The Greatest Commandment
28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
29 "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."
32 "Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices."
34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
Hearing the debate, and noticing Jesus giving a good answer, one of the teachers of the law - meaning a scribe or someone who was knowledgeable of the law – approached Jesus with the question - what is the most important commandment? The foremost, the chief principle commandment Jesus states is this: the Lord our God is one, we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength then adding we are to love our neighbor as ourselves. Nothing is greater. Jesus is pulling from what the Jews consider to be one of the most important texts in the Old Testament – the “Shema”- found in Deuteronomy 6:4-9. Literally the Hebrew word “Shema” means to heed, listen and obey. The passage is beautiful and well worth our time to read it:
4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. Deut 6:4-9 (NIV)
God understands we are but dust and actually rather dull (sorry) – He is always comparing us to sheep (if you have ever done a study on sheep you will realize how stupid they are) – you can understand where I am coming from! God knows we need to be reminded of certain truths lest we forget. This is for our good – to prevent our downfall and the downfall of our families. We are to love Him and listen to Him! His heart and commands are for our good and His glory never one surpassing the other. God is asking for whole hearted love, which includes the seat of our desires, feelings, affections, passions, understanding and intellectual capacity. This love He is speaking of is a love rooted in the mind and the will of a subject and means to value, esteem, prize, treat as precious, be devoted to. God is not asking something of us that He has not already shown to us. He placed such a value on man – showed such estimation of him that though he deserved wrath and rejection, He sacrificed Christ for his salvation (Lexical Aids – AMG Greek-Hebrew Bible). Paul tells us in Romans: 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:6-8 (NIV)
Next, we are told to love our neighbor as ourselves. The word neighbor literally means anyone within close proximity – the parable of the Good Samaritan is a perfect example of this (Luke 10:37). Basically, it is treating someone as you would want them to treat you – showing mercy and kindness and love to those in our sphere even when undeserved. Again, this is how God treats us – undeserved mercy, unmerited favor. The Scribe says well done Teacher giving assent to Jesus being a recognized authority in the interpretation of Scripture and then proceeds to reiterate what Jesus had said adding that this was indeed better than offerings and sacrifices. This brings up two Old Testament citings that deal directly with that very issue: 22 But Samuel replied:
"Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.
23 For rebellion is like the sin of divination,
and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. 1 Sam 15:22-23 (NIV) 6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings. Hosea 6:6 (NIV)
Jesus concurs that the Scribe has responded rightly and that he is not far from the kingdom of God. Remembering Micah’s words of what God requires of us:6 With what shall I come before the LORD
and bow down before the exalted God?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousand rivers of oil?
Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the LORD require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:6-8 (NIV)