When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees in the matter of resurrection of the dead, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, “Master, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matt.22: 34-40).
Jesus summed all the laws of Moses and the prophets in these two commandments. Today, Jesus asks us to follow these two commandments, which, in essence, comprise the whole Bible. Do we love our God with all our heart, soul and mind? Jesus just before His ascension into the Heaven asked Peter, “Simon, son of Jones, lovest thou Me more than these?” (John 21:15). You may love Jesus. But how do you love Him?
You may love Him half-heartedly. You may regularly go to the church for worship and may put a few dollars into the offering box. Or you may give away a few dollars to God’s work. Or you may appreciate a sermon from the pulpit or a message of God from some web site. Or you may participate in intercessory prayers. But still your prominent love for God may not be with all your heart, soul and mind.
Jesus expected Peter to show a kind of love, which was not merely prominent but was preeminent. Peter was expected to love Jesus more than anybody else – to love Him unto death.
When I wrote this very message, a Christian monthly magazine “Tortured For Christ” for March 2003 was received by post. The first message was on the martyrdom of one Brother Than in Myanmar.
Brother Than was imprisoned for his Christian faith on some false charges by the military dictatorship of that nation. Two Christian believers sought permission to visit him in prison. When permission was granted to them with a great difficulty, the police ordered them not to speak to Than. However, the police took the two believers and Than to a nearby wooded area where they were allowed to speak to Than, to their great surprise.
Before any of the believers could share some words of encouragement, Than pleaded with them, “I am very glad you are with me. Please go to my area and share the gospel. This is our responsibility. You must be faithful unto death”. Suddenly, one of the policemen shouted at Than, “You have spoken too much!” He drew out his pistol and shot Than in the head. The believers were sternly warned to recant their Christian faith or else they would face the same fate. With this warning, they were permitted to bury Than’s body.
If you love God, are your “faithful unto death”? (Rev.2: 10).
The second commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. Who is your neighbor? In the parable of the Good Samaritan, Jesus explained in the 10th chapter of Luke that the neighbor was a certain man who was stripped of his raiment and was wounded by thieves. The wounded man was neglected by a priest and a Levite but was taken care of and was nursed by a certain Samaritan. Your neighbor is one who is neglected by the society and the religion.
You are not supposed to love your neighbor in the normal human manner but in the divine manner. You should love him as “thyself” – in the same manner as you love yourself or your own family. The Good Samaritan not only gave first aid to the wounded man but also took him on his animal and brought him to an inn. Not only that, he also paid two denarii’s to the innkeeper for taking care of the wounded man and promised to compensate the innkeeper for the extra amount spent by him. This is love for your neighbor.
Let us dedicate ourselves to our God and our neighbor.