EXPLORE THE TEXT
We are to honor God exclusively as the one true God and to love our neighbor as ourselves.
34 When the Pharisees heard that he had
silenced the Sadducees, they came together.
35 And one of them, an expert in the law, asked a question to test him:
36 “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?”
37 He said to him,
“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.
38 This is the greatest and most important command.
39 The second is like it:
Love your neighbor as yourself.
40 All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.”
Summarize the following content (PSG, pp. 94-95) to explain the significance of this question and Jesus’s response:
“His question was one of theology:
Which command in the law is the greatest?
This was an age-old debate among the rabbis.
The rabbis taught that Moses had received 613 laws on Mount Sinai.
Could they be boiled down to the most important ones?
A scheme had been created that labeled some laws as ‘heavier,’ meaning they were a higher priority. .Jesus proclaimed that loving God wholeheartedly was the greatest and most important of all the commandments.
However, Jesus wasn’t finished.
The Mosaic law is symbolically represented by the ‘two tablets’ of the law-
the first four commandments dealt with the vertical relationship with God,
while the last six commandments related to horizontal relationships with others.
Because of this, Jesus said, there was one more command that was essential.
The second is like it, meaning a commandment that is equally important.
Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Jesus identified these two commands as the greatest and most important
because all other laws spring from them.
We can’t really love God fully without loving our neighbors,
and we can’t love our neighbors fully without loving God.
Every aspect of living a healthy Christian life that honors God
can be traced to our ability to obey these two commands.
Lead adults to identify ways they can love God with their entire being and love their neighbors as themselves.
Find ways to demonstrate these actions as they step into the “real world” this week.
Review these points from Apply the Text on page 96 of the Personal Study Guide:
Lead adults in a brief discussion of the first set of questions on page 96 of the PSG. Point back to Pack Item 6 (Poster: Loving God, Loving Others). Remind them that loving God includes loving our neighbors-and Jesus defined a neighbor as any other human we meet (Luke 10:25-37).
Invite a volunteer to read the second set of questions on page 96 of the PSG aloud. Emphasize that God calls His people to honor Him in every aspect of their lives. Encourage them to spend time during the week talking with God about what areas they might be holding back and how they can surrender those areas to Him for His glory.
Encourage adults to pray in pairs. Instruct one adult in each pair to pray that God would empower both adults to honor Him in every aspect of life. Instruct the second adult to pray for government leaders. Close with a prayer for your group.
This week, consider how you have seen the adults in your group honor God with their lives. Send a text or email to each individual, acknowledging how they have revealed what it means to honor God. Thank them for the example set for others. Send another text or email to the whole group, challenging them to continue looking for ways to apply what they listed on Pack Item 6 (Poster: Loving God, Loving Others).
Means and methods used for the improvement of society and the establishment of righteousness among men can be truly and permanently helpful only when they are rooted in the regeneration of the individual by the saving grace of God in Jesus Christ. (See Romans 13:1-2; 1 Timothy 2:1-2.)
Use multiple Scripture passages to understand a Bible passage.
In Matthew 22:17-21, Jesus spoke about giving to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s. Compare this to Acts 5:27-29; Romans 13:1-7; and 1 Peter 2:13-17. Based on all these passages, write a description of the Christian’s responsibilities toward government.