The Great Commandment
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Last week we looked at a question posed to Jesus about the resurrection which led to some of the end times discussion about what is to come. This should make us think about whether or not we are ready for that time to come. This could be anytime at all, not only that but we are never guaranteed tomorrow. We need to ask ourselves if we are ready for what is to come.
After that discussion with Jesus there was another question given to him and this conversation carries a different tone than some of the other ones that Jesus has had lately. This is not someone out to get him but a scribe with a simple question that he is curious if Jesus has the same view as him on.
As we go through our lives the Bible tells us how we are to live. We do not live this way to gain anything with God but rather it is out of our love and gratefulness to him that we live the way that he commands us to. We can get wrapped up in all of these things and go to far. I fully believe we should learn about all of these commands but in them all there is a heart behind them. Tonight we are going to look at the heart behind them. Even I do not have all of the commands of the Bible down but I seek to act on the basis of what Jesus says here tonight.
If you follow what Jesus says to do in this passage, even if you don’t know all of the specifics of what he commands, you will be on the right track. That is because this statement is a summary of the law.
Lets go ahead and read this section and see this friendly conversation and a summary of the law.
And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord 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 mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions.
This scribe comes up after hearing a dispute and ask the simple question of what is the greatest commandment. This question probably comes from a man that is a bit tired of all of the junk that the others do, he wants to know if this guy follows the same great commandment as him. If he does what it the big issue. Jesus does answer to this guys liking with the command to love God with all that you are and to love your neighbor as yourself. After the scribe affirms this response Jesus says that he is not far from the Kingdom of God, in this he means that this guy is starting to get it, he sees what the others do not.
This great commandment is what the Jews call the Shema. We find it in Deuteronomy 6:4–5 ““Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.” In Jewish culture this is something that was recited multiple times a day and that they would write on pieces of paper then put that paper and put it in boxes that they would strap to their heads and to their door post. They were highly regarded words. Notice too as with much of Jesus’s teaching he expands upon it with adding the second greatest commandment of loving neighbor as self.
This great commandment that is originally found in the book of Deuteronomy occurs right after the telling of the 10 commandments. The 10 commandments are the moral law of God, we are free from the sacrificial law and the judicial law but we are still to follow the 10 commandments. The statement made by Jesus and found in Deuteronomy is a summary of the 10 commandments. These commandments are: have no other gods, have no idols, do not profane the Lords name, remember the Sabbath, honor your father and mother, do not murder, do not commit adultery, do not steal, do not bear false witness, and do not covet. When you love God with all that you are and you love your neighbor as yourself then you will follow the 10 commandments.
Tonight we are going to focus in on the words of Jesus here. The words in his quote from the Old Testament and in his expansion to the second greatest commandment. We will look at what it looks like to love God and what it looks like to love others.
Let’s pray then start with looking at what it looks like to love God.
Love God
Love God
Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord 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 mind and with all your strength.’
A few weeks ago when we were talking about taxes and the government we also talked about giving to God the things that are God’s. In this we were referring to giving ourselves to God. When we give ourselves to God we are not just giving part of ourselves to him but rather all of ourselves to him.
This relates closely to our passage tonight because in essence when we give ourselves to God we are loving him with all that we are. When we love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength we will see that that is all of us. Those things comprise our entire being.
We are to love him with all of our heart. Our heart is used symbolically as the center of us, it is the center of our emotions. When we love God with all of our heart there is a emotional aspect to this. We need to love God so much that it stirs us on the inside, so that we feel it.
We are to love him with all our soul. Our soul is us, it is separate from our physical body. When we love him with our soul we are loving him no matter the conditions that we face. This is an enduring love that we do not let go of.
We are to love him with all of our mind. This is where our love is decided, we love God and that is something that we are not going to ever change. It is an inner resolve. It is also a deep love, it does not rely solely on emotion but on information. We love who God is because in our mind we truly know who God is through his word.
We are to love God with all of our strength. This is a physical outward love. This is a love that serves and lives in a way that is pleasing to him. In this we follow the commands of the Bible, this includes the second greatest commandment. We serve where we can. We share the gospel with anyone that will listen. We live life out for him.
As you see to love God with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength is really a command to love God with all that you are. To not leave anything out but to give it all to him. This is a high calling and one that we should take seriously.
In our culture people do not want to give all of themselves to anything. In certain areas of live it is not necessarily a bad thing to not give everything to one area. For example many of you are multi sport athletes, you do not give all of your effort in sports to one sport but multiple. This is not a bad thing. When we do not go all in on anything though there is a problem. Jesus demands that he has all of us not just part.
We need to love God with all that we are.
Love Others
Love Others
The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Jesus offers up the second greatest commandment as well that is similar to the first in that it is a command to love. This one is to love your neighbor as yourself.
To understand this command we must first understand who our neighbor is. Our neighbor is everyone. This is not just the people that are in the house next to you but it is much wider. When I looked this up in my Greek dictionary it says that the word is neighbor but not in our modern sense but in the sense of all fellow human beings. Everyone is our neighbor.
So we are to love everyone as ourselves. This is a high level of love that we are to have for others. This is being kind to others. This is not spreading anger and hate. This is helping because it is the right thing to do.
So many do not want to be kind and loving to others, especially here in Cordell. This is a horrible thing and it is a sad thing. I cannot imagine being at the point where I would refuse kindness to anyone. It’s an absolute disgrace. We need to be people that seek to love those around us and encourage those around us to do the same. Sadly the opposite happens so much more.
What if you changed this in your life today? What if you started keeping your mouth shut when you didn’t have good things to say? What if you quit giving nasty looks and started giving a smile? What if you started helping people up when they fall instead of being the ones that trip them?
Our words and actions matter. We need to make sure that they are done in love to everyone with no exceptions.
Conclusion
Conclusion
As we finish tonight I want you to think about how you relate to God and how you relate to other people. Do you love God with all that you are? Do you love others as much as yourself?
These are the two greatest commandments, they get their beginnings in the Old Testament but these commands still ring true today. The greatest command is to love. The thing that stops so many from following these commands is sin. The problem of sin is the biggest problem that we face. Sin creates a separation between us and God and this separation cannot be bridged by anything but Jesus. Without Jesus bridging this separation we do not even have a concept of what the love he has for us is an without that we are not capable of loving in the way that he requires. So it gets down to the need of us to receive this love and then give it back to God and others around us. Some of you have not received this salvation, you have not been forgiven of your sins and had this divide bridged. Make that decision today. Jesus desires that you would be saved. To be saved all you do is put your faith in Jesus and turn away from your sins. It is that simple.
After you are saved you can begin to go through your new life in Christ and it all starts with loving God and loving others.