28 One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”29 Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. 30 And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’[g] 31 The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[h] No other commandment is greater than these.”
32 The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. 33 And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.”
34 Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.
Before this passage, the teachers of religious law had been listening to Jesus answer questions, first about giving taxes to Caesar, and then, about marriage in heaven. Following these two discussions, one teacher, perhaps frustrated or curious or simply eager to hear the answer, wonders what the most important rule is. Each of the previous discussions revolved around rules--rules about money, rules about marriage... and the traditions surrounding those rules. And I can relate to this teacher, who finally wonders, "But what really matters? What is the most important thing I need to do, always?"
And the answer is perhaps one of my favorite moments in all of Scripture. When asked, "Which is the most important commandment," Jesus replies, first by quoting the Old Testament law in Deuteronomy 6:4-5, affirming the value of the old Scriptures. (Deut 6:4-5 reads, "Listen, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord alone.And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength.") But not only that, Jesus adds the second commandment, which he says is equally important, by quoting Leviticus 19:18 ( “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against a fellow Israelite, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.")
The commandments Jesus cites are Old Testament law, highly venerated and sacredly followed by the teacher questioning him; the beauty of it is that Jesus sifts through entire books of laws and traditions to find these two as the most important: Love God. Love others.
I often call myself a Christ-follower rather than a Christian, simply because Christian has such twisted connotations. And as a person seeking to follow the teachings of Jesus for the betterment of self and world, this passage is of infinite importance. In a sense, we get the answer straight from God about the most important things for us to do. Love God with all of yourself. Love others as much or more than yourself.
I could write an entire essay on how easily shafted these two (ultimate) commands are by the church or by people in general, but especially the church. I'll save that one for later.
For this time, I am more interested in the short dialogue between Jesus and the teacher AFTER Jesus announces these two as the most important commandment.
The teacher says this:
32 The teacher of religious law replied, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth by saying that there is only one God and no other. 33 And I know it is important to love him with all my heart and all my understanding and all my strength, and to love my neighbor as myself. This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law.”
Basically, he praises Jesus on his answer, and affirms his understanding of it. (well said... You have spoken truth... I know it is important..) and then he closes by saying "I know this is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law."
What an answer! This man, in front of a crowd, claims that the two simple, invaluable commandments (Love God. Love others.) are more important than thousands of years of tradition, than hundreds of pages worth of holy law, and more shockingly, than the previous methods for atonement. In the Old Testament times, burnt offerings and sacrifices were required for the forgiveness of sin. But this teachers, in his attempt to summarize what Jesus has already claimed, says that loving God and loving others are more important commandments than all of the previous laws about purity, about atonement, about diet, everything!
What an outrageous claim to make in front of a crowd of other Jewish scholars! I imagine this moment as one of great danger for this teacher, for what he was saying could have been considered heresy by his peers. But what an amazing claim, too! That loving God and loving others are more important than the other ways previously used to atone for sin. Love over law. Amazing. Later, Jesus's death would fulfill the scriptures and tear the veil, as the perfect holy sacrifice, rendering unnecessary previous traditions for atoning for sin. But at this moment in the Biblical narrative, that hasn't happened yet. Still, the end of this conversation remains just as fascinating...
34 Realizing how much the man understood, Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” And after that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.
After the man's summation of Jesus's answer, Jesus "realizes how much the man understood" and affirms his outrageous answer, with an equally outrageous affirmation. "You are not far from the Kingdom of God."
I love these words of Jesus. The teacher in the passage has made an answer that many of his peers would have deemed heretical, but the answer affirms the importance of loving God and loving others over following tradition and law. In a moment where the entire crowd would have been holding their breath, wondering how Jesus would respond, Jesus says, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God."
This fascinates me! What did Jesus mean? Did he mean that the teacher's words were so dangerous that he was close to death, and therefore, heaven, and that's why no one dared to ask Jesus anymore questions because of He was warning him about his proximity to death? Possibly, but I think not.
Instead, I think these words are much more optimistic. Jesus says to the teacher, you are getting close, you are almost there... what you have just said is very close to the Kingdom. If that's the case, then the Kingdom of God, as Jesus is hinting at, elevates love over rules, love over tradition, love over everything.
Even still, the story isn't quite over. After Jesus says, "You are not far from the Kingdom of God," the passage ends, saying that after Jesus says these words, "No one dared to ask him any more questions."
Why? Was it so dangerous to elevate love over rules, over tradition? Or was the crowd so stunned by the Jesus's rhetoric, that they dared not try to trick him like they had with their previous questions about taxes and marriage?
Were they afraid? Afraid to be associated with the conversation in first place?
Or was this ideology of love over everything so hard to swallow that no one dared to ask anything else so they wouldn't have to hear anymore? Were they shocked that everything they had believed and followed for thousands of years could be put off to the side for "Love God. Love others."?
Even better question: do we still dare ask no more questions today because the ideology of love over everything is still so frightening?
These are things I wonder.
-H
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