Greatest Commandment

Sunday Reflection – November 3, 2024

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Greatest Commandments

Mark 12 28  One of the teachers of the Law of Moses came up while Jesus and the Sadducees were arguing. When he heard Jesus give a good answer, he asked him, “What is the most important commandment?”

29  Jesus answered, “The most important one says: ‘People of Israel, you have only one Lord and God. 30 You must love him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.’ 31  The second most important commandment says: ‘Love others as much as you love yourself.’ No other commandment is more important than these.”

32  The man replied, “Teacher, you are certainly right to say there is only one God. 33  It is also true that we must love God with all our heart, mind, and strength, and that we must love others as much as we love ourselves. These commandments are more important than all the sacrifices and offerings that we could possibly make.”

34 When Jesus saw that the man had given a sensible answer, he told him, “You are not far from God’s kingdom.” After this, no one dared ask Jesus any more questions.

Kids Korner: Loving our neighbour (November 3rd)

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Read Mark 12:28-34 with your family.

Jesus was asked a lot of questions, but the only questions he answered were from people who truly wanted to know what Jesus was teaching about God’s world.

When asked about the greatest commandments, Jesus replied by quoting two verses found in the Hebrew Scriptures (or Old Testament). First was loving God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. This is found in Deuteronomy 6:4-6, and for our Jewish siblings, this is called the “Shema”, something they say every morning when they get up and at night when they go to bed.

The second was to love our neighbour as ourselves, which is found in Leviticus 19:18.

Most people don’t realize Jesus is saying three things, not just two. Love God is plain, love our neighbours makes sense, but Jesus is also saying that we much love ourselves.

How will be ever be able to love other people if we don’t love ourselves first?

God wants us to feel good about our choices and our talents, and wants us to respect and like ourselves. In a world that is constantly telling everyone from children to seniors that we are not good enough, it is a radical idea to realize we are enough and worthy of the love of God and our neighbours, but also ourselves.

Sunday Reflection – October 29, 2023

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Greatest Commandment & Who is the Messiah

Matthew 22 34 After Jesus had made the Sadducees look foolish, the Pharisees heard about it and got together. 35  One of them was an expert in the Jewish Law. So he tried to test Jesus by asking, 36 “Teacher, what is the most important commandment in the Law?”

37  Jesus answered:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. 38 This is the first and most important commandment. 39  The second most important commandment is like this one. And it is, “Love others as much as you love yourself.” 40 All the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets are based on these two commandments.

sent some of their followers and some of Herod’s followers to say to him,

41 While the Pharisees were still there, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose family will he come from?”

They answered, “He will be a son of King David.”

43 Jesus replied, “How then could the Spirit lead David to call the Messiah his Lord? David said,

44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord:
    Sit at my right side
until I make your enemies
    into a footstool for you.’

45 If David called the Messiah his Lord, how can the Messiah be a son of King David?” 46 No one was able to give Jesus an answer, and from that day on, no one dared ask him any more questions.

Kids Korner: Loving ourselves (Oct. 29th)

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Read Matthew 22:34-46 with your family.

What does it mean to be a Christian? Jesus answered that one: it means we have to love God above all else and love everyone else like we love ourselves AND we have to love ourselves like we love everyone else.

Often people think there was only two parts to this section of scripture that we call The Greatest Commandment, but there is actually three: God, neighbours and ourselves.

How do we love God? We pray and we do what God has asked us to do to take care of other people.

How do we love our neighbours? We are kind to others, welcome strangers, and help make sure everyone has food to eat and a safe place to live, and all the other things Jesus told us to do for other people.

How doe we love ourselves?

This is something the church doesn’t talk about, instead the church often tells people what is wrong with them and how they have to change. But Jesus never said we had to change who we are, we just have to love everyone. That’s about behaviour not who we are as people.

How we love ourselves is knowing that God made us perfect just the way we are on the inside, and we can make any choice we want to change the outside, so long as it doesn’t hurt us or anyone else. God loves us as we are. Once we love ourselves it is easier to love strangers and people we know.

Sunday Reflection – October 31, 2021

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The Greatest commandment

Mark 12 28 One of the legal experts heard their dispute and saw how well Jesus answered them. He came over and asked him, “Which commandment is the most important of all?”

29 Jesus replied, “The most important one is Israel, listen! Our God is the one Lord, 30 and you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, with all your mind, and with all your strength. 31 The second is this, You will love your neighbour as yourself. No other commandment is greater than these.”

32 The legal expert said to him, “Well said, Teacher. You have truthfully said that God is one and there is no other besides him. 33 And to love God with all of the heart, a full understanding, and all of one’s strength, and to love one’s neighbor as oneself is much more important than all kinds of entirely burned offerings and sacrifices.”

34 When Jesus saw that he had answered with wisdom, he said to him, “You aren’t far from God’s kingdom.” After that, no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Performed by Margaret Whisselle

Kids Korner: The greatest commandments (October 31st)

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Read Mark 12:28-34 with your family. This story happens after Jesus has entered Jerusalem and everyone celebrated his arrival.

In this passage Jesus is quoting the Hebrew Scriptures:

Deuteronomy 6:4-5 says “Israel, listen! Our God is the Lord! Only the Lord! Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your strength.”

Leviticus 19:18 says: “You must not take revenge nor hold a grudge against any of your people; instead, you must love your neighbour as yourself; I am the Lord.”

Jesus was able to prove to the scribes that he knew scripture and was not teaching anything against the teachings of God.