THE LOVE OF GOD AND OF THE NEIGHBOR

Mark 12:28-34

               The gospel today is a very unusual inter-change between a scribe and Jesus where both come out with a common understanding of the tow great commendments. Having silenced the Pharisees, Herodians, and Sadducees, Jesus was approached by a scribe who asked which is the first commandment of the law. Jesus replied by offering two great commandments with which the scribe agreed.

               Though part of the Law, these "Two Great Commandments" Jesus gave are very important to Christians. I guess Jesus gave them for two reasons. First they brilliantly sum up the entire law because every single precept is an expression of these two commandments. Read the Ten Commandments and you’ll see that the first three are about loving God and the other seven are about loving your neighbor. If you read every line of the Bible, you would be able to see these two commandments throughout the Bible.

But the other reason is that these two root commandments are precisely the ones the Pharisees keep breaking. The observance of the law for the Pharisees was not an act of divine worship but rather of self-promotion. Their observance of the law, instead of leading them to love the neighbor, it leads them to scorn the neighbor who fails to live up to their standards.

Taking Jesus’ response, he did not say just to love. He said we must love the Lord with our WHOLE heart and soul and with ALL our mind and strength. And love your neighbor as yourself. Jesus wants to stress the theme of Love, showing the two aspects of it as the two sides of the same coin. Jesus put these two commandments together in order to demonstrate that the two are inseparable. He wanted to emphasize that love for God is the source of love for the neighbor, and also that the love for the neighbor demonstrates one's love for God. Thus in his answer, Jesus insists that love for God and love for the neighbor go together, and that they form one commandment.

The important thing to know is that loving ourselves is the measure for loving others, and loving the neighbor demonstrates our love to God. If we do not love ourselves, then we cannot love others and consequently we cannot love God. In saying that "You shall love your neighbor as yourself," Jesus intended us to learn that from the love for ourselves, we understand the need for others. That is, when you feel hungry, you recognize that other people are hungry. When you need to cloth yourself, you understand that others also need clothes. When you have a need, know that others too have needs. If you feel hurt when treated badly, you understand that others as well feel the same when you treat them badly. If you have shelter and live in a warm house or apartment, you know that others also have no shelter and that they need one. We need to realize this, and then do something about it. So, brothers and sisters, if we claim to love God we must love your neighbor. Otherwise, we are liars, and we do not love God.

We who bear the name Christians, the followers of Jesus, are challenged to follow his example - to offer practical help to those in need as our expression of our love for them and for God as well. Where necessary we also need to be ready to loose life in order to save the life of others. This is what our faith in Christ requires. If we do not practice our faith, then our faith is dead. May God help us to be more practical in expressing our faith.