True Love

THIS WEEK’S GOSPEL: MATTHEW 22:34-46 (MESSAGE)

When the Pharisees heard how he had bested the Sadducees, they gathered their forces for an assault. One of their religion scholars spoke for them; posing a question they hoped would show him up: "Teacher, which command in God's Law is the most important?" Jesus said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets hangs from them."

As the Pharisees were regrouping, Jesus caught them off balance with his own test question: "What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?" They said, "David's son." Jesus replied, "Well, if the Christ is David's son, how do you explain that David, under inspiration, named Christ his 'Master'?  God said to my Master, "Sit here at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool." "Now if David calls him 'Master,' how can he at the same time be his son?" That stumped them, literalists that they were. Unwilling to risk losing face again in one of these public verbal exchanges, they quit asking questions for good.

Which command in God’s Law is the most important?  Which one do we live out and hang on to?  Of God’s Law, which is our guiding and governing principle?  Is it not hurting others or killing their spirits with our words and our actions?  Is it not being jealous of our neighbors’ houses, cars or belongings?  Is it not working too hard on the day reserved for rest and recreation?  Is it loving everyone even if we don’t really know, like or agree with them?

Of all the commandments, love is the most basic and the most difficult to truly integrate into our lives. We say we love so many things … that shirt, those cookies, that city, those statements, that person who is supposed to love us back (like our children, partners or spouses).  But do we truly love ourselves with our imperfections, flaws and all?  When we know how to love ourselves, then we understand how boundless and unconditional our love for our neighbors is called to be.  Of course, when we love ourselves and love our neighbors, we are truly loving God who is our loving and gracious Creator and who loves all of us without reservation, without limit.

The greatest, simplest and most difficult of all the commandments really is love.

Join us this Sunday, October 23 at 10:00a.m. in Christ Church when we will delve into the command to love and see what true love looks and feels like in today’s world. By the way, the children will be singing in worship and I know you want to support them with your presences and your love!  See you in Church.