It was a sign of respect and a polite way to address a Rabbi by asking for that teacher’s summation of the law. It was a way of seeing if that teacher could get to the truth. It was also a way of discerning where the teacher’s heart was. A student might ask, “Teach me the Torah while standing on one foot” – in other words – briefly. Then the Rabbi would sum up the law. Jesus is asked the same sort of question. “Which commandment is the greatest?” Jesus could have said many things. He could have picked the first of the Ten Commandments.
Jesus gives two commandments, the second following from the first. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” And then he adds, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If this were another sort of story, Rabbi Jesus might explain what it means to love God with all your heart. Then he might explain what it means to love with all your strength, and then with all your mind. Each of these explanations would lead to further explanations and after a time all the possible applications might be covered. Another chapter might explore how we love our neighbor as ourselves.
The first commandment Jesus invokes is a reflection of the teaching in Deuteronomy 6, called the Shema, a statement of faith in Judaism to this day. The second law about loving one’s neighbors puts Jesus in the liberal camp of Jewish teaching, where care of one’s neighbors is as important as personal devotion to God and is as important an expression of faith. The story continues with Jesus stumping his questioners yet again as they fail to see the significance of Jesus himself.
I’m curious about how we hear the law as given by Jesus. We have heard the quote so often that it no longer stops us. Jesus is reminding us that our devotion to God must be complete, and then he adds that our devotion to each other needs to be complete as well. If we take his words seriously, then how do we live our lives in complete devotion while retaining our sense of self? How do we balance commitments to God and to others? How do we make it to the end of the month and fulfill our responsibilities to God and to those entrusted to us?
This is the tricky question of stewardship. It is right for us to think of responsibility when we think of our commitment to God and to each other. But we must be careful not to think in terms of law and then immediately start counting out money. Our commitment is not first with our things, but with our heart. Jesus tells us that we are to love God. Jesus does not say fear God. Jesus does not say respect God. This is something deeper and maybe more difficult. Jesus asks for our love first.
When we think of giving and generosity, we have trouble when we are giving out of duty. How hard is it to buy a present for in-laws? How hard is it to buy a gift for your boss? Maybe you like your boss or you in-laws so it isn’t difficult for you. On the other hand, how easy is it to give something to someone you love? I have no problem giving good things to my granddaughter. When there is love, the only difficulty may be in restraint. The lover might try to hard to impress the beloved.
This is where we should start when we think about our gifts to God through our offerings in this church. We don’t give because it’s our duty. We don’t give because it’s our fair share. We don’t give because we’re afraid we’ll be punished or look bad if we don’t. We give because we love God. We give because so much has been given to us. We give because it is the way that we can join in God’s generous work of reconciling the world.
We begin by giving thanks for what we have. God doesn’t need anything from us. God asks us to give because it is good for us. When we give we learn to live like God, thinking about people outside of us. When we give we are acting on faith that God will use what we give away and that God will continue to give us what we need. When we give we are saying that what I have is not mine. I am given temporary use of it to use as wisely as possible.
The ancient standard is the tithe, which is a tenth. It has the virtue of being easy to figure – just move the decimal point. It is often a stretch, and perhaps that is another virtue of it. I know that a tithe is quite a challenge for many of us, but we can also think in terms of percentages. If we plan to give a certain percent, we are starting with what we have been given, and we are making wise choices with God’s gifts. If you feel that even this is too much to do, start with a simple first step.
God only asks us to use what we have been given. God doesn’t expect us to give what others give. God knows our situations and our struggles. I’m always aware that the people who are often most faithful and generous hear the wrong message in a stewardship sermon. It is not the amount: it’s the attitude. Do we give in order to obey a rule? Do we give because we are afraid? Do we give because we are ashamed?
None of those reasons will help us at all. We will get no benefit from our giving. If we seek to love God – If we seek to know how generously God has blessed us – If we seek to grow in love with each other, then we will want to let go of the question, “What should I give?” Then we will ask the question, “What more can I give?” Hopefully we grow to the place where we give with all our heart and with all our strength and with all our mind.
Jesus gives two commandments, the second following from the first. “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” And then he adds, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” If this were another sort of story, Rabbi Jesus might explain what it means to love God with all your heart. Then he might explain what it means to love with all your strength, and then with all your mind. Each of these explanations would lead to further explanations and after a time all the possible applications might be covered. Another chapter might explore how we love our neighbor as ourselves.
The first commandment Jesus invokes is a reflection of the teaching in Deuteronomy 6, called the Shema, a statement of faith in Judaism to this day. The second law about loving one’s neighbors puts Jesus in the liberal camp of Jewish teaching, where care of one’s neighbors is as important as personal devotion to God and is as important an expression of faith. The story continues with Jesus stumping his questioners yet again as they fail to see the significance of Jesus himself.
I’m curious about how we hear the law as given by Jesus. We have heard the quote so often that it no longer stops us. Jesus is reminding us that our devotion to God must be complete, and then he adds that our devotion to each other needs to be complete as well. If we take his words seriously, then how do we live our lives in complete devotion while retaining our sense of self? How do we balance commitments to God and to others? How do we make it to the end of the month and fulfill our responsibilities to God and to those entrusted to us?
This is the tricky question of stewardship. It is right for us to think of responsibility when we think of our commitment to God and to each other. But we must be careful not to think in terms of law and then immediately start counting out money. Our commitment is not first with our things, but with our heart. Jesus tells us that we are to love God. Jesus does not say fear God. Jesus does not say respect God. This is something deeper and maybe more difficult. Jesus asks for our love first.
When we think of giving and generosity, we have trouble when we are giving out of duty. How hard is it to buy a present for in-laws? How hard is it to buy a gift for your boss? Maybe you like your boss or you in-laws so it isn’t difficult for you. On the other hand, how easy is it to give something to someone you love? I have no problem giving good things to my granddaughter. When there is love, the only difficulty may be in restraint. The lover might try to hard to impress the beloved.
This is where we should start when we think about our gifts to God through our offerings in this church. We don’t give because it’s our duty. We don’t give because it’s our fair share. We don’t give because we’re afraid we’ll be punished or look bad if we don’t. We give because we love God. We give because so much has been given to us. We give because it is the way that we can join in God’s generous work of reconciling the world.
We begin by giving thanks for what we have. God doesn’t need anything from us. God asks us to give because it is good for us. When we give we learn to live like God, thinking about people outside of us. When we give we are acting on faith that God will use what we give away and that God will continue to give us what we need. When we give we are saying that what I have is not mine. I am given temporary use of it to use as wisely as possible.
The ancient standard is the tithe, which is a tenth. It has the virtue of being easy to figure – just move the decimal point. It is often a stretch, and perhaps that is another virtue of it. I know that a tithe is quite a challenge for many of us, but we can also think in terms of percentages. If we plan to give a certain percent, we are starting with what we have been given, and we are making wise choices with God’s gifts. If you feel that even this is too much to do, start with a simple first step.
God only asks us to use what we have been given. God doesn’t expect us to give what others give. God knows our situations and our struggles. I’m always aware that the people who are often most faithful and generous hear the wrong message in a stewardship sermon. It is not the amount: it’s the attitude. Do we give in order to obey a rule? Do we give because we are afraid? Do we give because we are ashamed?
None of those reasons will help us at all. We will get no benefit from our giving. If we seek to love God – If we seek to know how generously God has blessed us – If we seek to grow in love with each other, then we will want to let go of the question, “What should I give?” Then we will ask the question, “What more can I give?” Hopefully we grow to the place where we give with all our heart and with all our strength and with all our mind.
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