Jesus says . . . It's about more than just 'Love'

Yesterday we looked at the story of the teacher of religious law's encounter with Jesus and, as might be expected, there was much in this account to instruct us in the way we should live.

The teacher asks the simple question, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

The words Jesus uses to answer will be familiar with those who encounter it at the beginning of the Eucharist in the 'summary of the law':

"Our Lord Jesus Christ said: The first commandment is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is the only Lord. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbour as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."

And you know it is so very easy to assume that we can merely tell those around us that 'All we need to do is love God and our neighbour' but, as is often the case, there is much more below the surface - more than meets the eye! So let me try to explain where I am coming from and what I am thinking:

The first thing Jesus is speaking of is called the 'Shema', a word that encompasses many words for it refers to Deut 6: 4 - 9, and loving the Lord (our God) will all our heart, soul, mind and strength requires more than mere love - it requires action too. Just like god's love which was more than words but includes the action that is the cross, it requires commitment, application and selflesness!

The word itself 'Shema' means 'hear', the first word of the passage. 'Hear O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord is one.' These words are said by many Jewish believers every day as part of their religious observance. This passage is the reason that some don 'Tefillin' (the little boxes containing four elements of the Torah), placing them on left arm and forehead and put little boxes (mezuzahs, which actually means 'doorpost') like them on their doorposts. But it requires more than just that; for Jesus tells his questioner something so very deep; deeper than just 'love'. He tells the man that he needs to keep the Shema (Deut 6: 4 -9) and to love his neighbour (Lev 19:18) and to do this he also needs to:

i. Love the Lord your God with all your heartand with all your soul and with all your strength.
ii. keep the commandments that follow on your hearts:

1. Impress them on your children,
2. Talk about them when you sit at home,
3. Talk about the when you walk along the road,
4. Talk about them when you lie down, and
5. When you get up.
6. Tie them as symbols on your hands, and 
7. Bind them on your foreheads.
8. Write them on the doorframes of your houses, and
9. On your gates.

And then he is also required to:

iii. Not seek revenge,
iv. Not bear a grudge, and
v. Love your neighbour as yourself.

As we can see, there is more than 'love God and your neighbour' (which is what I hear preached all too often, but there are fourteen discrete elements implicit in the words Jesus uses in answer to the teacher of religious law.

I meet so many people who love the Lord their God with all that they choose to love Him with (i.e. the time that I choose to give at the time I choose to give it.) but their intentions may be good and yet hearts and minds are often a fair bit distant from them.

We struggle to keep any commandments (and probably don't even know of those contained in the shema - so they have no chance!).

Perhaps if we impressed them on our children and spoke about God when we walked, went to bed, got up and all the time we'd be seeing more children remain with a faith than we do. Instead we encourage them to play rugger on a Sunday and go to events that are out of sync' with what we believe (after all, we don't want to appear to be killjoys now do we?) and live lives that demonstrate something different to that which we believe. What chance do our children have?

I'll let you off the boxes of Scripture on body and home (do you know where your Bible is right now?) but when did you last read your Bible or pray and when did the kids (or anyone else) see you doing it?

And then we get to 'loving our neighbour'. How do we do with bearing grudges or not seeking revenge. Take a look at the media and Jimmy Savile and the so many other people where 'making them pay' - even when they're dead - is all part of our social character!

We love ourselves, often to the point of spoiling ourselves rotten - and yet how do we deal with the needs of others in our own families, let alone those around us who are friends or perhaps neighbours.

I would love to think that the next time you read the 'summary of the law' or think about 'loving your neighbour' that you have read this and it has made a difference.

I really would ;-)

pax