My shower curtain has Bible scriptures, pretty little birds and words like FAITH, TRUST, LOVE written on it.
This morning as I glanced at it, one of the scriptures caught my eye. Mark 12:30-31.
“…love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ …And…love your neighbor as yourself.’…” NKJV
Jesus went on to say, “ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
That is a strong statement.
None? No other? That’s it!? Love?
Too easy. Actually, not easy at all.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” Matthew 5:43-44 NKJV
Ummmm. I don’t know about you, but that is next to impossible for me.
Love the people that do not want good for me and do not think kindly of me?
Bless those who curse me?
Do good to those who hate me?
Pray for those who spitefully use me and bully me?
Jesus went on to ask in verses 46 and 47, “For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?...and if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others?”
I could not begin to recount the number of times I have failed in this area of my life. I can count 3 just in the past couple of weeks.
I want to be that person that never gets ruffled. I want to be that woman that is always loving, gentle, and kind, to everyone, regardless of how they look at me or talk to me or treat me. That is the person I want to be! Sadly, I am not that person, not all the time anyway.
Mark chapter 12 contains the parable of the tenants, which condemns Temple officials and predicts an end to the Jewish nation as God’s chosen people.
“Jesus spends this entire chapter explaining that the Jewish religious and civil leaders are not nearly as wise or honorable as they claim to be. Their lack of understanding about what God values and intends for the world leads them to reject the truth they claim to teach. They turn obedience to God into a method for accruing honor from people.” (Source: biblerefdotcom)
The parable in Mark chapter 12 describes a man who planted a vineyard and then leased it to tenants. Those renters mistreated and killed his servants and his son.
Then we get down to verse 28.
One of the scribes that had come, heard Jesus speaking and reasoning with the other scribes and Pharisees. The Bible says he perceived that Jesus had answered them well. And now he had a question.
In the 1st century, scribes and Pharisees were two largely distinct groups, though presumably some scribes were Pharisees. Scribes had knowledge of the law and could draft legal documents (contracts for marriage, divorce, loans, inheritance, mortgages, the sale of land, and the like). Every village had at least one scribe. Pharisees were members of a party that believed in resurrection and in following legal traditions that were ascribed not to the Bible but to “the traditions of the fathers.” Like the scribes, they were also well-known legal experts: hence the partial overlap of membership of the two groups. It appears from subsequent rabbinic traditions, however, that most Pharisees were small landowners and traders, not professional scribes. – Britannica
Back to the question…“Which is the first commandment of all?”
The word ‘first’ in this instance would be better read: foremost. In other words, most important. What is the primary commandment?
“Jesus answered him, “The first (or foremost) of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”
Here was a man, we only know him as a scribe, and what he heard from Jesus rang true. I wonder if he was successful in this area of his life.
“So the scribe said to Him, “Well said, Teacher. You have spoken the truth, for there is one God, and there is no other but He. And to love Him with all the heart, with all the understanding, with all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself, is more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
“Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
This is such a beautiful witness to an exchange between these two men. The story ends with these words: “But after that no one dared question Him.”
Now I have a question.
Is it truly possible for us to love unlovable people? Think about that for just a second. Is it? I don’t believe so. No. Not on our own. We cannot. It is impossible. However, it is possible if we have heavenly help.
“Loving people—no matter how badly they act, no matter how rotten their attitude—is something you can do. And you do it by faith. You do it in the same way that you grow anything that comes by faith: You plant the seeds, water them and let God give the increase of love…
“Honestly, you can’t truly love anyone—lovable or unlovable—without the Spirit of God developing love in you. All you can do is realize how much God loves you and make the decision to love others.
“If we operate day in and day out in faith that works by our well-developed love, we look forward to every encounter with not just difficult people, but with everyone. We can hardly wait to hear what the Lord has to tell us about them and see what He shows us. And, just like Jesus, we respond to them by saying what our Father says and doing what He shows us.
“If we continue in faith and love, God will deal with them, just like He has dealt with us all. God gets all the glory as we show forth His marvelous acts of love.” (Source: kcmdotorg)
by Jeanette Stark – Tuesday, May 23, 2023
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