November 14, 2019
Love the Lord Your God and Your Neighbor
Matthew 22:23–46
Courtney Wagenseller
Central Truth
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul. Love your neighbor as yourself.
Key Verse | Matthew 22:37-40
And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."
Matthew 22:23–46
Sadducees Ask About the Resurrection
23 The same day Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked him a question, 24 saying, “Teacher, Moses said, ‘If a man dies having no children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother.’ 25 Now there were seven brothers among us. The first married and died, and having no offspring left his wife to his brother. 26 So too the second and third, down to the seventh. 27 After them all, the woman died. 28 In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be? For they all had her.”
29 But Jesus answered them, “You are wrong, because you know neither the Scriptures nor the power of God. 30 For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. 31 And as for the resurrection of the dead, have you not read what was said to you by God: 32 ‘I am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not God of the dead, but of the living.” 33 And when the crowd heard it, they were astonished at his teaching.
The Great Commandment
34 But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him. 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
Whose Son Is the Christ?
41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, “The son of David.” 43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,
44
‘The Lord said to my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
until I put your enemies under your feet”’?
45 If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?” 46 And no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.
Dive Deeper | Matthew 22:23–46
Growing up, I thought that knowing God meant I had to obey a set of rules and check all of the boxes on a list of commands God expected of me. My happiness and seeking to please God were based on the misconception that I had to obey God for Him to love me.
As I grew in faith and knowledge of Him, I noticed an abundance of grace; and my heart changed from a "have to" to a "want to" mentality. Although I was growing in the knowledge of His Word, I began to doubt truth and genuinely questioned why I believed what I believed. I thought I had to have all the answers all of the time. Because of this experience, I can relate all too well to both the Sadducees and Pharisees when they questioned Jesus in Matthew 22:23-40.
Our brains are finite, and our God is almighty, all powerful, and all knowing. I find freedom and life when I let go of the pressure to know all the answers and rest in the love of the Lord instead. In Matthew 22:37-40, Jesus replies to the questioning of the Pharisees with the following commands: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and all your mind. . . . You shall love your neighbor as yourself." By having my perspective set on loving the Lord and my neighbors, I release the expectation that I have to have the perfect theological answer. Additionally, my heart changes. He provides me with the truth of who He is, and I can rest in the grace He has given to me.
You may be thinking, "This sounds great, but, man, it sure is hard to love certain people in my life." Pray. Ask the Lord for guidance on how to love others and how you can serve them. Colossians 4:2 states, "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." With His power, He will do abundantly more than we can ask or imagine.
Discussion Questions
1. What are things that stir your affections for God? What activities make you feel most connected to the Lord?
2. What can you do today to love and serve your neighbor, family member, coworker, or friend?
3. Is it hard to love your neighbors as yourself? Why? What can you do to change your perspective?
4. Looking back on the last year, has loving the Lord been your highest priority?