What’s In Your Heart?
READ MATTHEW 22:34-40
MEDITATION: The roots of the Great Commandment in the Old Testament are found in the Book of Deuteronomy. According to scripture, after Moses got all of the people of Israel to gather at the base of Mount Sinai and presented them with the Ten Commandments that God had given him, then he said,
“These then are the commandments, the statutes and decrees which the LORD, your God, has ordered that you be taught to observe in the land into which you are crossing for conquest, so that you and your son and your grandson may fear the LORD, your God, and keep, throughout the days of your lives, all his statutes and commandments which I enjoin on you, and thus have long life. Hear then, Israel, and be careful to observe them, that you may grow and prosper the more, in keeping with the promise of the LORD, the God of your fathers, to give you a land flowing with milk and honey. “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today. Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest. Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be as a pendant on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates” (Deuteronomy 6:1-9)
Jews refer to this as The Shema – or Shema Israel – because those are the first two words of the commandment: “Hear, O Israel …” It was – and is to this day – the most important prayer of the Jewish faith. It’s the centerpiece of every Jewish service. It’s taught to every Jewish child and recited twice a day by every devout man or woman. It serves as a ready defense in times of crisis. For example, it’s said that, during the Holocaust, as Jews were rounded up like cattle and driven into the gas chambers to be slaughtered, the dying words on the lips of many were the words of The Shema: “Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.”
In the text for today, Jesus himself used the Shema to deflect the attack of the Jewish leaders. And make no mistake about it – it was an attack. In the passage, the lawyer wasn’t asking for wise counsel, he was looking to entrap Jesus and convict him with his own words. He said, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” It was a land mine, waiting to explode.
Here’s the hidden agenda: The Jewish law contained six-hundred and thirteen commandments. In Jesus’ day, all were considered to be equally binding. The lawyer was trying to get Jesus to single out one over all the others and, by so doing, commit an act of heresy. They wanted Him to give a wrong answer in order to alienate Him from the crowds or in order to accuse Him of false teaching, of heresy.
The Pharisees wanted to tempt Him. They wanted Him to stumble. This is in spite of the fact that Jesus had just put to silence their arch rivals, the Sadducees. The Pharisees aren’t pleased by that at all. In fact, the Pharisees just want to undermine Him. His testimony. His witness meant nothing to them. He had just upheld the precious doctrine of the resurrection of the body from the dead, and they didn’t care. All they cared about was that the people would follow after Him and they didn’t want that to happen and so they seek to undermine Him.
This is an instance of pharisaical envy and malice. That’s a warning to us. When we see the truth upheld by someone who is not of our party, we should not despise them and envy them, and harbor malice like the Pharisees. That’s the heart of a Pharisee. To envy. To be malicious towards those who uphold the truth simply because they are not part of their party. And so again, we see that Jesus’ conduct and His claims and His teaching and His testimony has no immediate saving impact on these Pharisees. Jesus’ testimony is clear as day and they don’t get it. Their hearts are not changed. And there is a monumental message in that for us. Bear this in mind when you are praying for, and witnessing to, friends who are hardened about the gospel. God alone changes hearts.
What kind of heart do you have? Are you open-minded and accommodating of other people and their views? Or are you like the Pharisees, always so devious, looking for ways to entrap others; envious and self-serving; malicious and unfriendly towards those who do not belong to your group? Do you look for every opportunity to undermine other people and their views because you fear they may become more popular than yourself? Or are you genuinely interested in promoting the interests of others and helping them get better in their life journey?
ACTION: List the ways that you have not demonstrated God’s Love in your dealings with people since the beginning of the year. How can you repair the damage done? How can you repair the damage done? Think of ways to do so, and begin right away.
PRAYER: ACT OF LOVE: O my God, I love you above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because you are all-good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of you. I forgive all who have injured me, and I ask pardon of all whom I have injured. (Add your own thoughts)
