Love: The Greatest Commandment
Love: The Greatest Commandment When he was asked, "Which is the greatest of the commandments?" the Master said, "Love the Lord your God with all your soul and with all your strength." (Matt 22:36-38)
He said that no commandment is greater than this, and he said so with good reason. For this is a command about our behavior toward the first and the greatest—God himself. He is our Father. He is the one who has brought all things into being, and everything exists through him. Everything that is saved returns to him. He has loved us beforehand, and we receive our existence through him. Therefore, it is irreverent for us to regard anything else as being older or more excellent than him.
We are required to deliver only this small tribute of gratitude [our love] for the great benefits God gives us. In fact, cannot imagine any other way to repey God, who needs nothing and is perfect. Yet we gain immortality by the very fact of our loving the Father to the fullest extent of our might and power. Because the more we love God, the more we enter within God.
The second commandment he mentioned, which is no less important, is to "Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matt.
22:39). Please note, that you are to love God above yourself.
So someone asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?" (Luke 10:29) He did not answer the way the Jews would have. They would
Page 36 The One Who Knows God have said their neighbors were their blood relatives. Or their fellow citizens, or the proselytes. Or perhaps those who had been circumcised in the same way, or the people who followed their Law.
Instead, the Master talked about a man on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho. Robbers stabbed the man and left him half dead on the road. A priest passed him by, and a Levite merely gave him a sideways glance. Only the maligned, outcast Samaritan had pity on him. Rather than casually passing by like the others, the Samaritan provided what the man in danger needed—oil, bandages, a beast of burden, and money for the innkeeper (part given in advance, and part promised).
"Which of them," Jesus asked, "was a neighbor to the man who suffered?" His listener answered, "The one who showed mercy to him." The Master replied, "So you should go and do the same thing," since love blossoms into benevolence.
(Luke 10:36,37) So, in both commandments, Jesus focused on love. But he distinguished their order. He assigned the foremost part of our love to God and the second part to our neighbor. Who is the Samaritan who has shown love for us other than the Savior himself? Who has pitied us more than he has? The rulers of darkness had all but put us to death with wounds, fears, lusts, passions, pains, deceits, and pleasures. Jesus is the only physician for these wounds. He cuts out our fleshly desires thoroughly—by the root. The Law only cuts out the bare effects—the fruit that grows on our evil plant. But Jesus applies his ax to the roots of our wickedness.
Like the Samaritan,' Jesus is the one who has poured wine (the blood of David's vine) onto our wounded souls. He is the one who has brought the oil that flows from the Father's compassion and poured it freely on our wounds. He is the surgeon who has sewed us up with those threads of health and salvation that cannot come loose—love, faith and hope.
He is the one who has subjected angels, principalities and powers to serve us, as his reward to us. For they will also be delivered from the vanity of the world through the revelation of the glory of the sons of God.
Love: The Greatest Commandment Page 37 Therefore, we are to love Jesus equally with God. And the one who loves Christ Jesus is the one who does his will and keeps his commandments. He said, "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord' will enter the kingdom of heaven—only he who does the will of my Father." (Matt. 7:21) And he said,
"Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord' when you don't do the things that I say?" (Luke 6:46) And "blessed are you who see and hear what neither righteous men nor prophets" [have seen or heard], if you do what I say. (Matt. 13:16,17)
So first is he who loves Christ. But next is he who loves and cares for those who have believed in Christ. For when you do something for a disciple, the Lord treats it as though you did it to him. He will say, ""Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you since the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger, The one who loves and you took me tml Was :
P naked, and you clothed me.
Christ Jesus is the I was sick, and you visited one who keeps his me. | was in prison, and you came to ie: —lheni tire commandments. righteous people will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? And when did we see you a stranger and take you in? Or naked and clothe you? Or when did we see you sick and visit you? Or in prison and come to you?' And the King will answer and say to them, 'I tell you truly, in the same way that you have done it to the least of these my brothers, you have done it to me.'" (Matt. 25:34-40)
On the other hand, to those who have not shown kindness in this way, [he will say], "I tell you truly, since you have not done it to the least of these my brothers, you have not done it to me." (Matt. 25:45) Similarly, in another place it is recorded that he said, "He who receives you, receives me.
