It was late February or early March. I was home with the children; Cindy was out for a while. The day was unseasonably warm, but there was still a nip in the air. A child with her friend came up to me in the late afternoon. “Can we put on swimsuits and turn on the hose and get wet?”
I had forgotten to put on my bracelet that morning—my WWMS bracelet. You know, “What would Mom say?” Still, in the back of my mind, I knew what Mom would say: “NO!” And she would have several dozen good reasons for that answer.
My mind was full of deep theological thoughts, though, and try as I might, I could not marshal a single reason to say no. “I guess,” I said, but wanting to prove I was no pushover, I added, “But not one drop of water in the house, and no mud at all. Stay on the driveway or in the grass.” As they ran happily off, I returned to my easy chair in front of a television showing NCAA basketball that I was, of course, ignoring, being caught up thinking deep theological thoughts. But I remember that inwardly I felt a little uneasy and hoped it would be a while before Mom returned. However, it wasn’t long before I heard the van make its way into the driveway and to the rear of the house.
My wife is an excellent musician. She has a beautiful voice. And in that moment I heard her melodious strains wafting through the backyard and on into the house.
“Who told you that you could get wet and muddy?” I froze as I waited to hear the reply, which came rather quickly. “Dad said we could.” And I heard them continue to explain it in such I way that it sounded like I gave not only permission but that it was my idea.
They were off the hook. They had authority. “Dad said we could.” I reluctantly pushed my deep theological thoughts aside and quietly made my way to the front door. I just remembered some errands I needed to run. And since my cell phone battery was not taking a charge very well at the time, I decided I would conserve the power and just leave it off for a while.
“Who told you that you could?” That’s a popular question, isn’t it? Jesus was asked that question on a busy teaching day during Holy Week. He was asked that by the guardians of Judaism who were threatened by his popularity and his power and his very presence.
It was Tuesday of Holy Week. On Sunday the crowd had gone wild with shouts of “Hosanna!” as Jesus entered
Since a crowd of people were around, they were a little more polite than they might have been in private: “‘By what authority are you doing these things?’ they asked. ‘And who gave you the authority to do this?’” (Mark 11.28 NIV)
He could have answered them, and perhaps he would have answered them had they been honest inquirers of what could have been, in my mind, a legitimate question. But legitimate questions seek for answers. And they had already decided in their minds that since they had not given him authority, there was no authority. They were not looking for an answer to consider; they were looking for an answer to entrap and condemn.
So Jesus offered them a deal. If they would answer a question about the authority of John the Baptist, he would answer the question about his own authority.
John’s baptism… was it from heaven or men? “Tell me.” (Mark 11.30)
They got together in a holy huddle…
31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn't you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘From men’....” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)
They were caught in just the kind of trap they had been laying for Jesus (and would again with the question about taxes.) Unlike Jesus, they couldn't come up with an answer.
“We don’t know,” they replied. (Mark 11.31)
“If you are the experts on religious authority and cannot determine the authority of John’s message…” Jesus seemed to be saying as he uttered the words:
“Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” (11.33)
To add insult to injury, Jesus told a parable that cast them in the roles of thieves and murderers. This made them more angry than ever. So they regrouped and tried to come up with a way of putting Jesus in a bad light with the people or making him look foolish.
It was April – that’s tax time for everyone, I guess – so they asked him if it were okay to pay taxes to Caesar. He said, in essence, “Yes, but it is even more important to give God his due.”
And what is God due? What is God’s? We would like to know that this Holy Week, wouldn’t we? Good news! Jesus answers that question for us after a slight detour.
The Sadducees, a group that didn’t believe in life after death, first throw out a riddle trying to show the absurdity of the resurrection. Jesus uses the Scripture to say firmly, “Yes, there is life after death. This is not all there is.” And if they didn’t believe the Scriptures, all they had to do was hang around town just a few more days and they could see it for themselves.
But then, in the last question anyone dared ask him publicly, someone asks that day a question that Matthew implies may have started out as kind of a setup, but ends up with the questioner becoming impressed with Jesus, and that, in turn, impresses Jesus.
Mark 12 (NIV)
28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?"
This last question is the most important. Essentially, “What is the most important thing in life?” “What is life all about?”
29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Essentially, Jesus said, “I can’t give you just one, though there is one that is most important. I will give you two that are closely related.” After sharing them, he says, “There is no commandment greater than these.” Does that statement sound like something we need to underline in our lives—that we need to order out lives around these words?
The most important thing in life: Love God. But how must we love God?
Look down at verse 30. There are four words mentioned: heart, soul, mind, strength. I began to wonder if one of the words in the verse was the key to loving God correctly. What would you judge as the key word or concept in that passage? I once did a word study of these concepts mentioned. I understood this was perhaps the most important verse in the Bible (since Jesus said so!). I wanted to understand how to love God . There were secrets here to the meaning of life! I was disappointed, though, as I tried to understand these words in the original language. The meanings were not as concise and unique as I had anticipated. Their meanings overlap. One commentator used this phrase about the four words: he said they are “semantically concentric.” In other words, they pretty much have the same center of meaning and differ in breadth of meaning. I discovered that the key word here for loving God is not heart. It’s not soul. Mind? Nope. Not even strength.
But upon further reflection, I did discover that there was indeed a key word in that passage in teaching us how to love God. It just wasn’t one of the ones I was initially drawn toward.
What is the key in how to love God? It’s the word all.
If we were honest, some of us might admit that we are half-hearted in our love for God.
Some of us are of a divided mind…we are too enamored with the entertainment of this world that focuses on the sensual and decadent rather than the spiritual and the good.
Love with all. Jesus is saying that we are not to approach God with only parts of ourselves. If we want to love God, it must with our total being.
Here’s our last question of the day: Is Jesus right? The questioner thinks so: 32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”
This man evaluates Jesus. And Jesus, after being evaluated, evaluates this man. He, in essence, wants the man to know that he is not judged by this man, but he himself is the judge. Look at Jesus’ answer:
34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.
Which brings us back to the original question:
By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you authority to do this?
“Who told you that you could make such pronouncements?”
What gives you the right to pick out these two as the greatest commandments?
Jesus didn’t give these guys the answer that day, but he gives it to us:
Matthew 28 (NIV)
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Who told you that you could do that?
Jesus says, “Daddy told me I could.” And in the way he explained it, he lets us know that it was his Father’s idea all along. “I do only what the Father tells me to do.”
He proved it by going to the cross.
This Holy Week, attending worship opportunities is a good thing. But what is most important is to love God with all that you are, and to love one another as you love yourself.
Love on God this week through prayer, praise, the Word…
Love on God by being intentionally obedient to his commands.
Remember, Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
Love your neighbor today, whether that is your spouse, your child, your parents, your roommate, your classmate, your co-worker, your acquaintances. Remember that Jesus would say to love on somebody, to help somebody who can’t do anything for you in return.
Love God with all you are. Love your neighbor as yourself. And we love, because he first loved us.
And the Father has told me to remind you that this is what will make this week—and every week—a Holy Week.
2 comments:
Someone does read it! This is a really great one Fred! Thanks for sharing!
I read this Fred! What a great thought for this week. Those deep theological thoughts happen at our house too, always in March and April, mostly Thursday through Sunday. =)
Post a Comment