Journey Through Matthew: The Greatest Commandment

Introduction

Good morning and welcome back!

If you would, start turning in your Bibles to .

We are going to continue with our Journey Through Matthew this morning, but we are going to skip ahead just a bit.

Remember last week, we finished up this initial confrontation Jesus was having with the Jews and we were talking about the Parable of Marriage Banquet.

And of course this parable was all about the Marriage Supper of the Lamb and the requirements for entry into the Kingdom of Heaven.

And we also know that Jesus had pretty much ruled out the Pharisees and Sadducees entrance into heaven.

Not because of some prophetic judgement but rather because they refused to humble themselves and repent.

They refused to believe.

They refused to “turn from their wicked ways.”

They were too proud to do that.

They were too powerful to that.

And as a result, they would not be going.

And we also know that they were pretty enraged with Jesus at this point.

In fact one of the running themes for them at this point is found in the end of . . .

Matthew 21:45–46 NIV - Anglicised

45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard Jesus’ parables, they knew he was talking about them. 46 They looked for a way to arrest him, but they were afraid of the crowd because the people held that he was a prophet.

Which to be honest, is kind of insane.

They knew Jesus was talking directly about them.

And they also knew that all they needed to do was repent, but still after all of this they continued to refuse.

Honestly, it doesn’t make very much sense.

Except for one thing.

They were overcome by the world and the ways of the world.

They were blinded by Satan and their own pride.

They couldn’t see the truth about Jesus.

Which is why instead of repenting, they decided they were going to try and find a way to trap and arrest Jesus.

Which is actually something that plays out a couple of times right before the Scripture we are going to look at this morning.

First, we know from Sunday night all of the teaching about the Marriage Banquet.

Then, in a passage that we will not cover in depth they begin to lay out this plot to trick Jesus.

The first plot, had to do with trapping Him, trying to show that he was undermining the government.

In Chapter 22, verse 15 Matthew writes that . . .

Matthew 22:15–17 NIV - Anglicised

15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”

Matthew 22:15

So, in essence they were trying to get him for tax evasion.

Now, today that will get you locked up.

In Jesus’ day, it was viewed much like treason and would get you killed.

And the reason they are brining this up is because Jesus had been telling them that He is a King (because that is who the Messiah is to them) and His Kingdom is not of this world.

And logic says that Kings don’t pay taxes to other kingdoms.

So, either Jesus will admit he had been lying or he will admit treason.

However, remember they are dealing with Jesus . . .

Matthew 22:18–22 NIV - Anglicised

18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and he asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?” 21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” 22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

Amazed alright, because they didn’t have enough sense to think of that.

Matthew 22:18-

But, they didn’t give up.

The Pharisees had failed, now the Sadducees were going to take a crack at it.

Matthew 22:23–28 NIV - Anglicised

23 That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. 24 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and have children for him. 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. 26 The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. 27 Finally, the woman died. 28 Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?”

Matthew 22:23

Pretty tricky question.

And factually they were right about the Jewish Law.

If a man dies the wife marries the brother and so on and so on.

But the thing this wasn’t God’s command, this was their interpretation and modification of God’s Law.

Also, they were mixing the Kingdom of the world and its ways with the Kingdom of God.

Things are vastly different in heaven than they are here.

So, Jesus again knowing what they are pulling responds . . . .

Matthew 22:29–33 NIV - Anglicised

29 Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. 30 At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. 31 But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living.” 33 When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching.

Matthew 22:29-

So first Jesus clears up this whole marriage business.

Then though, he corrects the Sadducees mixed up beliefs about resurrection.

They didn’t believe in the resurrection, so to them when you are dead you are dead.

However Jesus reminds them that God is the God of the living and not the dead.

And that is because the dead have no hope.

But the living have hope and that hope is in Jesus Christ.

But....again, they didn’t give up.

Which brings us to our Scripture for this morning.

So, if you have found in your Bibles, I’d invite you to stand with me as we read.

Starting in verse 34, Matthew writes . . .

Scripture Focus

Matthew 22:34–40 NIV - Anglicised

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Matthew 22:34-40

It is a Commandment (vs 34-36)

It is a Commandment (vs 34-36)

So, we see right off that they are actually getting a little smarter in their attempts to trap Jesus.

Even though the Pharisees and Sadducees didn’t get along the greatest, they decided they had a greater enemy.

And that greater enemy was Jesus, the Son of God.

So, they decide to do what humans do when they have a common enemy . . .

Matthew 22:34 NIV - Anglicised

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together.

And a real quick point about this getting together to come against Jesus, or in effect against God.

This is not something that is at all odd.

We see this play out every single day.

There are groups here and groups there, that figure out on their own they have no real “voice,” but when they unite, they become loud.

And when they get loud, they tend to protest.

And even though they are generally a minority of people, they are a loud and vocal minority.

And the general public will often come to the conclusion that just because they are loud and passionate about what they believed, then it must be right.

