Tuesday, July 4, 2006
Mark 12:28-34
And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?” Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” And the scribe said to him, “You are right, Teacher. You have truly said that he is one, and there is no other besides him. And to love him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.” And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And after that no one dared to ask him any more questions. (ESV)
by Maryann Palmer
A religion scholar, intrigued by lively discussion and Jesus’ insightful answers to questions, approached Jesus. He wasn‘t trying to trip Jesus up, but was sincerely asking a legitimate question of his own: What is the most important commandment? Jesus gave him both first and second. The teacher of the law was totally impressed by Jesus’ answer, repeated it, and noted (perhaps with astonishment) that these two commandments were of far more import than all of the rituals, rules and regulations surrounding burnt offerings and sacrifices. Do we get so caught up in the details that we miss the big picture?
Copyright Information
Daily Bible Meditations are taken from The Helping Hand,a Sabbath School student quarterly for youth and adults. Copyright © 2010, Seventh Day Baptist Board of Christian Education, Inc.
Scripture quotations marked "ESV" are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Text provided by the Crossway Bibles Web Service.
