The Great Commandment

A day of questions. It was Jesus' last week before the cross, and He was teaching in the temple in Jerusalem. One group after another came to Him with questions. The Pharisees and the Herodians came “to catch Him in His words” (Mark 12:13), and they asked about paying taxes to Caesar. Then some Sadducees, who did not believe that the dead will rise, asked a question about the resurrection (12:18). A scribe. A scribe was a teacher of the law. Scribes copied God's law by hand, studied it closely and taught it to others. This scribe had heard them debating. The Bible says he came “perceiving that He had answered them well” (12:28). His question. He asked, “Which is the first commandment of all?” The Law of Moses has many commands about worship, food, families, money and how to treat people. He wanted to know which one mattered most. First means greatest. He was not asking which command came first on a list. He was asking which command was the most important of all. A clear answer. Jesus did not dodge the question or answer with a riddle. He answered with God's own Word. What we learn. Some people asked Jesus questions to trap Him. This man listened first, and then he asked. You can bring your real questions to Jesus too. He answers through the Bible, and He is glad to teach anyone who truly wants to learn.

The setting (Mark 12:28). It is Jesus' last week in Jerusalem before the cross. In the temple courts He has faced one test after another. The chief priests, scribes and elders demanded to know by what authority He acted (Mark 11:27-28). The Pharisees and Herodians came “to catch Him in His words” with a question about taxes to Caesar (12:13-17). Then the Sadducees, “who say there is no resurrection,” tried to make the resurrection look foolish (12:18-23). A different kind of questioner. “Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him.” A scribe was an expert in the Law of Moses who copied it, studied it and taught it. This man listened before he spoke, and he could tell that Jesus' answers were good. Many commands. The Law of Moses holds hundreds of commands about worship, offerings, food, families and how to treat people. Jesus Himself spoke of the weightier matters of the law (Matthew 23:23), so the scribe's question was a real one. Entole. The word for commandment is entole (say: en-toh-LAY), an order given by someone with authority. “Which is the first commandment of all?” means, Which command stands above all the others? Answered from Scripture. Jesus never treated God's law as a puzzle to win. He answered from the Scriptures, because God's Word settles what God wants. For you. Questions about God are not a problem. What matters is why we ask. Some came to trap Jesus; this scribe asked and then listened. Bring your honest questions to Jesus, and come ready to do what He says.

Jesus was in the Temple during His last week before the cross. Many leaders came to Him with questions. Some of them wanted to trap Him. They asked about paying taxes to Caesar, the Roman ruler. Others asked about people rising from the dead. Jesus answered every question with God's truth. Then a teacher of the law came to Jesus. His job was to study God's law and teach it. He had heard Jesus give good answers. So he asked which command was the most important. Jesus gave him a clear answer from the Bible. You can bring your questions to Jesus too. He knows the answers, and He loves to teach us.

A teacher of God's law had a question. He asked Jesus which command was most important. We can bring our questions to Jesus too!

Jesus answered with Scripture. Jesus quoted words Moses gave to Israel long before (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one’” (Mark 12:29). Who God is comes first. Before Jesus said what to do, He said who God is. There is only one true God. He is not one god among many. He alone made everything, and He alone deserves our worship. Our God. He is “the Lord our God.” The one true God is not far away and uncaring. He chose a people to be His own, and He invites us to know Him. All of you. “And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength” (12:30). Your heart is the inside you, what you want and choose. Your soul is your life itself. Your mind is your thinking. Your strength is your energy and effort. Not just a part. The word “all” comes four times. God does not want a slice of your heart, a little of your thinking or the leftover energy at the end of the day. He wants all of you. Love, not just rules. The greatest command is not a rule about food, days or offerings. It is love. God wants a close relationship with you, not only right behavior. What we learn. Love for God grows as you get to know Him. Talk to Him in prayer, read His Word, sing to Him and obey Him with a glad heart. Ask Him to help you love Him with everything you are.

Shema. Jesus answered from Deuteronomy 6:4-5. The passage begins with the Hebrew word shema (say: sheh-MAH), hear. To hear, in the Bible's sense, is to listen and respond. One Lord (12:29). “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.” Israel lived among nations that worshiped many gods. God's people confessed that there is only one Lord, the Creator of all. The One quoting these words was God's own Son. Who He is, then what we do. The command to love rests on who God is. We are not told to love a distant idea, but “the Lord our God,” the God who rescued His people and made them His own. The whole person (12:30). “With all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” Deuteronomy 6:5 names heart, soul and strength; when Jesus quoted it, He also named the mind. The heart is the center of the person, where choices are made. The soul is the life itself. The mind is understanding and thought. Strength is the energy of the body and everything we are able to do. Not divided. These are not four parts to be measured out, one at a time. Together they say that no part of a person is left out. A love that holds back one area of life is not yet the love this command describes. More than rules. Out of every command in the law, Jesus named love as the first. Obeying God's other commands is meant to grow out of loving Him. For you. This command shows what you were made for: a love for God that fills your whole life. It also shows how often we fall short, which is why we need Jesus so much.

Jesus answered with words God gave Moses long ago. They begin, “Listen, people of Israel!” Then Jesus said, “The Lord our God, he is the only Lord.” There is only one true God. Then came the most important command. We must love God with all our heart. That means loving Him on the inside, not just with words. Our soul is our whole life, and it can love Him. When we think about God, we love Him with our mind. Our strength can serve Him when we help and work hard. God wants all of us, not just a part. He gave us everything, so we give Him everything.

