THE GREATEST COMMANDMANT

Passage: Matthew 22:34-46

Key verse: 37

NIV

The Greatest Commandment(A)

34 Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees,(B) the Pharisees got together. 35 One of them, an expert in the law,(C) tested him with this question: 36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[a](D) 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b](E) 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”(F)

Whose Son Is the Messiah?(G)

41 While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

“The son of David,”(H) they replied.

43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,

44 “‘The Lord said to my Lord:
    “Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
    under your feet.”’[c](I)

45 If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” 46 No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.(J)

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Footnotes
  1. Matthew 22:37 Deut. 6:5
  2. Matthew 22:39 Lev. 19:18
  3. Matthew 22:44 Psalm 110:1
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

The Great Commandment

34 (A)But when the Pharisees heard that he had silenced (B)the Sadducees, they gathered together. 35 (C)And one of them, (D)a lawyer, asked him a question (E)to test him. 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, (F)“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 (G)a second is like it: (H)You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 (I)On these two commandments depend (J)all the Law and the Prophets.”

Whose Son Is the Christ?

41 (K)Now while the Pharisees (L)were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, “What do you think about (M)the Christ? Whose son is he?” They said to him, (N)“The son of David.” 43 He said to them, “How is it then that David, (O)in the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying,

44 (P)“‘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, (Q)how is he his son?” 46 (R)And no one was able to answer him a word, (S)nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions.

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The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway

A Pharisee asked Jesus which commandment is the greatest among the 613 listed in the Old Testament. Perhaps he did not know, though he memorized them all. He might have been overwhelmed by the many expectations of the law. Jesus replied, not with one from the Ten Commandments, but from Deut. 6:5, “Love the Lord your God (with all your being).” The second, “Love you neighbor as yourself.” Jesus knew the spirit of the law—love. Jesus himself loved God and us with all his being. God does not want our religiosity but our love for him and for our neighbors. God is love. We love because he first loved us (1 Jn 4:19). We receive God’s love in Jesus and love God and others in return.

Jesus’ question to the Pharisees, “Whose son is the Messiah?” seems easy to answer. The Messiah should be from David’s royal line and restore his kingdom. But according to David’s psalm, the Messiah is David’s LORD who existed before David. Therefore, he is both the son of David as well as the Son of God. Jesus claimed himself as that Messiah. Jesus is fully God and fully man. Jesus is God who humbled himself, took the nature of true humanity to himself, and lived among us. Jesus is God who tasted death in our place but rose from the dead in power and glory.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your love for us. Help us to love you and in your love to love others.

One Word: Love is the greatest of everything