Jesus had just silenced the Sadducees, a Jewish sect that did not believe in the resurrection or the oral traditions of the Pharisees. They had come to him with a question to test him (Matt. 22:23-33). Hearing this, the Pharisees, a Jewish sect in opposition to the Sadducees, got together to test Jesus again. This time one of them, a lawyer, stood up and asked the question, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” (Matt. 22:36). In my mind, the camera pans out at this moment, and there are two men standing in a dusty western town. A tumbleweed rustles by as the two men stare intently at one another. Jesus, a clean shaven Clint Eastwood and the Pharisaical lawyer, some ugly actor. Jesus answers the question, and the camera zooms in on the surprise of the ugly man’s face as he holds his chest in disbelief. Jesus’ answer found its mark in the heart of the Pharisee.
What was Jesus’ answer on that fateful day, just days before He was to die for the sins of all mankind for all time? It was a combination of two passages. “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the sons of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself; I am the LORD” (Lev. 19:18). Also, “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deut. 6:4-5). We would commonly call this the, “heart, soul, mind, strength and your neighbor as yourself” passage (Mark 12:29-31). It has become a song and a series of motivational social media posts. What most people gloss over as pithy wisdom Jesus says, “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets” (Matt. 22:40). It must be important if the entirety of the Old Testament hangs on it.
John, the disciple whom the Lord loved, had this to say, “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:1-3). Loving God has at its heart obedience. True obedience demands that we love one another. “So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith” (Gal. 6:10). “See that no one repays another with evil for evil, but always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people” (1 Thess. 5:15). What was meant to be a test turns into a deeper application of an old passage—one that Jesus was present for when it came from the mind of God. When Jesus was being tested, I imagine that he smiled, just a little bit.