have victory in this war.
3. HOW CAN WE LOVE GOD WITH ALL OUR SOUL?
-Give Your Full Attention and Devotion to God! Psalm 103:1(NET) “Praise the Lord, O my soul. With all that is within me, praise his holy name.” Psalm 42:1-2 (NLT) “As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before him?” Our souls thirst for what only God can give — Himself. Without God, what would we be? Loving God with all your soul begins with hunger and thirst for His presence. John 7:37-38 (NLT) “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”
-Seek to Know Him More Deeply. Jeremiah 2:13 “For my people have done two evil things: They have abandoned me —the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!” Our leaky cisterns include everything that we believe will bring us joy - but is not from God. Psalm 16:11 “You will show me the way of life, granting me the joy of your presence and the pleasures of living with you forever.”
C. S. Lewis “We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered to us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by an offer of a holiday at sea. We are far too easily pleased.”