“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Matthew 22:36
- THE GREAT COMMANDMENT
We have spoken about the new commandment; now lets talk about the great commandment. The question was actually posed by a foe. The Pharisee tried to tempt Jesus into an answer that would cause the other commandments (of Exodus 20) to be disregarded. The foe wanted to cause outrage, or at least disruption amongst Jesus' students. What is the most important commandment? Well, Jesus chose . . .
"Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." Matthew 22:37-39
And He chose that commandment above all else not merely because God deserves our praise but because . . .
"On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." Matthew 22:40
Jesus chose the commandment that encompassed all of the other commandments. The foe, and maybe even Jesus' students, did not realize there even was a commandment that encompassed all of the others. The great commandment encompasses all of the other commandments because to truly love God is to love His character. The 10 commandments uphold His character. God does not lie, cheat, steal, etc. We cannot do those things and love Him. It would not be love; when you love someone, what is important to them becomes important to you; because if you disregard what is important to them, you hurt them. You do not hurt the ones you love with all your heart. Therefore, if you love God properly, there's little-to-no chance of breaking the other commandments.
- THE COMMANDMENT IS LOVE
We are quite fortunate (understatement of the eternity) that God values our love. So many others, and aspects of life require payment, or some transaction, in order to receive much less than what God gives us for free. God's value of our love causes us to be blessed for another reason: it's the only thing we can give Him. He created everything; everything belongs to Him.
It's like when you are a child and it's your parent's birthday. You do not have money or a vehicle, or even any realistic idea of what they would want even if you could get it. So you give them a handmade coupon book. Value: nil. Unless they value your love, which is all a handmade coupon book is: a way to say 'I love you; I will donate my time and effort to do the things I have noticed you enjoy done so that you will see that.'
In Hosea 6:6 God, in a state of weariness, tried to explain that He does not want burnt sacrifices, offerings. He does not want gifts, and not simply because it's unnecessary, not merely because they already belong to Him, but because what He actually considers a gift is our mercy. Our compassionate heart toward Him and others.
Following the great commandment is to make a handmade coupon book for God. It is to say 'I love you; I will donate my time and effort to do the things I have noticed you enjoy done so that you will see that.' Moreover, it means: 'I love you; I will donate my time and effort to ensure that I do not do the things I have noticed you do not enjoy... so that you will see that.'
- SEEK FIRST THE KINGDOM OF GOD
How do we stay the course of love for God? How do we follow the 10 commandments when the circumstances of life tempt us to break away from them? We follow Jesus' advice:
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature? And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed? (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof. Matthew 6:25-34
Jesus told us several important things there, primarily: we do not need to worry, and we do not need to take matters into our own hands. Well. If we do not have to take matters into our own hands, because God's hands are willing and more capable, then why would we ever need to break a commandment. We do not have to stoop to our base behavior to get what we need; what is meant for us, what we need, will be given to us by God.
We do not have to covet things or people. We do not have to cheat to escape bad relationships. We do not have to steal for food or material we do not have. We do not have to lie to accomplish or escape certain circumstances. We do no have to dishonor our parents, because God will help us heal or leave bad parental relationships. We do not have to murder in vengeance (Romans 12:19).
And so again: How do we follow the 10 commandments when the circumstances of life tempt us to break away from them? We follow Matthew 6:33. We follow/obey the great commandment...that is love God, and know that as we do so, God takes care of everything else!
Scripture: Matthew 22:35-40; Exodus 20, Matthew 6, Romans 12, Hosea 6