Well, the truth is, just because we are loud and passionate about things doesn’t mean we are always right.

For instance, I love bacon.

I think bacon is good on everything.

So good, I think we should have bacon at every meal!

And I am passionate about it and loud about it.

Does that stop me from having a heart attack or stroke from eating too much bacon?

Nope, it doesn’t change a thing.

Facts are fact and truth is truth, regardless of our opinions about it.

God has set His Word and determined His will.

God has said what is right and wrong, and those things really are not up for debate.

It is what it is and regardless of our opinions we cannot change facts.

We can only lead innocent people astray who follow us down our path of destruction.

And unfortunately that is what is going to happen to the people who follow this Pharisees and Sadducees who got together, to plot against Jesus.

And here is what they came up with, a quiz for Jesus . . .

Matthew 22:35–36 NIV - Anglicised

35 One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Aha! They have Jesus now!

No one can answer this question correctly because it would mean putting one of God’s commands above another.

It would mean that God said some of the commands were more important than others.

And this expert in the law is talking about the 10 Commandments.

Those basic tenants of Jewish Faith.

Those things we all hold dear as a direct communication from God as to how we are to live.

And to say one of them is more important than another is blasphemy!

And the reason why, is that each of these things are commandments.

And Commandments are very special, they are different.

Commandments are things that God tells us we have to do if we want to be found pleasing to Him.

These are not things that are “good ideas” or something we should “think about.”

These are things that must be obeyed if we want to inherit eternal life.

Which by the way is the premise of why Jesus came in the first place.

We cannot follow even the 10 commandments on our own.

We inevitably will mess up and need someone to pay the penalty for us.

And the Jews couldn’t live up to them either.

That is why they had all the sacrifices we’ve been looking at in Sunday School.

So, he is asking Jesus about the Commandments, thinking he has Jesus in a no win situation.

Love God With All Your Being (vs 37-38)

But, he apparently doesn’t know that he is talking to the author of the commandments.

The one who wrote them in the first place.

So, Jesus responds to him, in two parts. The first part . . . .

Matthew 22:37–38 NIV - Anglicised

37 Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’38 This is the first and greatest commandment.

Which is almost like do not put any gods before Me, but it is slightly different.

Jesus tells him the first and greatest of all commandments is to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

It is not to “serve God with all your heart, soul, and mind.”

It is not to “obey God with all your heart, soul, and mind.”

No, it goes much, much deeper than that.

We are to love God with all our heart, soul, and mind.

Because if we love God completely, then we will obey God and we will serve God.

Those things are meant to flow from love.

Because God is not interested in robots who serve and obey out of fear or obligation.

God wants a people who love him and desire a relationship with Him and want to serve him and obey him as a response of that relationship.

And the Jews, like many people today were unfortunately mixed up in their ideas around this.

They thought everything was a checkbox on a list that had to be followed to the “letter of the law” and forgot about just loving God.

They forgot that God cared for them and protected them because God loves them and not because God wants a bunch of little robots running around.

And the same thing is true for us.

And we have to really ask ourselves, why do I obey God? Why do I serve God?

Is it because I’m afraid?

Is it because I’m obligated?

Or, is it because I love God?

And if it is anything other than because we love God, then we need to work some things out with God on God’s altar.

But that’s not the only part of it.

Remember, there are two parts here.

Love Your Neighbor (vs 39-40)

So, Jesus moves on to the the second part . . .

Matthew 22:39 NIV - Anglicised

39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’

Which in reality is the manifestation of the first Commandment.

When we love God with all our being, then we will demonstrate that love by actually taking on God’s character of love, which will in turn cause us to naturally love our neighbor as ourselves.

That is where entire sanctification, the Fruit of the Spirit comes into play.

When God saves us and fills us, our heart is changed to love God and then we love others.

And people are always asking, “how do I know...”

How do I know if I am saved?

How do I know if I am sanctified?

Well, how do you treat others?

And I’m not talking about having a bad day or having someone who is hard to deal with and you have a hard time.

I am talking about, how do you feel about people in general?

Do yo have a generous heart?

Do you care when bad things happen?

Do you want to see people do well?

Do you want to help others?

Are you sad when you see bad stuff going on in our world?

What is your attitude about humanity in general?

That’s really what we are talking about here.

And to answer their question once and for all Jesus adds this to the two commandments . . . .

Matthew 22:40 NIV - Anglicised

40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Matthew 22:

And the reason why, is because if you fulfill these two, then you will naturally fulfill the 10 that God gave to Moses.

They all hinge on love.

Every single one of them.

Altar Call

So, this morning, the question is, what is in your heart?

Do you love God with all your being?

Do you love your neighbor as yourself?

Do you obey and serve God out of love—something else?

Those are the questions we need to ask ourselves this morning.

And if you need help finding the answers, you can have that today, on this altar.

Will you come this morning?

The Spirit is speaking, how will you respond?

Today is the day and right now is the time.

Come quickly and don’t delay.