Date: November 1, 2009
INTRODUCTION
In our fast-paced society, we often look for short cuts. One of the short cuts in learning has been the creation of Cliffs Notes. These handy yellow and black pamphlets offer a summary of various literary titles. Cliffs Notes was started by a Nebraska native named Cliff Hillegass in 1958. Hillegass and his wife, Catherine, started the business in their basement with sixteen William Shakespeare titles. CliffsNotes now exist on hundreds of works. Endorsers say the guides help readers understand complex works, while detractors say they let students avoid even reading them. I remember as a junior in High School many of us were trying to get our hands on the Cliffs Notes for "A Raisin in the Sun," in preparation for an essay test.
Whether we want to admit it or not, we like abbreviations, summaries, etc. They keep us from delving into the whole thing. Sometimes we think: "Just the highlights, please." But what does God want from us? What are the two most important actions that our faith can produce? Are these really a short cut from anything? Or are they so simple that they are profound?
In our passage today, Jesus is asked for a summary of the Old Testament scriptures. Is there a Cliffs Notes version of the Old Testament? If so, what would it be? And, what will we do with it? Can we boil the commandments down to one or two summary statements? If so, let us ask…
I. WHAT IS THE GREATEST COMMANDMENT?
Matthew 22:34 But when the Pharisees heard that He had put the Sadducees to silence, they gathered themselves together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, 36 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?" The setting is the temple in Jerusalem. After Jesus stumped the Sadducees, the Pharisees approach him in verse 34. Although some Pharisees had converted to Christ (i.e. Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimethea), the vast majority were antagonistic to the Lord's ministry. In Matthew's gospel, the term Pharisee is equated with hypocrisy, as we'll see especially in Matthew 23 and 24. The Pharisees were teachers of the law, and this one whom they sent was one of their experts. The teachers of the law drew distinctions between the lesser and the greater ones. Jesus is asked a commonly debated question: what is the great commandment?
Notice Jesus' answer in verse 37: "And He said to him, 'You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' 38 "This is the great and foremost commandment. 39 "The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' 40 "On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." Jesus answers by quoting Deuteronomy 6, part of what we know as the Shema. Verse four states: "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. Pious Jews would recite this passage on a daily basis. Verse 6 of that same passage teaches that they were to hold this commandment in their hearts, know it and continuously teach it at work or at leisure, in the morning, noon and night.
The love that the Bible speaks of is a self-giving and a self-sacrificing love. The Greek means to long for, desire, place first in one's affections. And we are to do so with our heart, soul and mind. These were interchanging, overlapping parts of a person's entire make up. God is to be the center of our lives. Our identity is found chiefly in Him. Our interests revolve around His plan for us.
What's unique is that Jesus sees these two commandments as inseparable. Concerning love for neighbor, Jesus quotes Leviticus 19:18 'You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD." Love for fellow man is extremely important, as is love for God. This, of course, lies in direct contrast to some of the world religions which take the stance that the infidel should be crushed or that a woman is a sub-par creature.
Then there are other systems of thought that teach that one must put himself above others. Love for God and neighbor lies is deep contrast to the selfishness that pervades our religious involvement today. In a "do it yourself" approach to God, we often gravitate to what works for us, banishing that which is inconvenient, or that which costs us something. In their 2005 book Soul Searching, Christian Smith and Melinda Denton extensively interviewed 267 teenagers from different parts of the country. There is a religion in America emerging that says, among other things, that "The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself;" and "God does not need to be particularly involved in one's life except when God is needed to resolve a problem."
So, how do we start living out the golden rule? What do we do about it? One application is to love those who are hard to love. Maybe it means to start by looking at them through the eyes of Christ. Is there someone in your life that is difficult to love? The boss? The coworker? The daughter/son? The mother/father? Or even sometimes the spouse. What if God wants you to start by forming a different attitude towards them?
In what sense do all the Law and prophets hang on these two commandments? They are the summary of the law. And, they go together. They are the most important, not because we say so, but because God says so. Hosea 6:6: "For I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings." Love for God and neighbor lays aside personal interest and pursues the worship of God and the well being of others. If love for God is so important, then we must also love His Christ. Our next question is…
II. WHO IS THE CHRIST?
Verse 41: "Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, "What do you think about the Christ, whose son is He?" They said to Him, "The son of David." 43 He said to them, "Then how does David in the Spirit call Him 'Lord,' saying, 44 'The Lord said to my LORD, "Sit at My right hand, Until I put Thine enemies beneath Thy feet "'? 45 "If David then calls Him 'Lord,' how is He his son?"
How this section relates to the two greatest commandments is important. If we are commanded to love God with everything we have and are, then that includes His self revelation in the person of Jesus. Jesus is leading this expert of the law to a divine revelation of Himself. Why did Jesus ask this question? It could be that the Pharisees had placed too much emphasis upon the human lineage of the Christ, while not enough attention was given to His divine nature. Stephen Short states: "…the implication is that the Messiah possessed not only a human nature, but a divine one too. Jesus raised this point, clearly, with the hope that His hearers might be induced to relate it to Himself."
Part of loving God is recognizing His Son for who He truly is. Jesus is both God and man. What we know as the Hypostatic Union, articulated at the Council of Chalcedon in 451 A.D., said that Jesus was one person with two natures inseparable: a divine and human. This is what is meant when we read: "The word became flesh and dwelt among us… (John 1:14). Jesus being God and man affords us comfort by knowing that we do not serve a God who is unrelated to us. But chose to clothe Himself in humanity and come and dwell with us. Gregory of Nazianzus wrote in A.D. 381:
" "He began His ministry by being hungry, yet He is the Bread of Life.
" Jesus ended His earthly ministry by being thirsty, yet He is the Living Water.
" Jesus was weary, yet He is our rest.
" Jesus paid tribute, yet He is the King.
" Jesus was accused of having a demon, yet He cast out demons.
" Jesus wept, yet He wipes away our tears.
" Jesus was sold for thirty pieces of silver, yet He redeemed the world.
" Jesus was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, yet He is the Good Shepherd.
" Jesus died, yet by His death He destroyed the power of death.
In Jesus, you have someone who knows you; someone who has experienced what you're going through; someone who is able to not just help you, but form you into the person you need to be.
CONCLUSION
It is nice to have the Cliffs Notes version; but when it comes to our faith, we must submit to His whole counsel, or we end up missing the story. Taking a short cut to meet our preconceived needs is not worship or love. We need God in all His fullness. Verse 46: "And no one was able to answer Him a word, nor did anyone dare from that day on to ask Him another question." Why is this? Because His teaching dumbfounded the wisest of the wise. Long ago, there ruled in Persia a wise and good king. He loved his people. He wanted to know how they lived. He wanted to know about their hardships. Often he dressed in the clothes of a working man or a beggar, and went to the homes of the poor. No one whom he visited thought that he was their ruler. One time he visited a very poor man who lived in a cellar. He ate the coarse food the poor man ate. He spoke cheerful, kind words to him. Then he left. Later he visited the poor man again and disclosed his identity by saying, "I am your king!" The king thought the man would surely ask for some gift or favor, but he didn't. Instead he said, "You left your palace and your glory to visit me in this dark, dreary place. You ate the course food I ate. You brought gladness to my heart! To others you have given your rich gifts. To me you have given yourself!" Friends, that is exactly what Christ did when He came to this earth- He gave of Himself. Should we not give Him ourselves!? Let us pray.
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