Jesus said there is only one God. God wants us to love Him with all our heart. We can love God every day!

The second command. Jesus was asked for one command, but He gave two. “And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (12:31). These words come from Leviticus 19:18. Like it. The second command is like the first. Both are about love. When we truly love God, we begin to love the people He made. Your neighbor. A neighbor is not only the family next door. Your neighbor is anyone God puts in your path: a parent, a brother or sister, a classmate or someone very different from you. Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan to teach this (Luke 10:25-37). As yourself. You already know how to care for yourself. You feed yourself when you are hungry, and you want to be treated fairly and kindly. Jesus says to give that same care to others. Nothing greater. Jesus said, “There is no other commandment greater than these” (12:31). Matthew tells us Jesus also said, “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:40). Every other command God gave is a way of keeping these two. What we learn. You cannot love God and ignore the people around you. Look for one person this week who needs help or kindness, and show that person God's love.

A second command, unasked (12:31). The scribe asked for the first commandment, and Jesus gave the second as well: “And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” He quoted Leviticus 19:18, which ends, “I am the Lord.” Like it. The two commands belong together. Love for God is the root, and love for people is the fruit. No one can claim to love God while refusing love to the people made in His image: “So God created man in His own image” (Genesis 1:27). Neighbor. Jesus' story of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37) showed that a neighbor is anyone in need whom God puts in our path. As yourself. Jesus does not command us to love ourselves; He assumes we already care for ourselves. We feed, protect and defend ourselves without being told. The command turns that same care outward. Nothing greater. “There is no other commandment greater than these.” In Matthew's account Jesus adds, “On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:40). Paul says the same thing: “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (Galatians 5:14). A summary, not a shortcut. These two commands do not make the rest of God's law unimportant. They show its heart. Every command God gives is a way to love Him and to love others. For you. Think about the people closest to you: your family, your friends and the person no one sits with. Loving them as yourself is how love for God shows up on an ordinary day.

Jesus gave a second command too. He said, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” These words come from the book of Leviticus. Your neighbor is anyone God puts near you. That means your family, your friends and new kids too. You already take care of yourself. You eat when you are hungry. You want other people to be fair to you. Jesus wants us to care for others in that same way. He said no command is more important than these two. Loving God and loving people go together. When we love God, we start to love the people He made.

Jesus said to love your neighbor too. A neighbor is anyone near you. Be kind to the people around you!

The scribe agreed. “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He” (12:32). A teacher of the law called Jesus “Teacher.” He was willing to learn from Jesus. He understood. He said that loving God with all the heart, understanding, soul and strength, and loving one's neighbor as oneself, “is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices” (12:33). A burnt offering was an animal given to God and burned completely on the altar. God had commanded those offerings, but He always wanted His people's hearts most of all. Answered wisely. “Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God’” (12:34). Jesus spoke kindly and truthfully. Not far. God's kingdom is where God rules as King. The scribe was close. He saw what God wants most. But being close is not the same as being in. The King Himself was standing right in front of him. Who can do it? No one has ever loved God with all their heart every moment, or loved every neighbor as themselves. Only Jesus did. These commands show us how much we need Him. No more questions. “But after that no one dared question Him” (12:34). Jesus' answers were so wise that the tests stopped. What we learn. Knowing the right answers about God is good, but it is not enough. Jesus wants you all the way in. Come to Him, trust Him as your Savior, and follow Him as your King.

The scribe's reply (12:32). “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He.” He repeated Jesus' answer in words that echo Moses, who said there is no other God besides the Lord (Deuteronomy 4:35). More than sacrifices (12:33). He added that this love “is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” A whole burnt offering, holokautoma (say: hol-oh-KOW-toh-mah), was burned completely on the altar. Even the costliest offering was worth less than a heart that loved God. Long before, Samuel had told King Saul that obeying the Lord is better than sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22). Wisely. Jesus “saw that he answered wisely.” The Greek nounechos (say: noon-eh-KOHS) means with good sense, like someone who has thought a matter through. Not far (12:34). “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” The words are kind and honest together. The scribe saw the heart of the law. But seeing it is not the same as entering. The kingdom is entered by receiving the King, and the King was speaking to him. The law cannot carry anyone in. No one but Jesus has kept these two commands. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). The commands show the way of love, and they also show how far we are from it. That points us to the One who kept them for us. Silence (12:34). “But after that no one dared question Him.” After this answer, no one dared to test Jesus with another question. For you. A person can grow up near the things of God, know the right answers and still not belong to Jesus. Near is not in. Trust Him, and He brings you all the way into His kingdom.

The teacher of the law agreed with Jesus. He said, “That was a good answer, Teacher.” He said loving God and others matters more than sacrifices. A sacrifice was an animal that people gave to God. God gave those rules, but He always wanted people's hearts most. Jesus saw that the man answered wisely. Jesus said, “You are close to the kingdom of God.” The man was close, but he was not in yet. No one can keep these two commands perfectly. Only Jesus loved God and people perfectly. Jesus is the way into God's kingdom. We come in by trusting Him. After that, no one dared to ask Jesus more questions.

Jesus said, “You are close to the kingdom of God.” Being close is not the same as being in. Jesus is the way in!