Friday, November 13, 2009

Greatest Command: HEAR


In my blog yesterday I set up the question the Pharisees asked Jesus to try to trap Him which was, “Which is the greatest commandment in the Mosaic Law?” Before you go on and read about Jesus’ response to this question, it would do you good to go back and read yesterday’s posting if you haven’t already.

Jesus answered that the greatest commandment was to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. This is a quote from what is called the Shema which included Deuteronomy 6:4-9; 11:13-21; and Numbers 15:37-41. Shema is Hebrew for “hear” which is the first word of Deuteronomy 6:4 which was and still is recited by faithful Jews twice a day. The Deuteronomy passages, along with Exodus 13:1-16, were copied on small pieces of parchment and placed in phylacteries that were worn on the foreheads and the left arms of Jewish men (see Deuteronomy 6:8). The Deuteronomy passages were also placed in mezuzahs that Jews attached to their doorposts (see Deuteronomy 6:9).

The word “love” in Deuteronomy 6:5 speaks of an act of the mind and speals of having a determined care for someone or something. It is the Hebrew equivalent for the New Testament word, “agape” which speaks of a self-sacrificial love. I don’t think that the concept of the heart, soul, and mind express separate definitions but rather the idea of comprehensiveness. To the ancient Hebrews, heart referred to the core of one’s personal being; the soul is closer to what we call emotion; and the mind is the idea of the intellect or mental strength. In other words, we are to love God with every part of our being.

But them Jesus goes one better. He doesn’t just clearly state the greatest commandment in the Mosaic Law, He also gives the runner up which is to love your neighbor as yourself (v39), a direct quote from Leviticus 19:18. This is the same word for love as in the first commandment and it is to be measured by the love we have for ourselves.

Jesus then says that on these commandments depend the whole Law and Prophets (v40). The basic requirements of both Judaism and Christianity are summed up in these two commands. Everything else in the Old Testament that God required of His people hung on these two commands. In the same way, every New Testament requirement of believers is based on these as well (Romans 13:10).

That’s where the account in Matthew ends. But Mark gives us the ending. He describes the reaction of the Scribe in Mark 12:32-33. The Lawyer acknowledges the righteous answer of Jesus then adds that these two commandments are better than all offerings and sacrifices as seen in 1 Samuel 15:22. Jesus sees something in this Scribe that he had not seen in the other religious leaders who had been questioning him…an intellectual knowledge of Scripture (see His response to the Sadducees in Matthew 22:29). He then tells the lawyer that he was not far from the kingdom showing that intellectual knowledge of Scripture can lead us to salvation, but is not in itself salvation. And how about this? After this incident, no one else attempted to trap Jesus through controversial questions.

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