And he who does not receive you, rejects me." (Matt. 10:40; Luke 10:16)
Page 38 The One Who Knows God Making Friends With Unrighteous Riches These are the people he calls his little children, his sons, and his friends. When he does so, he refers to their future greatness above. He says, "Do not despise one of these little ones, for their angels always behold the face of my Father in heaven." (Matt 18:10) In another place, he says, "Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom of heaven." (Luke 12:32) In the same way, he also says that the least person in the kingdom of heaven who is his disciple is greater than John, who was the greatest man born of women. (Matt. 11:11) And again he said,
"Anyone who receives a righteous man or a prophet will receive his reward, and anyone who gives a cup of cold water to a disciple in the name of a disciple will not lose his reward." (Matt. 10:42) This is the only reward that cannot be lost.
He also said, "Make friends with the wealth of unrighteousness, so that when you fail, they may receive you into eternal homes." (Luke 16:9) When he said this, he showed that by its nature, all property that a man possesses by his own power is not really his own. And from this unrighteousness [i. e. Rey we are alowed . a a righteous and savi ean eternal dwelling one the ies Notice that he has not told you to wait until someone asks or begs you to share your wealth. No. You yourself must look for those worthy disciples of the Savior whom you can aid. As the apostle has most excellently put it, "The Lord loves a cheerful giver." (2 Cor. 9:7) The cheerful giver delights in giving. He doesn't hold anything back. Instead, he sows so that he will reap.
He does it without murmuring, disputing, or showing regret.
This is giving that is pure. Even more blessed is what the Lord said in another place: "Give to everyone who asks you." (Luke
6:30) This shows how delighted God is when we give. And this saying is above all divinity: not waiting to be asked, but finding out for ourselves who deserve to receive kindness.
Love: The Greatest Commandment Page 39 What a rich reward God promises us for our generous giving: an eternal dwelling place. What an excellent trade!
What divine merchandise! We can purchase immortality with money. By giving up the perishing things of the world, we can receive in exchange an eternal mansion in the heavens. Sail to this market, if you are wise, rich man! If need be, sail around the whole world. Do not spare whatever perils and toils it takes, so that you may purchase the heavenly kingdom while you're still here. Why do transparent stones and emeralds delight you so much? Why get so excited about a house that is only fuel for a fire, or a plaything of time, or the sport of an earthquake, or the plunder of a tyrant's fury?
Aspire to dwell in the heavens and reign with God! A mere man who is imitating God may give you a kingdom here on earth. But by receiving only a little here, God will make you a dweller there with Him through all ages. Ask that you may receive. Hurry! Strive! Fear .
. lest he disgraces you. For God It ts not the faith is not a ee to receive, of just one day. but you are commanded to give. The Lord did not simply say, "Give, or bring, or do But he who endures to the end good, or help." Rather, he says, Make a friend."
.A friend proves his friendship not simply by giving a single gift. Rather, he shows it by developing intimacy over a long period of time. For it is not the faith, love, hope, or endurance for just one day. But "he who endures fo the end will be saved."
(Matt. 10:22) will be saved.
How then does man give? For I will give not only to friends, but to the friends of friends. And who is it that is the friend of God? Don't you judge who is worthy or unworthy.
For it is possible that you will be mistaken in your opinion.
It is better to do good to the undeserving for the sake of the deserving than to fail to meet the needs of the good because you are guarding against those who are undeserving. By holding back and testing whether someone is worthy or not, you may neglect someone God loves. And the penalty for
Page 40 The One Who Knows God that is the punishment of eternal fire. (Matt. 25:41-46) But if you offer to help anyone who has need, you will certainly find someone who has power with God to save. As Jesus said,
"Don't judge, so that you will not be judged. With whatever measure you measure out, it will be measured back to you."
And again, "A good measure, pressed and shaken together and running over will be given to you." (Matt. 7:1,2; Luke
6:37,38) Open your compassion to all who are enrolled as the disciples of God. Don't look contemptuously at personal appearance. Don't be carelessly disposed to only a certain age group. If someone appears to be penniless, or ragged, or ugly, or feeble, don't let your soul fret about it and turn away from them. Our bodies are only a form cast around us. They are the occasion of our entrance into this world, and they allow us to enter into this common school. But inside of us dwells the hidden Father, and his Son, who died for us and rose with us.