וְאָ֣הַבְתָּ֔ אֵ֖ת יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ בְּכָל־לְבָבְךָ֥ וּבְכָל־נַפְשְׁךָ֖ וּבְכָל־מְאֹדֶֽך
"v'ahavta adonai eloheika b'kol levavka uv'kol nepheshka uv'kol m'odka"
"And you are to love Adonai your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your resources." (Deuteronomy 6:5, CJB)
In verse 5 of the Shema, Moses changes the way he addresses the assembly. In verse 4, he uses the first person plural "our God." In verse 5, he uses the second person "you." Unlike English, Hebrew has plural forms of the second person. In this verse, however, although he addressing the entire assembly, Moses uses the singular form rather than the plural. My Hebrew teacher in college explained to me that this is to make the command personal. The entire nation was called to love and obey God, but Moses also commanded them as individuals to love and obey God. It was a personal choice. Each person had to make that choice. It is the same for us today. Being a member of church does not save us. We each must choose to follow God.
"For God so loved the world that he gave His only and unique Son, so that everyone who trusts in Him may have eternal life, instead of being utterly destroyed." (John 3:16, CJB)
This is a personal choice that we all must make. Jesus died for everyone. He offers salvation to all people. We each must choose whether or not to accept it.
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