“Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: ‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’

Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.“
Matthew 22:34-40

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DECEMBER 31, 2024

Every day I communicate instructions to my kids. “I need you to put your backpacks away, wash your hands, start setting the table. And don’t forget to do your homework. Can you hang up your coat and put your shoes in the closet?” However long my list may be, they generally nail only one or two items. The table might be set, but they can’t even recall anything I might have said about hands, backpacks, or shoes.

This drives me crazy, of course, but which of us is any different? It’s hard to keep several goals in mind simultaneously, or follow a number of commands at once. It can be easier to understand the big picture (get everything ready for dinner, and make sure you’re ready for tomorrow) and fill in the little pieces from there.

Loving God with all our hearts, souls, and minds is the greatest commandment, Jesus says, and it comes with a twin: love your neighbor as yourself. These two commands are the “big picture” that all the other laws are designed to fill out.

What does obeying God’s many commands—first given to the ancient Hebrews thousands of years ago—look like in modern America? That can be a hard nut to crack. Even reading through the law is difficult, much less understanding, applying and obeying them. Like my children, we’re likely to excel at a few and leave many untouched.

But Jesus offers us encouragement by tipping His hand, showing us the big picture and end goal of all these commands. Love God with everything you are, and extend that love to your neighbor as you do to yourself. This one thing is enough to keep us busy for a lifetime.

This week, take relief in knowing this command is not only the beginning of all we do, but the end as well. As we learn, each day of our lives, to love God and neighbor, we participate in the entire redemption story.

Questions for reflection and discussion:

  • What does loving God and loving your neighbor look like for you, practically, today?
  • Which pieces come easy to you?
  • Which are harder?

 

Church Reading Plan: Malachi 4; John 21