Paul, in writing to the Thessalonians says, “We had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in the face of great opposition.” I like that. He gives us a perfect example of giving credit to God rather than acknowledging any praise for himself for his work at Thessalonika. He could have said, “Hey, look at what we did...” But he didn’t - he gave the credit and the glory to God. And in doing this he also acknowledges the reason for speaking so, “we speak, not to please men, but to please God.”
In our gospel lesson when the lawyer asks Jesus, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?” He just might have a reason to ask. The Pharisees prided themselves (remember Paul in the second lesson who didn’t take pride in himself...) on following all the laws... All 613 of the laws handed down through Moses.
And of those 613 laws, 365 of them are “Thou shalt not’s...” With that many to remember NOT to do, it just might be hard to remember what you are supposed to do. The Pharisees were always determined to “get it right”. Now I don’t know about you, but I have often been plagued with this burning desire to “get it right”. Especially on tests. I remember when I first started running into open-ended questions that had no specific answer. Almost drove me crazy trying to find out what I was supposed to do. Remember that I taught mathematics, and I like nice logical problems with exact answers. You know, it’s either right or it’s wrong - with partial credit if you showed your work. So I understand wanting to get it right.
Lots of people want to get it right when it comes to worship. I’ve seen people panic over the slightest little thing - you know, wine spilled on at alb or the fair linen, or a skipped lesson, or the wrong song played. I’ve come to the conclusion that God probably gets a good laugh at some of the things that we obsess over. So this lawyer wants to know which of the 613 laws is the greatest. He’s asking a legally complex question. Now according to Matthew - this is a confrontation - they are trying to trap Jesus into saying something that can be used against him in trial. And Jesus once again sidesteps his antagonists as he sweeps away the legal implications by calling the people to love.
You see, I don’t think God is so much interested in our ‘getting every little detail right’, as he is interested in our understanding the big picture. In other words, it’s not the “things” that matter - it’s the condition of the heart that is important. That is what Jesus is trying to tell us in the gospel today. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and with all your mind.” But, it’s very important that we don’t miss the second commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
You see, even though they are really two separate commandments - they are interdependent. They have something like of a symbiotic relationship. Does everyone know what interdependent means? It’s claimed that there are three stages to life. Stage one is when you are totally dependent on others – as a baby or small child, you are dependent on your parents and other adults to take care of you - feed you, clothe you, keep you safe. As you grow up, and especially into your teen years it becomes important to learn to be independent – to be able to take care of yourself and not need anyone else. That is stage two. Unfortunately, we all know people who never make it out of one or the other of these two stages of life. The third stage of life is when you learn to be interdependent – this is usually understood to be the fullness of adulthood. This is the stage of life where you know that you are fully capable of being independent, but you also realize (or learn) the value of being interdependent with other people in this life.
This is where you choose to entwine your life with others and allow them to help you even as you help them. The first two stages are all about self – what others can do for me – and what I can do for me. The third stage is where we reach out to include others in a healthy way – how we can work together to the benefit of both (or all).
It is this kind of interdependence that is set up with these two commandments. Each one is stated separately, and in fact, each one has been acted on alone by some people. Stage one: There are people who get so wrapped up in loving the Lord that they never make it outside themselves to see what He wants them to do in the world. Stage two: There are also humanitarians who do wonderful work with the poor, or the sick, or the homeless, etc. – but who will tell you there is no God and that’s why we have to be responsible for those less fortunate. Now that is independent from stage one. Both of these stages are still about self – the first is what can God do for me? The second is what can I do for others (I in place of God). But God calls us to beyond stage one on to stage three – to understand a healthy relationship between the two commandments.
There are too many people who claim to love God, but yet they will go out and step all over others to get what they want, or ignore those who need a helping hand, or treat others less than kindly. They don’t carry what they learn about God out into the world. What they don’t understand is that our love of God is incomplete if it does not extend to those who are made in God’s image. That’s what love of neighbor is all about. It’s about treating those around us in the same way we would want to be treated if we were in their place.
One of the things we did in seminary was the “Friday feeding” - we would make sandwiches, put them in a bag along with a piece of fruit and bottle of water and take them down to an area just off the drag in Austin where young homeless kids (high school age) hung out. We pass them out, then if we had any left, we took them down to the Red River Street area where adult homeless could be found, and if there was any left then we would take them to the local shelter. Putting into action what we were learning in school.
I really liked the way Grace came together right after Harvey to prepare and deliver food for those out working on flooded houses. That’s the kind of thing God wants us to do - to reach out and help those in need.
This kind of love is not about passion and it’s not about feelings. It’s about treating other fairly and honestly and justly. This love is a decision - a decision to show mercy, to lend a helping hand, to respond to the rights of others. This kind of love means to be in relationship with the people around us - those who know God and those who don’t. This kind of love is the fulfillment – the interdependence – the adulthood of the Christian life. This is an invitation to live into the fullness of God’s love for us and through us. It becomes a beacon shining out to those around us, calling others to a fuller life in Christ. Not just obeying the laws of God, but living a life in Christ as well. And living that life means being interdependent both with God and with the world around us. Amen.
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