The Shema: Loving God with Heart, Soul, and Strength

Bible Believing Christian
Sep 16
3 min read

The Shema: Loving God with Heart, Soul, and Strength

Few passages capture the heartbeat of biblical faith like the Shema—named from its first Hebrew word, שְׁמַע (shema), meaning hear. Found in Deuteronomy 6:4–9, it remains the daily confession of Israel and the foundation of Jesus’ own summary of God’s greatest commandment. To understand the Shema is to grasp what God desires most: undivided love.

Biblical Foundation

“Hear, Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. And you shall repeat them diligently to your sons and speak of them when you sit in your house, when you walk on the road, when you lie down, and when you get up. You shall also tie them as a sign to your hand, and they shall be as frontlets on your forehead. You shall also write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4–9 NASB)

Historical & Contextual Notes

Setting: Moses delivered these words on the plains of Moab as Israel prepared to enter the Promised Land. They summarize the covenant’s call to exclusive devotion.

One God, One Loyalty: The Hebrew phrase YHWH echad can mean “the LORD is one” or “the LORD alone,” stressing both God’s unity and His exclusive claim.

Daily Recitation: Devout Jews have recited the Shema morning and evening for millennia, often writing its words inside mezuzahs on doorframes and placing them in phylacteries (tefillin) on arm and forehead.

All of Life: Heart, soul, and strength (לֵבָב levav, נֶפֶשׁ nephesh, מְאֹד me’od) encompass thought, emotion, life-force, and resources. Nothing is outside God’s claim.

Misconceptions / Objections

“It’s just an Old Testament creed.”The Shema is far more than ritual. Jesus calls it the greatest commandment (Mark 12:29–30) and the root of all true obedience.

“Loving God is mainly emotional.”Biblical love includes affection but also loyalty, obedience, and wholehearted service.

“One God” denies the Trinity.The oneness of God is the bedrock on which the New Testament reveals the Father, Son, and Spirit. Christian faith confesses one essence, three persons—never three gods.

Theological Reflection

The Shema calls for whole-life worship. To love God with all one’s levav (mind and will), nephesh (life and identity), and me’od (strength, might, and even “very muchness”) is to surrender every thought, breath, and resource.

Connection to Christ

Jesus’ Creed: When asked for the greatest commandment, Jesus quoted the Shema and added “love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:29–31).

Embodied Fulfillment: Jesus perfectly loved the Father with undivided heart, offering His life as the ultimate act of covenant loyalty.

Spirit’s Work: The Holy Spirit now writes God’s law on believers’ hearts (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10), enabling obedience from the inside out.

Christ-Centered Conclusion

The Shema is not ancient poetry to frame on a wall; it is a daily call to exclusive devotion. To recite it is to pledge every heartbeat, breath, and resource to the one true God revealed fully in Jesus Christ.